Students in Arthur L. Johnson’s Holocaust and Genocide Studies course had the opportunity to hear guest speaker Fran Malkin’s story of surviving the Holocaust. Ms. Malkin was born in a part of Poland, which is now part of the Ukraine. At five-years-old, she went into hiding with her family for 18 months. During her visit to ALJ, she described her experience hiding in a barn and her eventual journey to America. In addition, Ms. Malkin showed part of a documentary “No. 4 Street of Our Lady” featuring her visit back to where she spent her time in hiding.
At the end of the program, Mr. Franklin Stebbins, teacher of the course, addressed his students, “As you prepare to enter college and beyond, you will have a chance to shape your surroundings and your world. Start small. Start with yourself. Start by asking questions. Be friends with people you have a lot in common with, but also take the time to learn about those who are different from you. Have an active role in your surroundings because then and only then will change happen.”
Hailey Lara, a senior, commented, “Reading about an event in a text book does not even come close to thinking about the actual individuals involved in an atrocity like this. Six million deaths sound unimaginable but the six million lives that existed before this genocide is what matters.”
(above) Fran Malkin, speaker, and Franklin Stebbins, ALJ teacher
(above) Franklin Stebbins, Kayla Dias, Alison Bretz, Julia Sapia, Morgana Haub, Fran Malkin.
