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In The Thick of It: ‘high politics’ and the Holocaust in millennial Britain
Author(s): Pearce, Andy
Date: 2019
Topics: Main Topic: Holocaust and Memorial, Holocaust, Holocaust Commemoration, Holocaust Education, Holocaust Memorials, Memory, Politics
Abstract: Over the past twenty years, state-sponsored activities related to the Holocaust have been numerous in Britain. Beginning with the creation of Holocaust Memorial Day at the turn of the millennium, successive governments have followed a policy trajectory that has brought forth a slew of new initiatives and projects related to the Holocaust and its memory. Most recently, this has included the creation of a new national memorial and learning centre, to be housed adjacent to the Palace of Westminster. With cross-party support and the pledge of £50 million of public funds, this lieu de memoire is due to open in January 2020. Conceiving of these activities as exercises in ‘high’ Holocaust politics, Pearce’s article examines the various memory-projects of recent decades and argues they reveal much about millennial Britain and its Holocaust culture. He contends that the nature of these and other initiatives means high Holocaust politics must be subject to continued scrutiny and interrogation.
An Emerging ‘Holocaust Memorial Problem?’ The Condition of Holocaust Culture in Britain
Author(s): Pearce, Andy
Date: 2019
Topics: Holocaust Commemoration, Holocaust Education, Holocaust Memorials, Main Topic: Holocaust and Memorial
Abstract: In 2021 and 2022, two major developments in Britain’s Holocaust culture are due to occur: the launch of completely revised Holocaust galleries at the Imperial War Museum London and the opening of a new national memorial and learning center alongside the Houses of Parliament. This article looks toward these events by way of examining trends and trajectories since the turn of the millennium. It argues that Holocaust culture in Britain is currently characterized by acute polarity and beset with a number of systemic issues. These include the collapsing of commemoration and education into one another, along with an emerging political agenda to tie Holocaust history and memory to ‘British values.’ Borrowing from James E. Young, the article suggests that if these trends continue, then the early 2020s may well mark the arrival of a ‘Holocaust memorial problem.’
What do students know and understand about the Holocaust? Evidence from English secondary schools
Author(s): Foster, Stuart; Pettigrew, Alice; Pearce, Andy; Hale, Rebecca; Burgess, Adrian; Salmons, Paul; Lenga, Ruth-Anne
Date: 2015
Topics: Schools: Non-Jewish, Schools: Seconday / High Schools, Holocaust Education, Surveys, Main Topic: Education
Abstract: This research study was conducted by the UCL Centre for Holocaust Education, an integral part of UCL’s Institute of Education.

It is the world’s largest ever study of its kind, drawing on the contributions of more than 9,500 students across all years of secondary school in England (i.e. 11 to 18 year olds). This report presents analysis of survey responses from 7,952 students and focus group interviews with 244 students.

The primary aim of the research was to provide a detailed national portrait of students’ knowledge and understanding of the Holocaust. The research also focused on students’ attitudes towards learning about the Holocaust and their encounters with this history, both in and outside of school. Ultimately, the research sought to establish an empirical basis from which considerations of the most effective ways to improve teaching and learning about the Holocaust could be made.
Holocaust Consciousness in Contemporary Britain
Author(s): Pearce, Andy
Date: 2014
Topics: Holocaust Commemoration, Holocaust Memorials, Museums, Jewish Museums, Main Topic: Holocaust and Memorial
Abstract: The Holocaust is a pervasive presence in British culture and society. Schools have been legally required to deliver Holocaust education, the government helps to fund student visits to Auschwitz, the Imperial War Museum's permanent Holocaust Exhibition has attracted millions of visitors, and Britain has an annually commemorated Holocaust Memorial Day. What has prompted this development, how has it unfolded, and why has it happened now? How does it relate to Britain's post-war history, its contemporary concerns, and the wider "globalisation" of Holocaust memory? What are the multiple shapes that British Holocaust consciousness assumes and the consequences of their rapid emergence? Why have the so-called "lessons" of the Holocaust enjoyed such popularity in Britain? Through analysis of changing engagements with the Holocaust in political, cultural and memorial landscapes over the past generation, this book addresses these questions, demonstrating the complexities of Holocaust consciousness and reflecting on the contrasting ways that history is used in Britain today.