When Children Become Accountable for History
by Gala Chausson

The designation of a national enemy, and the fight against the "evilness" has become a major concern and a key element in politics within most democracies today. Al Qaida for the United States, the FARC for Colombia, and more recently the Nazis, yes the Nazis, for France; We, the French, were missing an enemy; Nicolas Sarkozy found one for us.

A few weeks ago, the French President proposed a new measure; to each student entering the 5th grade, the name of a Jewish child who died during the Holocaust would be attributed, in order to celebrate the memories of the child and the genocide.

Perplexity from all sides arose after the announcement of the measure and many interrogations remain. It is not in line with today's politics in France when the Jews are far from being the worst victims of discrimination. The question then is why? How could this measure be beneficial to the future society?

Would it be to sensitize the new generations to horror? But then, why focus on the Holocaust? Of course this genocide is one of the greatest crimes against humanity. It happened on a continent that was supposedly the most civilized or at least the most evolved at the time, and got emphasized by the recourse to science. Nonetheless, the violence led by this ideology of racial superiority, this fear of what is different, hasn't been confined to this particular part of history, far from it. It has been arising from all sides and at all times, colonization and slavery bear witnesses to it.

Sarkozy, with his measure, is diminishing the importance of other crimes, of other parts of the population, and; by setting his concern on an event that happened sixty years ago, he is discrediting today's malevolent actions. He is freezing the "evil" in the past, which doesn't stimulate critical thinking. By not encouraging a reassessment of the facts, this pure display of the terrorists and the victims may only vivify distrust and stringency.

By choosing an enemy for children to recognize, is Sarkozy just following the trend? It wouldn't be such a shock. The designation of a past genocide as a way to not forget the evilness, adds to many other aspects of his politics that seem to be aimed at creating fear and thus keeping control. This is what is happening in the United States where terrorism has become the number one concern, or in Colombia where the fight against the FARC is what holds the population together around President Uribe. In France, Sarkozy just allowed a renewed generation of children of the Holocaust to carry out the trend and bring to the world their own experience of the wicked.