Revision as of 16:26, 3 August 2015 view sourceDicenomice (talk | contribs)5 editsNo edit summary← Previous edit | Latest revision as of 07:31, 3 January 2025 view source All Tomorrows No Yesterdays (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers2,044 editsm small grammatical fixTag: 2017 wikitext editor | ||
Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{Short description|Denial of the genocide of Jews in World War II}} | |||
{{pp-pc1}} | |||
{{Pp-extended|small = yes}} | |||
{{Use American English|date=November 2023}} | |||
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2023}} | |||
{{The Holocaust sidebar}} | {{The Holocaust sidebar}} | ||
{{Antisemitism|Manifestations}} | |||
'''Holocaust denial''' is the act of denying the ] of ] in ] during ].<ref name="definition">Donald L Niewyk, ''The Columbia Guide to the Holocaust'', Columbia University Press, 2000, p. 45: "The Holocaust is commonly defined as the murder of more than 5,000,000 Jews by the Germans in World War II."</ref><ref name=66-q&a>{{cite web|title=Holocaust denial - The IHR's Questions & Answers, and Nizkor's Responses|url=http://www.nizkor.org/features/qar/qar00.html|work=]|accessdate=28 September 2013}}</ref> Holocaust denial includes any of the following claims: that Nazi Germany's ] policy aimed only at deporting Jews from the Reich, and included no policy to exterminate Jews; that Nazi authorities did not use ]s and ]s to ] Jews; and that the actual number of Jews killed was significantly (typically an ]) lower than the historically accepted figure of 5 to 6 million.<ref>, The Holocaust Resource Center Faqs, ] website. Accessed February 17, 2011. See also ] for the death toll.</ref><!-- LONG FOOTNOTE FOLLOWS --><ref name="Key elements">Key elements of Holocaust denial: | |||
{{Neo-fascism|varieties}} | |||
*"Before discussing how Holocaust denial constitutes a conspiracy theory, and how the theory is distinctly American, it is important to understand what is meant by the term 'Holocaust denial'. Holocaust deniers, or 'revisionists', as they call themselves, question all three major points of definition of the Nazi Holocaust. First, they contend that, while mass murders of Jews did occur (although they dispute both the intentionality of such murders as well as the supposed deservedness of these killings), there was no official Nazi policy to murder Jews. Second, and perhaps most prominently, they contend that there were no homicidal gas chambers, particularly at Auschwitz-Birkenau, where mainstream historians believe over 1 million Jews were murdered, primarily in gas chambers. And third, Holocaust deniers contend that the death toll of European Jews during World War II was well below 6 million. Deniers float numbers anywhere between 300,000 and 1.5 million, as a general rule." Mathis, Andrew E. , ], July 2, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2006. | |||
] of ] is an ]<ref name="antisemitic" /><ref name="conspiracy" /> that asserts that the ] of ] by the ] is a fabrication or exaggeration.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Coady|first1=David|title=Conspiracy Theories: The Philosophical Debate|date=2019|publisher=]|isbn=978-1-315-25957-4|language=en|chapter=Conspiracy Theories and Official Stories *|quote=Holocaust denial is one, unfortunately widespread, example of a conspiracy theory.}}</ref><ref name="ushmmdenialmisinformation">{{cite web |title=Holocaust Deniers and Public Misinformation |url=https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/holocaust-deniers-and-public-misinformation |access-date=May 29, 2021 |website=encyclopedia.ushmm.org |publisher=] |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210519225227/https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/holocaust-deniers-and-public-misinformation |archive-date=May 19, 2021}}</ref>{{R|definition}} It includes making one or more of the following false claims:{{R|often claims|Key elements|Assertions}} | |||
*"In part III we directly address the three major foundations upon which Holocaust denial rests, including ... the claim that gas chambers and crematoria were used not for mass extermination but rather for delousing clothing and disposing of people who died of disease and overwork; ... the claim that the six million figure is an exaggeration by an order of magnitude—that about six hundred thousand, not six million, died at the hands of the Nazis; ... the claim that there was no intention on the part of the Nazis to exterminate European Jewry and that the Holocaust was nothing more than the unfortunate by-product of the vicissitudes of war." Michael Shermer and Alex Grobman. ''Denying History: who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and why Do They Say It?'', University of California Press, 2000, ISBN 0-520-23469-3, p. 3. | |||
*]'s "]" was aimed only at ] from the territory of the Third Reich and did not include their extermination. | |||
*"Holocaust Denial: Claims that the mass extermination of the Jews by the Nazis never happened; that the number of Jewish losses has been greatly exaggerated; that the Holocaust was not systematic nor a result of an official policy; or simply that the Holocaust never took place." , ] website, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2006. | |||
*Nazi authorities did not use ]s and ]s for the ] of Jews. | |||
*"Among the untruths routinely promoted are the claims that no gas chambers existed at Auschwitz, that only 600,000 Jews were killed rather than six million, and that Hitler had no murderous intentions toward Jews or other groups persecuted by his government." , ], 2001. Retrieved June 28, 2007.</ref><ref name=Assertions>"The kinds of assertions made in Holocaust-denial material include the following: | |||
*The actual number of Jews murdered is significantly lower than the accepted figure of approximately six million. | |||
*Several hundred thousand rather than approximately six million Jews died during the war. | |||
*The Holocaust is a ] perpetrated by the ], ], or the ].<ref name="ushmmdenialmisinformation" />{{R|hoax}} | |||
*Scientific evidence proves that gas chambers could not have been used to kill large numbers of people. | |||
*The Nazi command had a policy of deporting Jews, not exterminating them. | |||
*Some deliberate killings of Jews did occur, but were carried out by the peoples of Eastern Europe rather than the Nazis. | |||
*Jews died in camps of various kinds, but did so as the result of hunger and disease (most died to the unavailability of food due to allied bombings). The Holocaust is a myth created by the Allies for propaganda purposes, and subsequently nurtured by the Jews for their own ends. | |||
*Errors and inconsistencies in survivors' testimonies point to their essential unreliability. | |||
*Alleged documentary evidence of the Holocaust, from photographs of concentration camp victims to Anne Frank’s diary, is fabricated. | |||
*The confessions of former Nazis to war crimes were extracted through torture." , JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved December 18, 2006.</ref> | |||
<!-- LONG FOOTNOTE ENDS --> | |||
Scholars use the term |
The methodologies of Holocaust deniers are based on a predetermined conclusion that ignores ].{{R|predetermined}} Scholars use the term '']'' to describe the views and methodology of Holocaust deniers in order to distinguish them from legitimate ], who challenge orthodox interpretations of history using established historical ].{{R|terminology}} Holocaust deniers generally do not accept ''denial'' as an appropriate description of their activities and use the euphemism '']'' instead.{{R|Revisionist}} In some former ] countries, Holocaust deniers do not deny the mass murder of Jews but deny the participation of their own nationals in the Holocaust.{{R|post-Soviet}} | ||
*"This is the phenomenon of what has come to be known as 'revisionism', 'negationism', or 'Holocaust denial,' whose main characteristic is either an outright rejection of the very veracity of the Nazi genocide of the Jews, or at least a concerted attempt to minimize both its scale and importance.... It is just as crucial, however, to distinguish between the wholly objectionable politics of denial and the fully legitimate scholarly revision of previously accepted conventional interpretations of any historical event, including the Holocaust." ]. ''The Holocaust: Origins, Implementation and Aftermath'', Routledge, pp.11–12. Bartov is John P. Birkelund Distinguished Professor of European History at the Watson Institute, and is regarded as one of the world's leading authorities on ] (, The Watson Institute for International Studies). | |||
*"The two leading critical exposés of Holocaust denial in the United States were written by historians ] (1993) and ] and Alex Grobman (2000). These scholars make a distinction between historical revisionism and denial. Revisionism, in their view, entails a refinement of existing knowledge about an historical event, not a denial of the event itself, that comes through the examination of new empirical evidence or a reexamination or reinterpretation of existing evidence. Legitimate historical revisionism acknowledges a 'certain body of irrefutable evidence' or a 'convergence of evidence' that suggest that an event—like the black plague, American slavery, or the Holocaust—did in fact occur (Lipstadt 1993:21; Shermer & Grobman 200:34). Denial, on the other hand, rejects the entire foundation of historical evidence...." Ronald J. Berger. ''Fathoming the Holocaust: A Social Problems Approach'', Aldine Transaction, 2002, ISBN 0-202-30670-4, p. 154. | |||
*"At this time, in the mid-1970s, the specter of Holocaust Denial (masked as 'revisionism') had begun to raise its head in Australia...." ] "A Little More Understanding: The Experience of a Holocaust Educator in Australia" in Samuel Totten, Steven Leonard Jacobs, Paul R Bartrop. ''Teaching about the Holocaust'', Praeger/Greenwood, 2004, p. xix. ISBN 0-275-98232-7 | |||
*"] urges that denial of the Holocaust should not be called 'revisionism' because 'to deny history is not to revise it'. ''Les Assassins de la Memoire. Un Eichmann de papier et autres essays sur le revisionisme'' (The Assassins of Memory—A Paper-Eichmann and Other Essays on Revisionism) 15 (1987)." Cited in Roth, Stephen J. "Denial of the Holocaust as an Issue of Law" in the ''Israel Yearbook on Human Rights'', Volume 23, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1993, ISBN 0-7923-2581-8, p. 215. | |||
*"This essay describes, from a methodological perspective, some of the inherent flaws in the 'revisionist' approach to the history of the Holocaust. It is not intended as a polemic, nor does it attempt to ascribe motives. Rather, it seeks to explain the fundamental error in the 'revisionist' approach, as well as why that approach of necessity leaves no other choice. It concludes that 'revisionism' is a misnomer because the facts do not accord with the position it puts forward and, more importantly, its methodology reverses the appropriate approach to historical investigation.... 'Revisionism' is obliged to deviate from the standard methodology of historical pursuit, because it seeks to mold facts to fit a preconceived result; it denies events that have been objectively and empirically proved to have occurred; and because it works backward from the conclusion to the facts, thus necessitating the distortion and manipulation of those facts where they differ from the preordained conclusion (which they almost always do). In short, 'revisionism' denies something that demonstrably happened, through methodological dishonesty." McFee, Gordon. , ], May 15, 1999. Retrieved December 22, 2006. | |||
*"Crucial to understanding and combating Holocaust denial is a clear distinction between denial and revisionism. One of the more insidious and dangerous aspects of contemporary Holocaust denial, a la Arthur Butz, Bradley Smith and Greg Raven, is the fact that they attempt to present their work as reputable scholarship under the guise of 'historical revisionism.' The term 'revisionist' permeates their publications as descriptive of their motives, orientation and methodology. In fact, Holocaust denial is in no sense 'revisionism,' it is denial.... Contemporary Holocaust deniers are not revisionists – not even neo-revisionists. They are '''Deniers'''. Their motivations stem from their neo-nazi political goals and their rampant antisemitism." Austin, Ben S. {{dead link|date=March 2014}}, The Holocaust\Shoah Page, ]. Retrieved March 29, 2007. | |||
