Could It Happen Here?

Bob Poris is a good friend. Bob is a retired department store and shopping mall executive. Some years ago, Bob worked with Rabbi Sherwin Wine to establish the Society for Humanistic Judaism in Detroit. Bob served as president of that organization for five years.

We recently became involved in a discussion of the Holocaust. I expressed my opinion that we in the United States may be in danger of something similar happening here. It may or may not include Jews (anti-Semitism remains a huge problem), or it might involve other groups, such as just political dissidents.

Such an idea may seem incredible at first glance, but one must remember that the Germany that spawned the Holocaust was a highly civilized, cultured nation; a predominantly Christian nation; a nation teeming with brilliant scholars, artists, business men, theologians, musicians, educators, historians, and professional people.

Here's what Bob said:

"It (a Holocaust-type event) can happen here for any group! At the moment, Mexicans are a hated group in parts of the U.S. It could be any group that has some members that offend the majority and get media attention regarding their behavior.

"If hate is backed by authority and the public can act upon it without fear of arrest of condemnation, that group could find itself in deep trouble.

"In spite of the truth of the Holocaust, it is still doubted by many. Those that believe it happened somehow think it was not quite as bad as it was or it was the fault of the Jews; or they (the Jews) could have stopped it, could have fought back, etc.

"No one wants to believe that their parents or grandparents did nothing. I know what happened to the remnant that did survive. They were unwelcome anywhere in the world and kept from going to Palestine. They were put in Displaced Persons camps while another solution was sought. Cyprus became the new, but kinder, concentration camp when the British Navy caught ships carrying Jewish refugees to Palestine.

"Today, the Jews are back in the news as aggressors, not victims. Ask most people how many Jews there are in any given country, including the USA. You'd be surprised at the numbers and yet some people suppose the Jews can wield a sinister influence on the nation, or are thought to have too much influence.

"Ask about Israel and you will find many think Israel is a threat to peace and that Israel causes all sorts of problems, even in lands that have a zero Jewish population.

"Most people would prefer to forget the Holocaust because it symbolizes a massive failure on the part of the human race to protect a small, essentially powerless minority. We still hear people say that the Jews are 'obsessed' with the Holocaust and should forget about it.

"Thus anti-Semitism raises its ugly head, as it does in the widespread hostility to the Jewish state of Israel."


It could happen here! Or maybe the wheels are already in motion. Consider this: On January 25, 2006, KBR, a subsidiary of Halliburton, announced that it had been given a $385 million "contingency contract" by the Department of Homeland Security to build detention camps in the United States!

The purpose of these camps, according to Halliburton, is to provide "for establishing temporary detention and processing capabilities to augment existing Immigration and Customs Enforcement Detention and Removal Operations Program facilities in the event of an emergency influx of immigrants into the U.S., or to support the rapid development of new programs."

Okay, so these camps are for immigrants. But read the last sentence again. What the hell is the meaning of "rapid development of new programs"? What kind of new programs? Who will these new programs be for?

We might also recall that in 2002, then Attorney General John Ashcroft "announced his desire to see camps for U.S. citizens deemed to be 'enemy combatants.'"

You can see where this is going.

And you can read much more about it here.