The U.S. and the Holocaust

Perhaps it's because, unlike others like Lanzmann, Resnais, Spielberg, et al., Ken Burns and his crew of expert documentarians come to the subject with all their finely-tuned skills in presenting important historical events, this is, for me, the most powerful, and upsetting rendering of the subject I have ever seen. Although the subject is, ostensibly, the role the United States played--or did not play--in dealing with the murder of millions of innocent civilians merely because they were Jewish, what I found most impressive was the focus on the transformation of ordinary, often happy lives throughout Europe into a brutal, horrifying nightmare. As one of the interviewees puts it, the emphasis on the death-camps, while certainly justified, tends to overlook the everyday brutality of innocent men, women and, equally, children being routinely and heartlessly ostracized by their "friends," humiliated, beaten, thrown from the rooftops of building, burnt, and, if lucky, merely shot.

It's very hard to talk about this film, but one must acknowledge the great achievement of these filmmakers.

The program for some reason left out the importance of Margaret Sanger and the left democratic eugenics motivating the 3rd Reich for the final solution and holocaust. The idea was hatched and implemented in the US before trips to Germany spread our filth to them. And where were the righteous voices coming to the aid of innocents? They are complicit for now stopping this satanic philosophy that still can be heard in Georgia governor candidate this week. Great job producers and team, wow! Should be required in every high school social studies class. NEVER REPEAT IT IN ANY FORM! The research super!

Mr ken burns for his ever so connective and brutally consistent narrative talents and partner in the direction crew together with lynn novick and sara botstein. This documentary doesnt just put the magnifying glass on the usa, indirec tly it tells the story about how the entire globe positioned itself on the jewish and other surpressed minorities going under the term of refugees during the nazi era.

Its just a pitty mr burns (et.co.) that you didnt make this series in 1985 when the war generation still lived, the year you famed the brooklyn bridge forever. I think that the number of reciepients are highly diminished due to digital media platforms, the topic of ww2 is alien and the subject of the jewish destiny is a heavy subject to elaborate and devour for the fast food and fast news generation x and z'ers of today.

I really admire the efforts done searching archives for pictorials and film reels used in this 3 part series, loads of material i havent seen in the past, and i, the grumpy old man, have a sofisticated interest on an amateur level the ww2 history and have seen almost everything that has been issued from english, french, german and japanese language spheres + the italian, and loads and loads of norwegian war history.

Im glad mr burns that you still have many productive years to come, i can not praise enough the impact and inspiration youve released in miself as your products have appeared

so to everyone sceptical to the harrowing title making usa seem like a crook, well then watch and learn, cause the refugee problem will always be there. Its an overwhelming recommend from the g.o.m..

I typically like Mr Burns's content. Yes, he does have a left-leaning slant but compared to other historical documentaries produced today its slight and very This revealed Burns's current stance on immigration policy more than it was history of the USA & Holocaust.

Comparing today's political discourse with societal attitudes and legislation passed (on immigration) in 1920s and 30s America is dishonest and anti intellectual... you're no better than the Bush campaign in 92 playing the prison furlough commercial. If you vote/advocate for this, then this could happen. Politics thru baseline emotions.

Essential viewing. Even if you think you know this history and have heard it all before, or that it's too depressing to devote 7 hours of time to, this is so masterfully crafted and has so much range that you're bound to learn something while being moved to tears. It puts the rise of fascism and what would become the Holocaust in context with attitudes in America and those around the world. The interviews, photographs, videos, etc reflect a high caliber of research; the narration and editing, a brilliant distillation. This is unvarnished, non-whitewashed history, simply stating the facts and remaining balanced. The interviews with survivors, descendants of survivors, American servicemen, and historians are simply extraordinary.

The parallel to the rising tide of hate and what may become fascism in America and other countries today is harrowing, and the filmmakers were wise to include a summary of what happened after war (hint: anti-Semitism didn't just vanish), and connect the dots to the present day. The parallel to the eugenics movement, Jim Crow, and anti-Semitism in America at the time, is incredibly damning. There is a reason Hitler simply looked to America with admiration for examples in the form of Native and African-Americans and how they were systematically killed, confined, or denigrated to second class citizens. The voices in America that not only encouraged isolationism but were outright hostile to the idea of providing aid to Jewish refugees, with officials in the State Department lying about what was known to be happening, is disheartening to say the least. On the other hand, how FDR navigated the choppy political waters, Elanor Roosevelt responded with such humanism, and how people like Raoul Wallenberg and John Pehle worked to save lives is stirring.

In a documentary filled with fantastic quotes from a wellspring of wisdom rooted in bitter experience, one that sticks me was Eva Schloss (née Geiringer) suggesting that Anne Frank would not likely have said "In spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart" after she had been captured and shipped off like human cattle to Auschwitz. This is not some pre-packaged rehash of history, it's presented with thought-provoking nuance. Another example are the arguments presented for and against the bombing of Auschwitz late in the war, and there are countless others, really putting us into the minds of people at the time.

With a shockingly high percentages of people who deny or aren't educated about the extent of the horror of the Holocaust, and with MAGA being a new "America First" movement also rooted in white supremacy, the timing for this documentary is perfect. One of the bitter ironies is that despite people working so hard at the time to ensure that the world knew the extent of the atrocities, overcoming skepticism in part because they were so mind-boggling, there are now new waves of people, fed misinformation and conspiracy theories, who don't believe it happened. Ken Burns and the other filmmakers strike at the heart of the importance of history, to understand and learn from it.