*"Holocaust denial can be a particularly insidious form of antisemitism precisely because it often tries to disguise itself as something quite different: as genuine scholarly debate (in the pages, for example, of the innocuous-sounding Journal for Historical Review). Holocaust deniers often refer to themselves as 'revisionists', in an attempt to claim legitimacy for their activities. There are, of course, a great many scholars engaged in historical debates about the Holocaust whose work should not be confused with the output of the Holocaust deniers. Debate continues about such subjects as, for example, the extent and nature of ordinary Germans' involvement in and knowledge of the policy of genocide, and the timing of orders given for the extermination of the Jews. However, the valid endeavour of historical revisionism, which involves the re-interpretation of historical knowledge in the light of newly emerging evidence, is a very different task from that of claiming that the essential facts of the Holocaust, and the evidence for those facts, are fabrications." , JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007. | |||
*"The deniers' selection of the name revisionist to describe themselves is indicative of their basic strategy of deceit and distortion and of their attempt to portray themselves as legitimate historians engaged in the traditional practice of illuminating the past. For historians, in fact, the name revisionism has a resonance that is perfectly legitimate – it recalls the controversial historical school known as World War I 'revisionists', who argued that the Germans were unjustly held responsible for the war and that consequently the Versailles treaty was a politically misguided document based on a ]. Thus the deniers link themselves to a specific historiographic tradition of reevaluating the past. Claiming the mantle of the World War I revisionists and denying they have any objective other than the dissemination of the truth constitute a tactical attempt to acquire an intellectual credibility that would otherwise elude them." ]. ''Denying the Holocaust – The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', Penguin, 1993, ISBN 0-452-27274-2, p. 25. | |||
</ref><!-- LONG FOOTNOTE ENDS --> | |||
Holocaust deniers generally do not accept the term '']'' as an appropriate description of their activities, and use the term '']'' instead.<!-- FOOTNOTE BEGINS --><ref name="Revisionist">Refer to themselves as revisionists: | |||
*"The deniers' selection of the name revisionist to describe themselves is indicative of their basic strategy of deceit and distortion and of their attempt to portray themselves as legitimate historians engaged in the traditional practice of illuminating the past." ]. ''Denying the Holocaust—The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', Penguin, 1993, ISBN 0-452-27274-2, p. 25. | |||
*"Dressing themselves in pseudo-academic garb, they have adopted the term 'revisionism' in order to mask and legitimate their enterprise." , "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", ], 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | |||
*"Holocaust deniers often refer to themselves as 'revisionists', in an attempt to claim legitimacy for their activities. There are, of course, a great many scholars engaged in historical debates about the Holocaust whose work should not be confused with the output of the Holocaust deniers. Debate continues about such subjects as, for example, the extent and nature of ordinary Germans' involvement in and knowledge of the policy of genocide, and the timing of orders given for the extermination of the Jews. However, the valid endeavour of historical revisionism, which involves the re-interpretation of historical knowledge in the light of newly emerging evidence, is a very different task from that of claiming that the essential facts of the Holocaust, and the evidence for those facts, are fabrications." "", JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007. | |||
<!-- FOOTNOTE ENDS --> | |||
Holocaust denial is considered a serious societal problem in many places where it occurs, and it is ]. | |||
</ref> The methodologies of Holocaust deniers are based on a predetermined conclusion that ignores overwhelming historical evidence to the contrary.<ref name="predetermined">Predetermined conclusion: | |||
*"'Revisionism' is obliged to deviate from the standard methodology of historical pursuit because it seeks to mold facts to fit a preconceived result, it denies events that have been objectively and empirically proved to have occurred, and because it works backward from the conclusion to the facts, thus necessitating the distortion and manipulation of those facts where they differ from the preordained conclusion (which they almost always do). In short, 'revisionism' denies something that demonstrably happened, through methodological dishonesty." McFee, Gordon. , ], May 15, 1999. Retrieved December 22, 2006. | |||
*Alan L. Berger, "Holocaust Denial: Tempest in a Teapot, or Storm on the Horizon?", in Zev Garber and Richard Libowitz (eds), ''Peace, in Deed: Essays in Honor of Harry James Cargas'', Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1998, p. 154.</ref> | |||
==Terminology and etymology== | |||
Most Holocaust denial claims imply, or openly state, that the Holocaust is a hoax arising out of a deliberate ] to advance the interest of Jews at the expense of other peoples.<!-- LONG FOOTNOTE FOLLOWS --><ref name="hoax">A hoax designed to advance the interests of Jews: | |||
Holocaust deniers prefer to refer to their work as historical revisionism, and object to being referred to as "]".{{R|Revisionist}} ] professor ] has written that: "The deniers' selection of the name revisionist to describe themselves is indicative of their basic strategy of deceit and distortion and of their attempt to portray themselves as legitimate historians engaged in the traditional practice of illuminating the past."{{sfn|Lipstadt|1993|p=25}} Scholars consider this misleading since the methods of Holocaust denial differ from those of legitimate historical revision.<ref>"The two leading critical exposés of Holocaust denial in the United States were written by historians Deborah Lipstadt (1993) and Michael Shermer and Alex Grobman (2000). These scholars make a distinction between historical revisionism and denial. Revisionism, in their view, entails a refinement of existing knowledge about a historical event, not a denial of the event itself, that comes through the examination of new empirical evidence or a reexamination or reinterpretation of existing evidence. Legitimate historical revisionism acknowledges a 'certain body of irrefutable evidence' or a 'convergence of evidence' that suggest that an event—like the black plague, American slavery, or the Holocaust—did, in fact, occur (Lipstadt 1993:21; Shermer & Grobman 200:34). Denial, on the other hand, rejects the entire foundation of historical evidence...."</ref> Legitimate historical revisionism is explained in a resolution adopted by the ] History Department, November 8, 1991, and reprinted in ''Duke Chronicle'', November 13, 1991, in response to an advertisement produced by Bradley R Smith's ]: | |||
*"The title of App's major work on the Holocaust, ''The Six Million Swindle'', is informative because it implies on its very own the existence of a conspiracy of Jews to perpetrate a hoax against non-Jews for monetary gain." Mathis, Andrew E. , ], July 2, 2004. Retrieved May 16, 2007. | |||
Another belief of deniers is the death of the millions Jews was caused by sickness and disease.{{cite web|title=Holocaust Denial and Distortion|url=http://www.ushmm.org/confront-antisemitism/holocaust-denial-and-dostortion|accessdate=6 November 2013}} | |||
*"Jews are thus depicted as manipulative and powerful conspirators who have fabricated myths of their own suffering for their own ends. According to the Holocaust deniers, by forging evidence and mounting a massive propaganda effort, the Jews have established their lies as 'truth' and reaped enormous rewards from doing so: for example, in making financial claims on Germany and acquiring international support for Israel." , JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007. | |||
*"Why, we might ask the deniers, if the Holocaust did not happen would any group concoct such a horrific story? Because, some deniers claim, there was a conspiracy by Zionists to exaggerate the plight of Jews during the war in order to finance the state of Israel through war reparations." Michael Shermer & Alex Grobman. ''Denying History: who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and why Do They Say It?'', University of California Press, 2000, ISBN 0-520-23469-3, p. 106. | |||
*"Since its inception ... the Institute for Historical Review (IHR), a California-based Holocaust denial organization founded by Willis Carto of Liberty Lobby, has promoted the antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews fabricated tales of their own genocide to manipulate the sympathies of the non-Jewish world." , ], 2000. Retrieved May 17, 2007. | |||
*"The central assertion for the deniers is that Jews are not victims but victimizers. They 'stole' billions in reparations, destroyed Germany's good name by spreading the 'myth' of the Holocaust, and won international sympathy because of what they claimed had been done to them. In the paramount miscarriage of injustice, they used the world's sympathy to 'displace' another people so that the state of Israel could be established. This contention relating to the establishment of Israel is a linchpin of their argument." ]. ''Denying the Holocaust – The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', Penguin, 1993, ISBN 0-452-27274-2, p. 27. | |||
*"They picture a vast shadowy conspiracy that controls and manipulates the institutions of education, culture, the media and government in order to disseminate a pernicious mythology. The purpose of this Holocaust mythology, they assert, is the inculcation of a sense of guilt in the white, Western Christian world. Those who can make others feel guilty have power over them and can make them do their bidding. This power is used to advance an international Jewish agenda centered in the Zionist enterprise of the State of Israel." , "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", ], 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | |||
*"Deniers argue that the manufactured guilt and shame over a mythological Holocaust led to Western, specifically United States, support for the establishment and sustenance of the Israeli state – a sustenance that costs the American taxpayer over three billion dollars per year. They assert that American taxpayers have been and continue to be swindled...." , "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", Anti-Defamation League, 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | |||
*"The stress on Holocaust revisionism underscored the new anti-Semitic agenda gaining ground within the Klan movement. Holocaust denial refurbished conspiratorial anti-Semitism. Who else but the Jews had the media power to hoodwink unsuspecting masses with one of the greatest hoaxes in history? And for what motive? To promote the claims of the illegitimate state of Israel by making non-Jews feel guilty, of course." Lawrence N. Powell, ''Troubled Memory: Anne Levy, the Holocaust, and David Duke's Louisiana'', University of North Carolina Press, 2000, ISBN 0-8078-5374-7, p. 445.<!-- END OF LONG FOOTNOTE --></ref> For this reason, Holocaust denial is considered to be an ]<!--LONG FOOTNOTE FOLLOWS--><ref name="antisemitic">Antisemitic: | |||
*"Contemporary examples of antisemitism in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere could, taking into account the overall context, include ... denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust)." {{PDF||33.8 KB}}, ] | |||
*"It would elevate their antisemitic ideology – which is what Holocaust denial is – to the level of responsible historiography – which it is not." ], ''Denying the Holocaust'', ISBN 0-14-024157-4, p. 11. | |||
*"The denial of the Holocaust is among the most insidious forms of anti-Semitism...." Roth, Stephen J. "Denial of the Holocaust as an Issue of Law" in the ''Israel Yearbook on Human Rights'', Volume 23, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1993, ISBN 0-7923-2581-8, p. 215. | |||
*"Contemporary Holocaust deniers are not revisionists – not even neo-revisionists. They are '''Deniers'''. Their motivations stem from their neo-nazi political goals and their rampant antisemitism." Austin, Ben S. {{dead link|date=March 2014}}, The Holocaust\Shoah Page, ]. Retrieved March 29, 2007. | |||
