The Holocaust Memorial Lecture is an annual event that is administered by the Center for the Humanities.  It was inaugurated in 1989 by then-Chancellor William H. Danforth, who, at the request of both students and faculty, appointed a committee to establish a permanent lecture. Held on or near November 9th, the anniversary of the Kristallnacht pogroms in Nazi Germany, the Lecture aims not only to commemorate the Holocaust but also to address its broader implications for other instances of systematic persecution, mass murder and genocide. The Lecture customarily alternates between speakers who concentrate specifically on aspects of the Holocaust and those who speak more generally about modern genocide, international conflict and humanitarian aid or concentrate specifically on particular instances of genocidal violence. Each speaker is selected by the Holocaust Memorial Committee, which is composed of faculty, students, and staff. Past speakers have included well-known public figures and leading scholars of both the Holocaust and other historical mass traumas.

 

 

Questions? Please contact the chair of the Holocaust Memorial Lecture Committee, Prof. Anika Walke, at <a.walke[at]wustl.edu>.

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