State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne has emphasized the importance of Holocaust education in Arizona, coinciding with the anniversary of a significant attack on Israel. Horne highlighted the state’s law mandating Holocaust instruction in schools as crucial for understanding and preventing future atrocities.
“Today marks two years since the cowardly attack on Israel in which approximately 1,200 people were murdered and many others who were raped, tortured and taken captive,” Horne said. He noted that demonstrations worldwide followed the attack, supporting the perpetrators. “If those demonstrators had had Holocaust study at school, they would not have been so quick to endorse Hamas’ murder, rape, and torture of innocent Jewish people.”
Horne also shared his personal connection to the issue, mentioning his parents’ experiences as Polish Jewish refugees during World War II. “This is a stark reminder that we as a society must never forget such evil,” he said.
Arizona’s law requires public schools to provide instruction on the Holocaust and other genocides at least once during middle school and once during high school. The State of Arizona Department of Education offers resources through its Arizona Holocaust and Genocide Education Resource webpage to assist educators in fulfilling this requirement.
The department ensures compliance by requiring each district and charter to report their adherence to this mandate on their State Report Card.