*"Holocaust denial can be a particularly insidious form of antisemitism precisely because it often tries to disguise itself as something quite different: as genuine scholarly debate (in the pages, for example, of the innocuous-sounding Journal for Historical Review)." "", JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007. | |||
*"This books treats several of the myths that have made antisemitism so lethal.... In addition to these historic myths, we also treat the new, maliciously manufactured myth of Holocaust denial, another groundless belief that is used to stir up Jew-hatred." Schweitzer, Frederick M. & Perry, Marvin. ''Anti-Semitism: myth and hate from antiquity to the present'', Palgrave Macmillan, 2002, ISBN 0-312-16561-7, p. 3. | |||
*"One predictable strand of Arab Islamic antisemitism is Holocaust denial...." Schweitzer, Frederick M. & Perry, Marvin. ''Anti-Semitism: myth and hate from antiquity to the present'', Palgrave Macmillan, 2002, ISBN 0-312-16561-7, p. 10. | |||
*"Anti-Semitism, in the form of Holocaust denial, had been experienced by just one teacher when working in a Catholic school with large numbers of Polish and Croatian students." Geoffrey Short, Carole Ann Reed. ''Issues in Holocaust Education'', Ashgate Publishing, 2004, ISBN 0-7546-4211-9, p. 71. | |||
*"Indeed, the task of organized antisemitism in the last decade of the century has been the establishment of Holocaust Revisionism – the denial that the Holocaust occurred." Stephen Trombley, "antisemitism", ''The Norton Dictionary of Modern Thought'', W. W. Norton & Company, 1999, ISBN 0-393-04696-6, p. 40. | |||
*"After the Yom Kippur War an apparent reappearance of antisemitism in France troubled the tranquility of the community; there were several notorious terrorist attacks on synagogues, Holocaust revisionism appeared, and a new antisemitic political right tried to achieve respectability." Howard K. Wettstein, ''Diasporas and Exiles: Varieties of Jewish Identity'', University of California Press, 2002, ISBN 0-520-22864-2, p. 169. | |||
*"Holocaust denial is a convenient polemical substitute for anti-semitism." Igounet, Valérie. , '']'', May 1998. | |||
*"Holocaust denial is a contemporary form of the classic anti-Semitic doctrine of the evil, manipulative and threatening world Jewish conspiracy." , "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", ], 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | |||
*"In a number of countries, in Europe as well as in the United States, the negation or gross minimization of the Nazi genocide of Jews has been the subject of books, essay and articles. Should their authors be protected by freedom of speech? The European answer has been in the negative: such writings are not only a perverse form of anti-semitism but also an aggression against the dead, their families, the survivors and society at large." Roger Errera, "Freedom of speech in Europe", in Georg Nolte, ''European and US Constitutionalism'', Cambridge University Press, 2005, ISBN 0-521-85401-6, pp. 39–40. | |||
*"Particularly popular in Syria is Holocaust denial, another staple of Arab anti-Semitism that is sometimes coupled with overt sympathy for Nazi Germany." ], ''Rethinking the Middle East'', Routledge, 2003, ISBN 0-7146-5418-3, p. 104. | |||
*"Holocaust denial is a new form of anti-Semitism, but one that hinges on age-old motifs." Dinah Shelton, ''Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity'', Macmillan Reference, 2005, p. 45. | |||
*"The stress on Holocaust revisionism underscored the new anti-Semitic agenda gaining ground within the Klan movement. Holocaust denial refurbished conspiratorial anti-Semitism. Who else but the Jews had the media power to hoodwink unsuspecting masses with one of the greatest hoaxes in history? And for what motive? To promote the claims of the illegitimate state of Israel by making non-Jews feel guilty, of course." Lawrence N. Powell, ''Troubled Memory: Anne Levy, the Holocaust, and David Duke's Louisiana'', University of North Carolina Press, 2000, ISBN 0-8078-5374-7, p. 445. | |||
*"Since its inception ... the Institute for Historical Review (IHR), a California-based Holocaust denial organization founded by Willis Carto of Liberty Lobby, has promoted the antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews fabricated tales of their own genocide to manipulate the sympathies of the non-Jewish world." , ], 2000. Retrieved May 17, 2007. | |||
*"The primary motivation for most deniers is anti-Semitism, and for them the Holocaust is an infuriatingly inconvenient fact of history. After all, the Holocaust has generally been recognized as one of the most terrible crimes that ever took place, and surely the very emblem of evil in the modern age. If that crime was a direct result of anti-Semitism taken to its logical end, then anti-Semitism itself, even when expressed in private conversation, is inevitably discredited among most people. What better way to rehabilitate anti-Semitism, make anti-Semitic arguments seem once again respectable in civilized discourse and even make it acceptable for governments to pursue anti-Semitic policies than by convincing the world that the great crime for which anti-Semitism was blamed simply never happened – indeed, that it was nothing more than a frame-up invented by the Jews, and propagated by them through their control of the media? What better way, in short, to make the world safe again for anti-Semitism than by denying the Holocaust?" Reich, Walter. , '']'', July 11, 1993. | |||
*"There is now a creeping, nasty wave of anti-Semitism ... insinuating itself into our political thought and rhetoric.... The history of the Arab world ... is disfigured ... by a whole series of outmoded and discredited ideas, of which the notion that the Jews never suffered and that the Holocaust is an obfuscatory confection created by the elders of Zion is one that is acquiring too much, far too much, currency." ], "A Desolation, and They Called it Peace" in ''Those who forget the past'', Ron Rosenbaum (ed), Random House 2004, p. 518.<!-- LONG FOOTNOTE ENDS --></ref> ],<!-- FOOTNOTE --><ref name="conspiracy">Conspiracy theory: | |||
*"While appearing on the surface as a rather arcane pseudo-scholarly challenge to the well-established record of Nazi genocide during the Second World War, Holocaust denial serves as a powerful conspiracy theory uniting otherwise disparate fringe groups...." , "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", ], 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | |||
*"Before discussing how Holocaust denial constitutes a conspiracy theory, and how the theory is distinctly American, it is important to understand what is meant by the term 'Holocaust denial.'" Mathis, Andrew E. , ], July 2, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2006. | |||
*"Since its inception ... the Institute for Historical Review (IHR), a California-based Holocaust denial organization founded by Willis Carto of Liberty Lobby, has promoted the antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews fabricated tales of their own genocide to manipulate the sympathies of the non-Jewish world." , ], 2000. Retrieved May 17, 2007. | |||
</ref> is frequently ], and is ]. | |||
{{blockquote|That historians are constantly engaged in historical revision is certainly correct; however, what historians do is very different from this advertisement. Historical revision of major events ... is not concerned with the actuality of these events; rather, it concerns their historical interpretation – their causes and consequences generally.<ref>{{cite book |title=Denying the Holocaust: the growing assault on truth and memory |edition=reprint |last=Lipstadt |first=Deborah E. |author-link=Deborah Lipstadt |year=1994 |publisher=Plume |isbn=978-0-452-27274-3 |url=https://archive.org/details/denyingholocaust00lips}}</ref>}} | |||
==Terminology and etymology== | |||
Holocaust deniers prefer to refer to their work as historical revisionism, and object to being referred to as "deniers".<ref name="Revisionist"/> Scholars consider this misleading, since the methods of Holocaust denial differ from those of legitimate historical revision.<ref name="terminology"/> Legitimate historical revisionism is explained in a resolution adopted by the ] History Department, November 8, 1991, and reprinted in ''Duke Chronicle'', November 13, 1991 in response to an advertisement produced by Bradley R Smith's ]: | |||
Lipstadt writes that modern Holocaust denial draws its inspiration from various sources, including a school of thought which used an established method to question government policies.<ref>{{cite book |first=Deborah E. |last=Lipstadt |author-link=Deborah Lipstadt |title=Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_yLm_cHp_REC |date=December 18, 2012 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-4767-2748-6 |quote=Modern Holocaust denial draws inspiration from a variety of sources. Among them is a legitimate historical tradition that was highly critical of government policies and believed that history was being used to justify these policies. The deniers consider themselves heirs of a group of influential American historians who were deeply disturbed by American involvement in World War I. These respected scholars, who called themselves revisionists, would have been appalled to learn of the purposes to which their arguments were put.}}{{Dead link|date=February 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> | |||
In 1992, Donald L. Niewyk gave some examples of how legitimate historical revisionism—the re-examination of accepted history and its updating with newly discovered, more accurate, or less-biased information—may be applied to the study of the Holocaust as new facts emerge to change the historical understanding of it: | |||
{{quote|That historians are constantly engaged in historical revision is certainly correct; however, what historians do is very different from this advertisement. Historical revision of major events ... is not concerned with the actuality of these events; rather, it concerns their historical interpretation – their causes and consequences generally.<ref>{{cite book|title=Denying the Holocaust: the growing assault on truth and memory|edition=reprint |author=Lipstadt, Deborah E. |year=1994 |publisher=Plume |url=http://www.google.ie/search?hl=en&q=Resolution%20adopted%20by%20the%20Duke%20University%20History%20Department%2C%20Nov.%208%2C%201991%2C%20and%20reprinted%20in%20Duke%20Chronicle%2C%20Nov.%2013%2C%201991.&gs_sm=e&gs_upl=14061l14061l0l1l1l0l0l0l0l0l0ll0&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbo=u&tbm=bks&source=og&sa=N&tab=wp |isbn=978-0-452-27274-3}}</ref>}} | |||
{{blockquote|With the main features of the Holocaust clearly visible to all but the willfully blind, historians have turned their attention to aspects of the story for which the evidence is incomplete or ambiguous. These are not minor matters by any means, but turn on such issues as Hitler's role in the event, Jewish responses to persecution, and reactions by onlookers both inside and outside Nazi-controlled Europe.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Niewyk |editor-first=Donald L. |title=The Holocaust: Problems and Perspectives of Interpretation |publisher=D. C. Heath and Company |date=1992 |page=7 |chapter=1: Introduction |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GbcWAQAAIAAJ |isbn=9780618214624}}</ref>}} | |||
In ''The Holocaust: Problems and Perspectives of Interpretation'', ] gives some examples of how legitimate historical revisionism—the re-examination of accepted history and its updating with newly discovered, more accurate, or less-biased information—may be applied to the study of the Holocaust as new facts emerge to change the historical understanding of it: | |||
In contrast, the Holocaust denial movement bases its approach on the predetermined idea that the Holocaust, as understood by mainstream historiography, did not occur.{{R|predetermined}} Sometimes referred to as "]", from the French term {{Lang|fr|négationnisme}} introduced by ],<ref>See Alain Finkielkraut, Mary Byrd Kelly, Richard J. Golsan. . ], 1998.</ref> Holocaust deniers attempt to rewrite history by minimizing, denying, or simply ignoring essential facts. ] writes: | |||
