(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — The Illinois Holocaust Museum in Skokie is set to open “Voices of Genocide,” a new exhibit that’s focused on more recent generations of survivors.
“There’s a reason why most of the pictures in this exhibition are in color,” said museum spokesperson Noah Cruickshank. “We want people to realize that genocide happens in color. It’s not just something of the past.”
This new, permanent exhibit at the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center features firsthand testimonies from survivors and descendants of genocide in Armenia, Guatemala, Bosnia, Rwanda and Burma. Museum officials said the idea is to bring understanding and spark conversation about a very difficult subject.
“This is, sort of, how the seeds are planted,” said Cruickshank.
Cruickshank walked WBBM through the exhibit ahead of its opening. “Voices of Genocide,” they said, explores the common warning signs of genocide, including: defining an enemy, or othering; creating conflict and instability; and unchecked power. It also digs into how people come to participate in genocide — reasons that go beyond ideology.
“There are people who are utilizing this as an opportunity to access land, money, and material possessions,” said Cruickshank.
Another factor: A misplaced fear of the other, something that Cruickshank said “leads them to buy into the ideology.” Peer pressure, too, plays a part in people choosing to participate in genocide.
“Participating in genocide because they fear for their own safety, or fear for their own family’s safety, and feel that they are required to take part because, if they don’t, then ultimately they will also be consumed by the violence,” Cruickshank said.
“Voices of Genocide” also highlights ways to prevent genocide from happening, such as condemnation, sanctions, international law and the use of peacekeepers. The ability to freely share information, Cruickshank said, plays a major part in this.
“Something that you will see that within repressive regimes is the destruction of the fourth estate, and journalists no longer being able to do their work and operate freely,” they said.
The exhibit is intended to spark informed conversations, including about the current situation in Gaza.
“We want folks who are coming into the museum to be having these exact kinds of conversations,” Cruickshank said. “They can use that as a rubric and a structure to think about what is happening within Israel and Gaza, but across the world and many other current conflicts that are still ongoing.”
“Voices of Genocide” opens Wednesday at the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center in Skokie.
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