AIR FORCE ACADEMY — A conference just wrapping at the Air Force Academy is very timely in relation to the attacks that just happened in Israel.
The event is titled War, The Holocaust, and Human Rights.
“It's like just a very heavy topic. But it's so necessary to be discussed,” said Cadet Emma Foster.
The conference has been in the works for several years.
Despite that, several presenters adjusted their lectures to include comparisons from that attacks that killed more than a thousand people in Israel and Gaza this past week.
Cadets avoid giving opinions on national policy but say their interest is piqued in both past and current events where innocent lives have been taken.
“There's like parallels,” said Foster, “So I'm always asking questions to clarify and to better understand the issue.”
Dr. Patricia Hemerer Rice, the Senior Historian at the United States Holocaust Museum was one of the conference presenters.
“It's a good time to remind ourselves that the possibility of war and genocide is ever present.”
She said a discussion about the holocaust is an important reference when talking about human rights and atrocities in any part of the world.
“By understanding the complex history, by understanding how to move through ethical concerns in order to address these issues makes them better prepared as future leaders.”
“This is really important, whether you are a future military leader or a private citizen, to understand what's happening around us so that we can name, we can prevent, and then we can understand what it means to stand up against it in our everyday lives,” said Air Force Academy Associate History Professor and Conference Chair, Dr Meredith Scott.
Event organizers want cadets and people outside the Air Force Academy’s boundaries to learn and understand that atrocities like the holocaust can be prevented.
“The hope is that people walk away thinking about solutions where they stand,” said Scott.
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