{{quote|With the main features of the Holocaust clearly visible to all but the willfully blind, historians have turned their attention to aspects of the story for which the evidence is incomplete or ambiguous. These are not minor matters by any means, but turn on such issues as Hitler's role in the event, Jewish responses to persecution, and reactions by onlookers both inside and outside Nazi-controlled Europe.<ref>Niewyk, Donald L. (ed). ''The Holocaust: Problems and Perspectives of Interpretation'', D. C. Heath and Company, 1992.</ref>}} | |||
{{blockquote|Negationism means the denial of historical ]. It is not a reinterpretation of known facts, but the denial of known facts. The term negationism has gained currency as the name of a movement to deny a specific crime against humanity, the Nazi genocide on the Jews in 1941–45, also known as the Holocaust (Greek: complete burning) or the ''Shoah'' (Hebrew: disaster). Negationism is mostly identified with the effort at re-writing history in such a way that the fact of the Holocaust is omitted.<ref>]. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071025063927/http://voiceofdharma.org/books/negaind/ch1.htm |date=October 25, 2007 }}, ''Negationism in India: Concealing the Record of Islam'', ''The Voice of India'', 2002.</ref>}} | |||
In contrast, the Holocaust denial movement bases its approach on the predetermined idea that the Holocaust, as understood by mainstream historiography, did not occur.<ref name="predetermined"/> Sometimes referred to as "negationism", from the French term ''négationnisme'' introduced by ],<ref>See Alain Finkielkraut, Mary Byrd Kelly, Richard J. Golsan. . University of Nebraska Press, 1998.</ref> Holocaust deniers attempt to rewrite history by minimizing, denying or simply ignoring essential facts. ] writes: | |||
In "Secondary Anti-Semitism: From Hard-Core to Soft-Core Denial of the Shoah", {{ill|Clemens Heni|de}} writes: | |||
{{quote|Negationism means the denial of historical crimes against humanity. It is not a reinterpretation of known facts, but the denial of known facts. The term negationism has gained currency as the name of a movement to deny a specific crime against humanity, the Nazi genocide on the Jews in 1941–45, also known as the holocaust (Greek: complete burning) or the ''Shoah'' (Hebrew: disaster). Negationism is mostly identified with the effort at re-writing history in such a way that the fact of the Holocaust is omitted.<ref>]. , '']'', ''The Voice of India'', 2002.</ref>}} | |||
{{blockquote|Contrary to the hard-core version, soft-core denial is often not easily identifiable. Often it is tolerated, or even encouraged and reproduced in the mainstream, not only in Germany. Scholars have only recently begun to unravel this disturbing phenomenon. Manfred Gerstenfeld discusses Holocaust trivialization in an article published in 2008. In Germany in 2007 two scholars, Thorsten Eitz and Georg Stötzel, published a voluminous dictionary of German language and discourse regarding National Socialism and the Holocaust. It includes chapters on Holocaust trivialization and contrived comparisons, such as the infamous "atomic Holocaust", "Babycaust", "Holocaust of abortion", "red Holocaust" or "biological Holocaust".<ref>{{cite journal |last=Heni |first=Clemens |date=Fall 2008 |title=Secondary Anti-Semitism: From Hard-Core to Soft-Core Denial of the Shoah |journal=Jewish Political Studies Review |location=Jerusalem |volume=20 |issue=3/4 |pages=73–92 |jstor=25834800}}</ref>}} | |||
==Background |
==Background== | ||
===Denial as a means of genocide=== | |||
] argues that denial was invented by the perpetrators and employed as a means of genocide. For example, trucks of ] were labeled with ] symbols and victims were told that they would be "]". Douglas also cites the ] as an example of denial while genocide was ongoing, with Himmler referring to the Holocaust as "an unnamed and never to be named page of glory". According to Douglas, the denial of mass murder using gas chambers recalls the Nazi efforts to persuade the victims that they were actually harmless showers.<ref name=Douglas>{{cite book |first=Lawrence |last=Douglas |editor1-last=Hennebel |editor1-first=Ludovic |editor2-last=Hochmann |editor2-first=Thomas |title=Genocide Denials and the Law |date=2011 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-19-987639-6 |chapter=From Trying the Perpetrator to Trying the Denier and Back Again |pages=55–56}}</ref> | |||
===Efforts to conceal the historical record=== | ===Efforts to conceal the historical record=== | ||
{{See also|Sonderaktion 1005|Posen speeches}} | |||
] unit pose next to a bone-crushing machine in the ] in German-occupied Poland (Jun 1943 – Oct 1943)]] | |||
], ] and ] inspect, at ], an improvised crematory pyre]] | |||
====German efforts==== | ====German efforts==== | ||
{{See also|Sonderaktion 1005}} | |||
While the ] was still underway, the Nazis had already formed a contingency plan that in case of defeat they would carry out the total destruction of German records.<ref name="klars-coth">{{cite web |url={{google books|id=NTjJDNi7fq4C |title=French Children of the Holocaust: A Memorial |page= |plainurl=yes}} |last1=Klarsfeld |first1=Serge |title=French Children of the Holocaust: A Memorial |author-link1=Serge Klarsfeld |date=1996 |location=New York |publisher=] |lccn=96031206 |isbn=9780814726624 |oclc=35029709 }}p. xiii</ref> | |||
] unit pose next to a bone-crushing machine in the ] (photo taken in August 1944, after camp's liberation).]] | |||
While the ] was still underway, the Nazis had already formed a contingency plan that if defeat was imminent they would carry out the total destruction of German records.<ref name="klars-coth">{{cite book |url={{google books|id=NTjJDNi7fq4C|title=French Children of the Holocaust: A Memorial|page=|plainurl=yes}} |last1=Klarsfeld |first1=Serge |title=French Children of the Holocaust: A Memorial |author-link1=Serge Klarsfeld |date=1996 |location=New York |publisher=] |lccn=96031206 |isbn=9780814726624 |oclc=35029709 |page=xiii}}</ref> Historians have documented evidence that as ]'s defeat became imminent and Nazi leaders realized they would most likely be captured and brought to trial, great effort was made to destroy all evidence of mass extermination. ] instructed his camp commandants to destroy records, crematoria, and other signs of mass extermination.<ref name="Arad_1984">{{cite web |first=Yitzhak |last=Arad |author-link=Yitzhak Arad |url=http://www1.yadvashem.org/odot_pdf/Microsoft%20Word%20-%203576.pdf |title=Yad Vashem Studies XVI Operation Reinhard: Extermination Camps of Belzec, Sobibor, and Treblinka |website=] |year=1984 |pages=205–239 |access-date=February 2, 2009 |archive-date=March 18, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090318073143/http://www1.yadvashem.org/odot_pdf/Microsoft%20Word%20-%203576.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> As one of many examples, the bodies of the 25,000 mostly Latvian Jews whom ] and the soldiers under his command had shot at ] (near ]) in late 1941 were dug up and burned in 1943.<ref name="Ezer">{{cite book |last=Ezergailis |first=Andrew |title=The Holocaust in Latvia 1941–1944 – The Missing Center |pages=4–7, 239–270 |publisher=] (in association with the ]) |location=Riga |date=1996 |isbn=9984-9054-3-8}}</ref> Similar operations were undertaken at ], ] and other death camps.<ref name="Arad_1984"/> | |||
Historians have documented evidence that as Germany's defeat became imminent and the Nazi leaders realized they would most likely be captured and brought to trial, great effort was made to destroy all evidence of mass extermination. ] instructed his camp commandants to destroy records, crematoria, and other signs of mass extermination.<ref name = Arad_1984> | |||
{{Cite journal | |||
| first = Yitzhak | |||
| last = Arad | |||
| author-link = Yitzhak Arad | |||
| contribution = Operation Reinhard: Extermination Camps of Belzec, Sobibor and Treblinka | |||
| contribution-url = http://www1.yadvashem.org/odot_pdf/Microsoft%20Word%20-%203576.pdf | |||
| title =Yad Vashem Studies XVI | |||
| year = 1984 | |||
| pages = 205–239 | |||
| id = | |||
| postscript = <!--None--> }}</ref> As one of many examples, the bodies of the 25,000 mostly Latvian Jews whom ] and the soldiers under his command had shot at ] (near ]) in late 1941 were dug up and burned in 1943.<ref name = Ezer>Ezergailis, Andrew, ''The Holocaust in Latvia 1941–1944 – The Missing Center'', pages 4–7, 239–270, Historical Institute of Latvia (in association with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum) Riga 1996 ISBN 9984-9054-3-8</ref> Similar operations were undertaken at ], ] and other death camps.<ref name = Arad_1984/> In the infamous ] of October 1943 such as the one on October 4, Himmler explicitly referred to the extermination of the Jews of Europe and further stated that the genocide must be permanently kept secret: | |||
{{quote|I also want to refer here very frankly to a very difficult matter. We can now very openly talk about this among ourselves, and yet we will never discuss this publicly. Just as we did not hesitate ], to perform our duty as ordered and put comrades who had failed up against the wall and execute them, we also never spoke about it, nor will we ever speak about it. Let us thank God that we had within us enough self-evident fortitude never to discuss it among us, and we never talked about it. Every one of us was horrified, and yet every one clearly understood that we would do it next time, when the order is given and when it becomes necessary. | |||
I am now referring to the evacuation of the Jews, to the extermination of the Jewish people.<ref> Contains both the ] original transcription of the speech in German, a corrected Nizkor project transcription, original IMT and corrected Nizkor project translation, recording and analysis of actual speech, and link to examples showing treatment of speech by Holocaust deniers.</ref><ref name=Himmler-1943-Posen>{{cite book |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=International Military Trials - Nurnberg - Nazi Conspiracy and Aggression Volume IV |volume=4 |editor=Office of the United States Chief of Counsel For Prosecution of Axis Criminality |url=http://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/Military_Law/pdf/NT_Nazi_Vol-IV.pdf |chapter=Partial Translation Of Document 1919-PS Speech of the Reichsfuehrer&emdash;SS at the Meeting of SS Major-Generals at Posen, October 4th, 1943 |location=Washington D.C. |publisher=] |pages=563–564 |date=1946 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071104150152/http://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/Military_Law/pdf/NT_Nazi_Vol-IV.pdf |archivedate=2007-11-04 |access-date=2015-04-02 |quote=I also want to talk to you, quite frankly, on a very grave matter. Among ourselves it should be mentioned quite frankly, and yet we will never speak of it publicly. Among ourselves it should be mentioned quite frankly, and yet we will never speak of it publicly. Just as we did not hesitate | |||
on June 30th, 1934 to do the duty we were bidden, and stand comrades who had lapsed, up against the wall and shoot them, so we have never spoken about it and will never speak of it. It was that tact which is a matter of course and which I am glad to say, is inherent in us, that made us never discuss it among ourselves, never to speak of it. It appalled everyone, and yet everyone was certain that he would do it the next time if such orders are issued and if it is necessary I mean the clearing out of the Jews, the extermination of the Jewish race. … Most of you must know what it means when 100 corpses are lying side by side, or 500 or 1,000…. This is a page of glory in our history which has never been written and is never to be written…}}</ref>}} | |||
====French collaboration in archive destruction==== | ====French collaboration in archive destruction==== | ||
In ], the situation with respect to preserving war records was not much better, partly as a result of French state secrecy rules dating back to well before the war aimed at protecting the French government and the state from embarrassing revelations, and partly to avoid culpability. For example, at ], the ] destroyed nearly all of the massive archive of Jewish arrest and deportation.{{R|klars-coth}} | |||
In France, the situation with respect to preserving war records was not much better, partly as a result of French state secrecy rules dating back to well before the war aimed at protecting the French government and the state from embarrassing revelations, and partly to avoid culpability. For example, at ], the ] destroyed nearly all of the massive archive of Jewish arrest and deportation.<ref name="klars-coth" /> | |||
===Efforts to preserve the historical record=== | ===Efforts to preserve the historical record=== | ||
====During the war==== | ====During the war==== | ||
One of the earliest efforts to save historical record of the Holocaust occurred during the war, in France, where ] records were carefully preserved and turned over to the new ]; however, the bureau then held them in secret, refusing to release copies later, even to the ] (CDJC).{{Citation needed|date=June 2020}}<!-- {{R|klars-coth}} --> | |||
In 1943, ], anticipating the need for a center to document and preserve the memory of the persecution for historical reasons and also support claims post-war, gathered together 40 representatives from Jewish organizations in ] which was under Italian occupation at the time<ref name="mdlShoah">{{cite web |url=http://www.memorialdelashoah.org/index.php/en/archives-and-documentation/the-cdjc-catalogue/the-history-of-the-center-of-contemporary-jewish-documentation-cdjc |title=The History of the Center of Contemporary Jewish Documentation (CDJC) |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150316150400/http://www.memorialdelashoah.org/index.php/en/archives-and-documentation/the-cdjc-catalogue/the-history-of-the-center-of-contemporary-jewish-documentation-cdjc |archive-date=March 16, 2015}}</ref> in order to form a ''center de documentation''.<ref name="Jockusch">{{cite web |url={{google books|id=E2IhaiQwJQ8C|page=18|title=Collect and Record! Jewish Holocaust Documentation in Early Postwar Europe|plainurl=yes}} |title=Collect and Record! Jewish Holocaust Documentation in Early Postwar Europe |last1=Jockusch |first1=Laura |date=October 11, 2012 |publisher=] |isbn=9780199764556 |doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199764556.001.0001}} as quoted in {{cite journal |url=https://www.academia.edu/1777831 |title=Khurbn Forshung (''destruction research'')– Jewish Historical Commissions in Europe, 1943–1949 |last1=Jockusch |first1=Laura |website=academia.edu |access-date=March 15, 2015 |archive-date=June 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200626051235/https://www.academia.edu/1777831/_Khurbn_Forshung_Jewish_Historical_Commissions_in_Europe_1943-1949_ |url-status=live}}</ref> Exposure meant the death penalty, and as a result little actually happened before ].<ref name="ej-cdjc">{{Citation |last1=Mazor |first1=Michel |last2=Weinberg |first2=David |contribution=Centre de Documentation Juive Contemporaine (CDJC) |editor1-last=Berenbaum |editor1-first=Michael |editor2-last=Skolnik |editor2-first=Fred |title=Encyclopedia Judaica |volume=4 |edition=2 |pages=547 |series=Gale Virtual Reference Library |publisher=] |place=Detroit |date=2007 |contribution-url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CCX2587504110&v=2.1&u=imcpl1111&it=r&p=GVRL&sw=w&asid=00b7d473b9c8670353939c8535501ac3 |access-date=April 3, 2015 |archive-date=June 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180629074246/http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CCX2587504110&v=2.1&u=imcpl1111&it=r&p=GVRL&sw=w&asid=00b7d473b9c8670353939c8535501ac3 |url-status=live}}</ref> Serious work began after the center moved to Paris in late 1944 and was renamed the CDJC.{{R|Jockusch|ej-cdjc}} | |||
One of the earliest efforts occurred in France during the war, where ] records were carefully preserved and turned over to the new {{link-interwiki|vertical-align=sup|en=French Bureau of Veterans and War Victims|lang=fr|lang_title=ONAC}}; which however then held them in secret refusing to release copies later, even to the CDJC.<!-- <ref name="klars-coth" /> --> | |||
In 1943, ], anticipating the need for a center to document and preserve the memory of the persecution for historical reasons and also support claims post-war, gathered together 40 representatives from Jewish organizations in ] which was under Italian occupation at the time<ref name="mdlShoah">{{cite web |url=http://www.memorialdelashoah.org/index.php/en/archives-and-documentation/the-cdjc-catalogue/the-history-of-the-center-of-contemporary-jewish-documentation-cdjc |title=The History of the Center of Contemporary Jewish Documentation (CDJC) |last1= |first1= |date= |website= |publisher= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |accessdate= |quote= }}</ref> in order to form a ''centre de documentation''.<ref name="Jockusch">{{cite web |url={{google books|id=E2IhaiQwJQ8C|page=18|title=Collect and Record! Jewish Holocaust Documentation in Early Postwar Europe |plainurl=yes}} |title=Collect and Record! Jewish Holocaust Documentation in Early Postwar Europe |last1=Jockusch |first1=Laura |date=2012-10-11 |website= |publisher=] |isbn=9780199764556 |doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199764556.001.0001}} as quoted in {{cite web |url=http://www.academia.edu/1777831/_Khurbn_Forshung_Jewish_Historical_Commissions_in_Europe_1943-1949_ |title=Khurbn Forshung (''destruction research'')– Jewish Historical Commissions in Europe, 1943-1949 |last1=Jockusch |first1=Laura |date= |website=academia.edu |accessdate=2015-03-15}}</ref> Exposure meant the death penalty, and as a result little actually happened before ].<ref name="ej-cdjc">{{Citation |last=Mazor |first=Michel |last2=Weinberg |first2=David |author-link=|contribution=Centre de Documentation Juive Contemporaine (CDJC) |editor-last=Berenbaum |editor-first=Michael |editor2-last=Skolnik |editor2-first= Fred |title=Encyclopedia Judaica |volume=4 |edition=2 |pages=547 |series= Gale Virtual Reference Library |format= |publisher=] |place=Detroit |publication-date=2007 |contribution-url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CCX2587504110&v=2.1&u=imcpl1111&it=r&p=GVRL&sw=w&asid=00b7d473b9c8670353939c8535501ac3 }}</ref> Serious work began after the center moved to Paris in late 1944 and was renamed the ] (CDJC).<ref name="Jockusch" /><ref name="ej-cdjc" /> | |||
====Immediate post-war period==== | ====Immediate post-war period==== | ||
], ] and ] inspect an improvised crematory pyre at ].]] | |||
In 1945, General ], Supreme Allied Commander, anticipated that someday an attempt would be made to recharacterize the documentation of ] as propaganda and took steps against it.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Hobbs|first1=Joseph Patrick|last2=Eisenhower|first2=Dwight D.|last3=Marshall|first3=George Catlett|title=Dear General: Eisenhower's Wartime Letters to Marshall|date=May 12, 1999|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|location=Baltimore|isbn=0801862191}}</ref> Eisenhower, upon finding the victims of Nazi concentration camps, ordered all possible photographs to be taken, and for the German people from surrounding villages to be ushered through the camps and made to bury the dead.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hobbs |first1=Joseph Patrick |last2=Eisenhower |first2=Dwight D. |last3=Marshall |first3=George Catlett |title=Dear General: Eisenhower's Wartime Letters to Marshall |date=May 12, 1999 |publisher=] |location=Baltimore |isbn=0801862191|page=223}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=World War II Liberation Photography |url=https://www.ushmm.org/collections/the-museums-collections/about/photo-archives/world-war-ii-liberation-photography |access-date=August 30, 2020 |website=] |language=en |archive-date=September 22, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922024859/https://www.ushmm.org/collections/the-museums-collections/about/photo-archives/world-war-ii-liberation-photography |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
In 1945, General ], Supreme Allied Commander, anticipated that someday an attempt would be made to recharacterize the documentation of ] as propaganda and took steps against it: | |||
{{quote|The same day<ref>April 12, 1945</ref> I saw my first horror camp. It was near the town of ]. I have never been able to describe my emotional reactions when I first came face to face with indisputable evidence of Nazi brutality and ruthless disregard of every shred of decency. Up to that time I had known about it only generally or through secondary sources. I am certain however, that I have never at any time experienced an equal sense of shock.<br/> | |||
I visited every nook and cranny of the camp because I felt it my duty to be in a position from then on to testify at first hand about these things in case there ever grew up at home the belief or assumption that "the stories of Nazi brutality were just propaganda". Some members of the visiting party were unable to go through with the ordeal. I not only did so but as soon as I returned to ]'s headquarters that evening I sent communications to both Washington and London, urging the two governments to send instantly to Germany a random group of newspaper editors and representative groups from the national legislatures. I felt that the evidence should be immediately placed before the American and the British publics in a fashion that would leave no room for cynical doubt.<ref>], ''Crusade in Europe'', pp. 409–10, Doubleday, New York, 1948 (no ISBN for this edition)</ref>}} | |||
Eisenhower, upon finding the victims of the death camps, ordered all possible photographs to be taken, and for the German people from surrounding villages to be ushered through the camps and even made to bury the dead. He wrote the following to General Marshall after visiting a German internment camp near Gotha, Germany: {{quote|The visual evidence and the verbal testimony of starvation, cruelty and bestiality were so overpowering as to leave me a bit sick. In one room, where they were piled up twenty or thirty naked men, killed by starvation, George Patton would not even enter. He said that he would get sick if he did so. I made the visit deliberately, in order to be in a position to give first-hand evidence of these things if ever, in the future, there develops a tendency to charge these allegations merely to "propaganda".<ref>], ''Dear General: Eisenhower's Wartime Letters to Marshall'', p. 223, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999</ref>}} | |||
====Nuremberg trials==== | ====Nuremberg trials==== | ||
] | |||
The ] took place in Germany after the war in 1945–1946. The stated aim was to dispense justice in retribution for atrocities of the German government. This Allied intention to administer justice post-war was first announced in 1943 in the ] and reiterated at the ] and at Berlin in 1945.<ref name="Wright-1946">{{cite journal |last=Wright |first=Quincy |author-link= Quincy Wright |year=1946 |title=The Nuremberg Trial |journal=] |volume=246 |issue=1 |pages=72–80 |jstor=1025134 |doi=10.1177/000271624624600113 |s2cid=143138559 |issn=0002-7162}}</ref> While the intention was not specifically to preserve the historical record of the Holocaust, some of the core documents required to prosecute the cases were provided to them by the ], and much of the huge trove of archives were then transferred to the CDJC after the trials and became the core of future Holocaust historiography.<ref name="Bensoussan">{{cite book |url={{google books|id=aNzjTUT6jdYC|title=Holocaust Historiography in Context: Emergence, Challenges, Polemics and Achievements|plainurl=yes|page=245}} |title=Holocaust Historiography in Context: Emergence, Challenges, Polemics and Achievements |editor1-first=David |editor1-last=Bankier |editor2-first=Dan |editor2-last=Mikhman <!--|chapter=Jewish Contemporary Documentation Centre (CDJC) and Holocaust Research in France, 1945-1970--> |last1=Bensoussan |first1=Georges |date=2008 |publisher=] |pages=245–254 |isbn=9789653083264 |access-date=March 15, 2015}}</ref> | |||
The Nuremberg trials were important historically, but the events were still very recent, television was in its infancy and not present, and there was little public impact. There were isolated moments of limited public awareness from Hollywood films such as '']'' (1959) or the 1961 '']'' which had some newsreel footage of actual scenes from liberated Nazi concentration camps including scenes of piles of naked corpses laid out in rows and bulldozed into large pits, which was considered exceptionally graphic for the time. | |||
The ] took place in Germany in 1945-1946. The stated aim was to dispense justice in retribution for atrocities of the German government. This Allied intention to administer justice post-war was first announced in 1943 in the ] and reiterated at the ] and at Berlin in 1945.<ref name=Wright-1946>{{cite journal |last= Wright |first= Quincy |authorlink= Quincy Wright |year= 1946 |title= The Nuremberg Trial |journal= ] |volume= 246 |pages= 72–80 |jstor= 1025134 |doi=10.1177/000271624624600113 |subscription=yes}}</ref> While the intention was not specifically to preserve the historical record of the Holocaust, some of the core documents required to prosecute the cases were provided to them by the ], and much of the huge trove of archives were then transferred to the CDJC after the trials and became the core of future Holocaust historiography.<ref name="Bensoussan">{{cite web |url={{google books|id=aNzjTUT6jdYC|title=Holocaust Historiography in Context: Emergence, Challenges, Polemics and Achievements |plainurl=yes |page=245}} |title=Holocaust Historiography in Context: Emergence, Challenges, Polemics and Achievements |editor1=David Bankier |editor2=Dan Mikhman <!--|chapter=Jewish Contemporary Documentation Centre (CDJC) and Holocaust Research in France, 1945-1970--> |last1=Bensoussan |first1=Georges |date=2008 |website= |publisher=] |pages=245–254 |isbn=9789653083264 |accessdate=2015-03-15 |quote= }}</ref> | |||
Public awareness changed when the Eichmann trial riveted the world's attention fifteen years after Nuremberg.<ref name="yadvashem-impact">{{cite web |url=http://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/exhibitions/eichmann/awareness_of_the_holocaust.asp |title=Shaping an Awareness of the Holocaust in Israeli and World Public Opinion |date=2015 |website=] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141023150544/http://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/exhibitions/eichmann/awareness_of_the_holocaust.asp |archive-date=October 23, 2014 |access-date=June 26, 2015 |quote=In the annals of public awareness of the Holocaust period, nothing rivals the Eichmann trial as a milestone and turning point, whose impact is evident to this day. The trial introduced the Holocaust into the historical, educational, legal and cultural discourse, not merely in Israel and the Jewish world, but on the consciousness of all peoples of the world. Sixteen years after the end of the Holocaust, it focused attention upon the account of the suffering and torment of the Jewish people, as recounted to the judges. Its powerful, and one could claim, revolutionary, consequences continue right up to the present day.}}</ref><ref name="Shandler-1999a">{{cite book |last=Shandler |first=Jeffrey |title=While America Watches : Televising the Holocaust |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NobvLCXFIOcC&pg=PA127 |access-date=June 26, 2015 |date=February 4, 1999 |publisher=], USA |location=New York |isbn=978-0-19-518258-3 |page=127 |chapter=4. The Man in the Glass Box |quote=The Eichmann case is widely cited as a marking a threshold in American awareness of the Holocaust, generating a 'renewed engagement' and 'heightened historical consciousness' as well as serving as a catalyst for a spate of American Holocaust literature, television programs, and feature films.}}</ref> | |||
The Nuremberg trials were important historically, but the events were still very recent, television was in its infancy and not present, and there was little public impact. There were isolated moments of limited public awareness from Hollywood films such as ] (1959) or the 1961 ] which had some newsreel footage of actual scenes from liberated Nazi concentration camps including scenes of piles of naked corpses laid out in rows and bulldozed into large pits, which was considered exceptionally graphic for the time. | |||
Public awareness changed when the Eichmann trial riveted the world's attention fifteen years later.<ref name="yadvashem-impact">{{cite web |url=http://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/exhibitions/eichmann/awareness_of_the_holocaust.asp |title=Shaping an Awareness of the Holocaust in Israeli and World Public Opinion |last1= |first1= |date=2015 |website=yadvashem.org |publisher= |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141023150544/http://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/exhibitions/eichmann/awareness_of_the_holocaust.asp |archivedate=2014-10-23 |accessdate=2015-06-26 |quote=In the annals of public awareness of the Holocaust period, nothing rivals the Eichmann trial as a milestone and turning point, whose impact is evident to this day. The trial introduced the Holocaust into the historical, educational, legal and cultural discourse, not merely in Israel and the Jewish world, but on the consciousness of all peoples of the world. Sixteen years after the end of the Holocaust, it focused attention upon the account of the suffering and torment of the Jewish people, as recounted to the judges. Its powerful, and one could claim, revolutionary, consequences continue right up to the present day.}}</ref><ref name="Shandler-1999a">{{cite book |last=Shandler |first=Jeffrey |title=While America Watches : Televising the Holocaust |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=NobvLCXFIOcC&pg=PA127 |accessdate=26 June 2015 |date=4 February 1999 |publisher=], USA |location=New York |isbn=978-0-19-518258-3 |page=127 |chapter=4. The Man in the Glass Box |quote=The Eichmann case is widely cited as a marking a threshold in American awareness of the Holocaust, generating a 'renewed engagement' and 'heightened historical consciousness' as well as serving as a catalyst for a spate of American Holocaust literature, television programs, and feature films.}}</ref> | |||
====Trial of Adolf Eichmann==== | ====Trial of Adolf Eichmann==== | ||
{{main|Eichmann trial}} | |||
In 1961, the ] captured ] in Argentina and brought him to ] to stand trial for war crimes. Chief prosecutor ]'s intentions were not only to demonstrate Eichmann's guilt personally but to present material about the entire Holocaust, thus producing a comprehensive record.<ref name="Cesarani-2005">{{cite book |last=Cesarani |first=David |author-link=David Cesarani |title=Eichmann: His Life and Crimes |publisher=] |location=London |year=2005 |orig-year=2004 |isbn=978-0-09-944844-0 |pages=252, 254–5, 325–7}}</ref> | |||
The Israeli government arranged for the trial to have prominent media coverage.<ref name=Birn-2011>{{cite journal |last=Birn |first=Ruth Bettina |title=Fifty Years After: A Critical Look at the Eichmann Trial |journal=Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law |year=2011 |volume=44 |pages=443–473 |url=http://law.case.edu/journals/JIL/Documents/(21)%20Birn_Darby.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203021540/http://law.case.edu/journals/JIL/Documents/%2821%29%20Birn_Darby.pdf |archive-date=December 3, 2013 |access-date=April 2, 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Many major newspapers from all over the globe sent reporters and published front-page coverage of the story.{{R|Cesarani-2005}} Israelis had the opportunity to watch live television broadcasts of the proceedings, and videotape was flown daily to the United States for broadcast the following day.{{R|Cesarani-2005}}<ref name=Shandler-1999b>{{cite book |last=Shandler |first=Jeffrey |title=While America Watches: Televising the Holocaust |year=1999 |publisher=] |location=Oxford; New York |isbn=0-19-511935-5 |page= |quote=The trial and the surrounding media coverage sparked renewed interest in wartime events, and the resulting increase in publication of memoirs and scholarly works helped raise public awareness of the Holocaust. |url=https://archive.org/details/whileamericawatc00shan_0/page/93}}</ref> | |||
In 1961, the Israeli government captured ] in Argentina and brought him to Israel to stand trial for war crimes. At this point, knowledge of the Holocaust was not widespread among the public. | |||
Chief prosecutor ]'s intentions were not only to demonstrate Eichmann's guilt personally but to present material about the entire Holocaust, thus producing a comprehensive record.<ref name=Cesarani-2005>{{cite book |last=Cesarani |first=David |authorlink=David Cesarani |title=Eichmann: His Life and Crimes |publisher=] |location=London |year=2005 |origyear=2004 |isbn = 978-0-09-944844-0 |pages=252, 254–5, 325–7}}</ref> | |||
==Significant individuals and organizations== | |||
The Israeli government arranged for the trial to have prominent media coverage.<ref name=Birn-2011>{{cite journal |last=Birn |first=Ruth Bettina |title=Fifty Years After: A Critical Look at the Eichmann Trial |journal=Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law |year=2011 |volume=44 |pages=443–473 |url=http://law.case.edu/journals/JIL/Documents/(21)%20Birn_Darby.pdf |format=PDF |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203021540/http://law.case.edu/journals/JIL/Documents/(21)%20Birn_Darby.pdf |archivedate=2013-12-03 |accessdate=2015-04-02}}</ref> | |||
Many major newspapers from all over the globe sent reporters and published front-page coverage of the story.<ref name=Cesarani-2005 /> | |||
Israelis had the opportunity to watch live television broadcasts of the proceedings, and videotape was flown daily to the United States for broadcast the following day.<ref name=Cesarani-2005 /><ref name=Shandler-1999b>{{cite book |last=Shandler |first=Jeffrey |title=While America Watches: Televising the Holocaust |year=1999 |publisher=] |location=Oxford; New York |isbn=0-19-511935-5 |page=93 |quote= The trial and the surrounding media coverage sparked renewed interest in wartime events, and the resulting increase in publication of memoirs and scholarly works helped raise public awareness of the Holocaust.}}</ref> | |||
==History and development of Holocaust denial after World War II== | |||
{{Category see also |Holocaust deniers}} | {{Category see also |Holocaust deniers}} | ||
In the immediate aftermath of the war, prior to the extensive documentation efforts by the Allied forces, a sense of disbelief caused many to deny the initial reports of the Holocaust.<ref name="FoguKansteiner2016">{{cite book |first1=Claudio |last1=Fogu |first2=Wulf |last2=Kansteiner |first3=Todd |last3=Presner |title=Probing the Ethics of Holocaust Culture |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2MRADQAAQBAJ&pg=PA68 |date=October 17, 2016 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-674-97051-9 |page=68}}</ref>{{clarify|date=July 2017}} Compounding this disbelief was the memory of ] of the ], an anti-German ] campaign during WWI, which was widely known to be false by 1945.<ref name="BBC fake news">{{cite news |title=The corpse factory and the birth of fake news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38995205 |access-date=March 5, 2017 |work=] |date=February 17, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228230334/http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-38995205 |archive-date=February 28, 2017}}</ref> | |||
===Harry Elmer Barnes=== | |||
], at one time a mainstream American historian, assumed a Holocaust-denial stance in his later years.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vho.org/GB/Books/tmotsm/A5.html |title=Harry Elmer Barnes: Zionist Fraud |publisher=Vho.org |accessdate=2013-03-26}}</ref> Between ] and ], Barnes became an ] writer and a leader in the ] movement. Starting in 1924, the American worked closely with the ], a German government-funded think tank whose sole purpose was to disseminate the official government position that Germany was the victim of Allied aggression in 1914 and that the ] was morally invalid.<ref name=Herwig>Herwig, Holger "Clio Deceived" pp. 5-44 from ''International Security'', Volume 12, Issue 2, Fall 1987, pp. 22-23 & 26</ref> Headed by Major Alfred von Wegerer, a ] activist, the organization portrayed itself as a scholarly society, but historians later described it as "a clearinghouse for officially desirable views on the outbreak of the war."<ref>Herwig, Holger "Clio Deceived" pp. 5–44 from ''International Security'', Volume 12, Issue 2, Fall 1987, pp. 21–23 & 26</ref> | |||
During the 1930s, the Nazi government used this propaganda against the British, claiming allegations of concentration camps were malicious lies put forward by the British government, and historians Joachim Neander and ] note that this story "encouraged later disbelief when early reports circulated about the Holocaust under Hitler".{{R|BBC fake news}} ], chairman of the British Joint Intelligence Committee, noted that these reports were similar to "stories of employment of human corpses during the last war for the manufacture of fat which was a grotesque lie"; likewise, '']'' commented that "The parallel between this story and the 'corpse factory' atrocity tale of the First World War is too striking to be overlooked."<ref name="bgd">{{cite book |last=Neander |first=Joachim |title=The German Corpse Factory. The Master Hoax of British Propaganda in the First World War |publisher=] |date=2013 |page=8–9}}</ref> Neander notes that "There can be no doubt that the reported commercial use of the corpses of the murdered Jews undermined the credibility of the news coming from Poland and delayed action that might have rescued many Jewish lives."<ref name="bgd"/> | |||
Following World War II, Barnes became convinced that allegations made against Germany and Japan, including the Holocaust, were wartime propaganda used to justify the United States' involvement in World War II. Barnes claimed there were two false claims made about World War II, namely that Germany started the war in 1939, and the Holocaust, which Barnes claimed did not happen.<ref name="Lipstadt, Deborah page 75">Lipstadt, Deborah ''Denying the Holocaust'' (New York: Free Press, 1993) p. 75.</ref> | |||
The ] movement has been revitalized by Holocaust denial. Small but vocal numbers of neo-Nazis realized that recreation of a Hitlerite-style regime may be impossible, but a replica might be produced in the future; the rehabilitation of Nazism, they concluded, required the discrediting of the Holocaust.<ref name=Atkins>{{cite book |first=Stephen E. |last=Atkins |title=Holocaust Denial as an International Movement |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M9Uj6u6b-ZIC |year=2009 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-313-34538-8 |quote=Holocaust denial has played an important role in the revitalization of the Neo-Nazi movement. There was a smaller but nonetheless vocal number of supporters in other Western European countries and the United States. These neo-Nazis realized that a Hitlerite regime was impossible, but a reasonable facsimile was possible in the future. These neo-Nazis and their allies realized that any rehabilitation of Nazism could be accomplished only by discrediting the Holocaust.}}</ref> ] has likewise relied upon Holocaust denial as a means of rehabilitation.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bland |first=Benjamin |date=2019 |title=Holocaust inversion, anti-Zionism and British neo-fascism: the Israel–Palestine conflict and the extreme right in post-war Britain |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0031322X.2018.1536347 |journal=] |language=en |volume=53 |issue=1 |pages=86–97 |doi=10.1080/0031322X.2018.1536347 |issn=0031-322X |access-date=May 11, 2024 |archive-date=May 11, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240511134816/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0031322X.2018.1536347 |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
In his 1962 pamphlet, ''Revisionism and Brainwashing'', Barnes claimed that there was a "lack of any serious opposition or concerted challenge to the atrocity stories and other modes of defamation of German national character and conduct".<ref>Lipstadt, Deborah ''Denying the Holocaust'', Free Press: New York, 1993, pp. 73–74.</ref> Barnes argued that there was "a failure to point out the atrocities of the Allies were more brutal, painful, mortal and numerous than the most extreme allegations made against the Germans".<ref name="Lipstadt, Deborah page 74">Lipstadt, Deborah ''Denying the Holocaust'' (New York: Free Press, 1993) p. 74.</ref> He claimed that in order to justify the "horrors and evils of the Second World War", the Allies made the Nazis the "scapegoat" for their own misdeeds.<ref name="Lipstadt, Deborah page 75"/> | |||
As a movement, modern Holocaust denial is associated with historical revisionism based on ] evidence<ref name="Rosenfeld2015">{{cite book |last1=Rosenfeld |first1=Alvin H. |title=Deciphering the new antisemitism |date=2015 |location=Bloomington and Indianapolis |publisher=] |isbn=9780253018694 |pages=250, 350 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ibfkCgAAQBAJ |quote="In the 1970s, Holocaust denial took up more sophisticated pseudoscientijfic methods and began to portray itself as a movement of historal revisionists..." |access-date=March 21, 2023 |archive-date=July 5, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240705094703/https://books.google.com/books?id=ibfkCgAAQBAJ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Pigliucci_Philosophy_of_Pseudoscience_2013">{{cite book |last1=Pigliucci |first1=Massimo |last2=Boudry |first2=Maarten |title=Philosophy of pseudoscience : reconsidering the demarcation problem |date=2013 |publisher=] |location=Chicago |isbn=9780226051826 |pages=206 |url=https://archive.org/details/philosophyofpseu00unse/page/206/ |access-date=February 13, 2023}}</ref><ref name="Brittingham2020">{{cite journal |last1=Brittingham |first1=Matthew H. |title="The Jews love numbers": Steven L. Anderson, Christian Conspiracists, and the Spiritual Dimensions of Holocaust Denial |journal=] |date=September 2020 |volume=14 |issue=2 |pages=44–64 |issn=1911-0359 |eissn=1911-9933 |doi=10.5038/1911-9933.14.2.1721 |pmid= |s2cid=225256338 |url=https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1721 |quote="The preacher produced a nearly 40-minute video, "Did the Holocaust Really Happen?," in which he espoused what Deborah Lipstadt has called "hardcore" Holocaust denial, "den the facts of the Holocaust" in an "outright and forceful fashion." Though his “scientific” evidence for the "Holocaust hoax" or "Holocaust myth," as he often refers to the Holocaust, is mostly a regurgitation of the pseudoscientific arguments made by a more established group of Holocaust deniers, Anderson adds a spiritual dimension to Holocaust denial to make it attractive to Christian viewers." |doi-access=free}}{{Dead link|date=May 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref name="HirvonenKaristo2022">{{cite journal |last1=Hirvonen |first1=Ilmari |last2=Karisto |first2=Janne |title=Demarcation without Dogmas |journal=] |date=February 13, 2022 |volume=88 |issue=3 |pages=701–720 |issn=0040-5825 |eissn=1755-2567 |doi=10.1111/theo.12395 |pmid= |hdl=10138/345499 |s2cid=246834442 |url=https://philarchive.org/rec/HIRDWD |quote="On the one hand, there is science denialism, such as climate change scepticism, the anti-vaccination movement, and holocaust denial, which attacks well-established scientific theories and practices. On the other hand, there is the promotion of pseudotheory, the attempt to get doctrines like homoeopathy and intelligent design accepted as sciences even though they have no warrant for such merit (Hansson, 2017). Both types of pseudoscience have harmful effects on health, environment, education, and society...Paradigmatic pseudosciences can also be very different from one another. Think of, say, intelligent design, Holocaust denial, ancient astronaut hypothesis, homoeopathy, the anti-vaccine movement, astrology, or climate change scepticism. Because there are different forms of pseudoscience, one cannot rule out the possibility that different criteria are needed to distinguish them from science." |hdl-access=free}}</ref> and ]<ref name="Rosenfeld2015"/><ref name="Pigliucci_Philosophy_of_Pseudoscience_2013"/> including ] pseudoscientific journals,<ref name="CODOH_ADL">{{cite news |title=Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust (CODOH) {{!}} Center on Extremism |url=https://extremismterms.adl.org/glossary/committee-open-debate-holocaust-codoh |access-date=February 13, 2023 |work=extremismterms.adl.org |publisher=] |date=2022 |language=en |archive-date=February 13, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230213142838/https://extremismterms.adl.org/glossary/committee-open-debate-holocaust-codoh |url-status=live}}</ref> conferences, and professional organizations (e.g. '']'', ], ]).<ref name="HolocaustEncyclopedia_2001">{{cite book |last1=Laqueur |first1=Walter |last2=Baumel-Schwartz |first2=Judith Tydor |title=The Holocaust encyclopedia |date=2001 |location=New Haven |publisher=] |isbn=9780300084320 |pages=300 |quote="Holocaust revisionism enlists a wide variety of strategies and assumes many different forms adapted to the history and political cultures in which it operates. It has nonetheless developed into an international movement with its own networks, gatherings, public forums, propaganda, and pseudo-scientific journal"}}</ref><ref name="NESS_HD">{{cite news |last1=Novella |first1=Steven |title=Holocaust Denial |url=https://theness.com/index.php/holocaust-denial |access-date=February 13, 2023 |work=] |date=July 17, 2009 |quote="Those who deny that there ever was a Nazi genocide of Jews during World War II have used a similar style of arguing. Deniers have subjugated science, in this case historical science, to a political agenda, creating a pseudoscience called Holocaust Denial.... Inventing and promoting pseudoscience : Leuchter claims that the gas chamber was not really used against human beings.... Error #1: Leuchter estimates that a certain crematorium at Auschwitz could process only 156 bodies. He was apparently unaware of an SS report which confirms that the same building (which he describes) destroyed 4756 bodies in the course of a single 24 hour period. Error #2: He notes that the cyanide residue from one gas chamber wall is less than the residue from a wall inside a known delousing chamber. Leuchter claims that this is the most conclusive evidence that a "gas chamber" could not have been used for killing humans. His argument is based on the assumption that humans require much more cyanide than lice to die – an assumption that, as it happens, is wrong. In fact, lice require about a 50 times higher dose of cyanide gas than humans in order to die." |archive-date=February 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230212144941/https://theness.com/index.php/holocaust-denial/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Whine2008">{{cite journal |last1=Whine |first1=Michael |title=Expanding Holocaust Denial and Legislation Against It |journal=Jewish Political Studies Review |date=2008 |volume=20 |issue=1/2 |pages=57–77 |jstor=25834777 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25834777 |access-date=February 13, 2023 |issn=0792-335X |quote="Holocaust deniers, and the media they use, are changing as a consequence of international political developments... New forms of this propaganda encompassed pseudoscientific books and papers; crude denial material, usually published in leaflet form by small neo-Nazi groups; and what can be called political denial, which includes the most recent and increasingly potent source, namely, Islamists as well as Internet and television transmissions within some Muslim states. Many of the pseudoscientific publications available internationally were published under cover of fictitious academic publishing houses. These works included, for example, ''The Hoax of the Twentieth Century'' by Arthur Butz, ''Did Six Million Really Die?'' by Richard Harwood, and ''The Leuchter Report''. Historians challenged these and rebutted their false theses."}}</ref> | |||
Barnes cited the French Holocaust denier ], whom Barnes called a "distinguished French historian" who had exposed the "exaggerations of the atrocity stories".<ref name="Lipstadt, Deborah page 74"/> In a 1964 article, "Zionist Fraud", published in the '']'', Barnes wrote: "The courageous author lays the chief blame for misrepresentation on those whom we must call the swindlers of the crematoria, the Israeli politicians who derive billions of marks from nonexistent, mythical and imaginary cadavers, whose numbers have been reckoned in an unusually distorted and dishonest manner."<ref>Lipstadt, Deborah ''Denying the Holocaust'', Free Press: New York, 1993 page 74.</ref> Using Rassinier as his source, Barnes claimed that Germany was the victim of aggression in both 1914 and 1939, and that reports of the Holocaust were propaganda to justify a war of aggression against Germany.<ref name="Lipstadt, Deborah page 74"/> | |||
===Maurice Bardèche=== | |||
===Beginnings of the modern denial movement=== | |||
The first person to openly write after the end of World War II that he doubted the reality of the Holocaust was French journalist ] in his 1948 book {{lang|fr|Nuremberg ou la Terre promise}} ("Nuremberg or the Promised Land").<ref name=":2">{{harvnb|Igounet|2000|p=31}}: "{{lang|fr|Pour la première fois, depuis la fin de la guerre, un homme écrit qu'il doute ouvertement de l'existence des camps de la mort}}" </ref> Viewed as "the father-figure of Holocaust denial", Bardèche introduced in his works many aspects of ] and Holocaust denial ] and ideological structures; his work is deemed influential in regenerating post-war European far-right ideas at a time of identity crisis in the 1950–1960s.{{sfn|Algazy|1984|pp=208–209}}{{sfn|Barnes|2002|p=}}{{sfn|Bar-On|2016|p=}} His arguments formed the basis of numerous works of Holocaust denial that followed: "testimonies are not reliable, essentially coming from the mouth of Jews and communists", "atrocities committed in camps were the work of deportees ]]", "disorganization occurred in Nazi camps following the first German defeats", "the high mortality is due to the 'weakening' of prisoners and epidemics", "only lice were gassed in ]", etc.{{sfn|Igounet|2000|p=}}{{page needed|date=August 2024}} | |||
]: Nazi salute and Holocaust denial]] | |||
In 1961, a protégé of Barnes, ] published ''Der Erzwungene Krieg'' (''The Forced War'') in West Germany, which claimed that Germany had been the victim of an Anglo-Polish conspiracy in 1939. Though ''Der Erzwungene Krieg'' was primarily concerned with the origins of World War II, it also down-played or justified the effects of Nazi ] measures in the pre-1939 period.<ref name="Lipstadt, Deborah page 71">Lipstadt, Deborah ''Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', New York : Free Press ; Toronto : Maxwell Macmillan Canada ; New York ; Oxford : Maxwell Macmillan International, 1993 page 71</ref> For example, Hoggan justified the huge one billion ''Reich''-mark fine imposed on the entire Jewish community in Germany after the 1938 '']'' as a reasonable measure to prevent what he called "Jewish profiteering" at the expense of German insurance companies and alleged that no Jews were killed in the ''Kristallnacht'' (in fact, 91 German Jews were killed in the ''Kristallnacht'').<ref name="Lipstadt, Deborah page 71"/> Subsequently, Hoggan explicitly denied the Holocaust in 1969 entitled ''The Myth of the Six Million'', which was published by the ], a small Los Angeles publisher specializing in antisemitic literature.<ref>Gottfired, Ted: ''Deniers Of The Holocaust: Who They Are, What They Do, Why They Do It'' (Twenty-First Century Books, 2001). Page 29</ref> | |||
===Harry Elmer Barnes=== | |||
In 1964, French historian ] published ''The Drama of the European Jews''. Rassinier was himself a concentration camp survivor (he was held in ] for having helped French Jews escape the Nazis), and modern-day deniers continue to cite his works as scholarly research that questions the accepted facts of the Holocaust. Critics argued that Rassinier did not cite evidence for his claims and ignored information that contradicted his assertions; he nevertheless remains influential in Holocaust denial circles for being one of the first deniers to propose that a vast Zionist/Allied/Soviet conspiracy faked the Holocaust, a theme that would be picked up in later years by other authors.<ref>Deborah E. Lipstadt, ''History on Trial'', Harcourt:2005 ISBN 0-06-059376-8</ref> | |||
], at one time a mainstream American historian, assumed a Holocaust-denial stance in his later years. Between ] and ], Barnes was an ] writer and a leader of the ] movement. Starting in 1924, Barnes worked closely with the ], a German government-funded think tank whose sole purpose was to disseminate the official government position that Germany was the victim of Allied aggression in 1914 and that the ] was morally invalid.{{sfn|Herwig|1987|pp=22–23 & 26}} Headed by Major Alfred von Wegerer, a {{lang|de|]}} activist, the organization portrayed itself as a scholarly society, but historians later described it as "a clearinghouse for officially desirable views on the outbreak of the war."{{sfn|Herwig|1987|pp=21–23 & 26}} | |||
Following World War II, Barnes became convinced that allegations made against Germany and ], including the Holocaust, were wartime propaganda that had been used to justify the United States' involvement in World War II. Barnes claimed that there were two false claims made about World War II, namely that Germany started the war in 1939, and the Holocaust, which Barnes claimed did not happen.{{sfn|Lipstadt|1993|p=75}} | |||
The publication of ]'s '']: The case against the presumed extermination of European Jewry'' in 1976; and ]'s '']'' in 1977 brought other similarly inclined individuals into the fold.<ref>Deborah Lipstadt, ''Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'' 1994</ref> Butz was a tenured associate professor of electrical engineering at ]. In December 1978 and January 1979, ], a French professor of literature at the ], wrote two letters to '']'' claiming that the ] used by the Nazis to exterminate the Jews did not exist. A colleague of Faurisson, ], who initially shared Faurisson's views, later became convinced of the Holocaust's evidence while investigating documents at ] in 1979. He published his conclusions along with much of the underlying evidence in his 1989 book, ''Auschwitz: Technique and operation of the gas chambers''.<ref> | |||
{{Cite book | |||
| last = Pressac | |||
| first = Jean-Claude | |||
| title = Auschwitz: Technique and operation of the gas chambers | |||
| url = http://www.holocaust-history.org/auschwitz/pressac/technique-and-operation/ | |||
| accessdate =January 31, 2006 | |||
| year = 1989 | |||
| publisher=The Beate Klarsfeld Foundation | |||
| location = New York}} | |||
</ref> | |||
In his 1962 pamphlet, ''Revisionism and Brainwashing'', Barnes claimed that there was a "lack of any serious opposition or concerted challenge to the atrocity stories and other modes of defamation of German national character and conduct".{{sfn|Lipstadt|1993|pp=73-74}} Barnes argued that there was "a failure to point out the atrocities of the Allies were more brutal, painful, mortal and numerous than the most extreme allegations made against the Germans".{{sfn|Lipstadt|1993|p=74}} He claimed that in order to justify the "horrors and evils of the Second World War", the Allies made the Nazis the "scapegoat" for their own misdeeds.{{sfn|Lipstadt|1993|p=75}} | |||
], the former president of ], has described Arthur Butz's view of the Holocaust as an "embarrassment to Northwestern".<ref name="bienen">{{cite web|url=http://www.northwestern.edu/president/arthurbutz.html|title=Message from President Bienen, Northwestern University|last=Bienen|first=Henry S.|date=February 6, 2006|publisher=Northwestern University|accessdate=September 20, 2009 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070501100921/http://www.northwestern.edu/president/arthurbutz.html |archivedate = May 1, 2007}}</ref> In 2006, sixty of Butz's colleagues from the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science faculty signed a censure describing Butz's Holocaust denial as "an affront to our humanity and our standards as scholars".<ref name="tdn">{{Cite news|url=http://dailynorthwestern.com/2006/02/16/archive-manual/students-faculty-oppose-butz-with-petitions/|title=Students, faculty oppose Butz with petitions|last=Elizabeth|first=Campbell|date=February 16, 2006|publisher=The Daily Northwestern|accessdate=May 17, 2012}}</ref> The letter also called for Butz to "leave our Department and our University and stop trading on our reputation for academic excellence".<ref name=tdn/> | |||
Barnes cited the French Holocaust denier ], whom Barnes called a "distinguished French historian" who had exposed the "exaggerations of the atrocity stories".{{sfn|Lipstadt|1993|p=74}} In a 1964 article, "Zionist Fraud", published in the '']'', Barnes wrote: "The courageous author lays the chief blame for misrepresentation on those whom we must call the swindlers of the crematoria, the Israeli politicians who derive billions of marks from nonexistent, mythical and imaginary cadavers, whose numbers have been reckoned in an unusually distorted and dishonest manner."{{sfn|Lipstadt|1993|p=74}} Using Rassinier as his source, Barnes claimed that Germany was the victim of aggression in both 1914 and 1939 and that reports of the Holocaust were propaganda to justify a war of aggression against Germany.{{sfn|Lipstadt|1993|p=74}} | |||
===Institute for Historical Review=== | |||
In 1978 ] founded the ] (IHR), an organization dedicated to publicly challenging the commonly accepted history of the Holocaust.<ref>Chip Berlet & Matthew J. Lyons, ''Right-Wing Populism in America: Too Close for Comfort'', New York: Guilford Press, 2000, p. 189.</ref> The IHR sought from the beginning to establish itself within the broad tradition of historical revisionism, by soliciting token supporters who were not from a neo-Nazi background such as ] and ], and by promoting the writings of French socialist Paul Rassinier and American anti-war historian Harry Elmer Barnes, in an attempt to show that Holocaust denial had a base of support beyond neo-Nazis. The IHR republished most of Barnes's writings, which had been out of print since his death. While it included articles on other topics and sold books by mainstream historians, the majority of material published and distributed by IHR was devoted to questioning the facts surrounding the Holocaust.<ref>Richard J. Evans, ''Lying About Hitler: History, Holocaust, and the David Irving Trial'', Basic Books, 2002 (ISBN 0-465-02153-0).</ref> The IHR became a high-profile organization devoted to Holocaust denial, but suffered a reversal in 1981 as the result of a lawsuit brought by public interest attorney ] on behalf of his client, Auschwitz survivor ]. In response to Cox's motion for summary judgment, the court took "] of the fact that Jews were gassed to death at ] in German-occupied Poland during the summer of 1944". The court went on to say, "It is simply a fact." Subsequently{{when|date=May 2014}} the IHR underwent an internal power struggle which removed Willis Carto and saw ] placed in charge. Carto founded the '']'' magazine after his departure from IHR, a magazine also devoted to Holocaust denial.{{citation needed|date=May 2014}} | |||
===Beginnings of modern denialism=== | |||
In the "About the IHR" statement on their website, the IHR states, "The IHR does not 'deny' the Holocaust. Indeed, the IHR as such has no 'position' on any specific event.... IHR does not necessarily agree with the content or outlook of posted or distributed ."<ref>http://ihr.org/main/about.shtml</ref> One example of a Holocaust denialist's view that was published by the IHR is the transcript of the speech made by the Lutheran pastor Herman Otten at the Ninth IHR Conference (1989), in which he says {{quote|There is no dispute over the fact that large numbers of Jews were deported to concentration camps and ghettos, or that many Jews died or were killed during World War II. Revisionist scholars have presented evidence, which "exterminationists" have not been able to refute, showing that there was no German program to exterminate Europe's Jews, and that the estimate of six million Jewish wartime dead is an irresponsible exaggeration. The Holocaust – the alleged extermination of some six million Jews (most of them by gassing) – is a hoax and should be recognized as such by Christians and all informed, honest and truthful men everywhere.<ref>''Journal for Historical Review'', 1993, 13, 5, p. 32</ref>}} | |||
In 1961, a protégé of Barnes, ], published {{lang|de|Der erzwungene Krieg}} (''The Forced War'') in West Germany, which claimed that Germany had been the victim of an Anglo-Polish conspiracy in 1939. Though ''Der erzwungene Krieg'' was primarily concerned with the origins of World War II, it also down-played or justified the effects of Nazi ] measures in the pre-1939 period.{{sfn|Lipstadt|1993|p=71}} For example, Hoggan justified the huge one billion ] fine imposed on the entire Jewish community in Germany after the 1938 {{lang|de|]}} as a reasonable measure to prevent what he called "Jewish profiteering" at the expense of German insurance companies and alleged that no Jews were killed in the ''Kristallnacht'' (in fact, 91 German Jews were murdered in the {{lang|de|Kristallnacht}}).{{sfn|Lipstadt|1993|p=71}} Subsequently, Hoggan explicitly denied the Holocaust in 1969 in a book entitled ''The Myth of the Six Million'', which was published by the ], a small Los Angeles publisher specializing in antisemitic literature.<ref>{{cite book |last=Gottfired |first=Ted |title=Deniers Of The Holocaust: Who They Are, What They Do, Why They Do It |publisher=Twenty-First Century Books |date=2001 |page=29}}</ref> | |||
In 1964, ] published ''The Drama of the European Jews''. Rassinier was himself a concentration camp survivor (he was held in ] for having helped French Jews escape the Nazis), and modern-day deniers continue to cite his works as scholarly research that questions the accepted facts of the Holocaust. Critics argued that Rassinier did not cite evidence for his claims and ignored information that contradicted his assertions; he nevertheless remains influential in Holocaust denial circles for being one of the first deniers to propose that a vast Zionist/Allied/Soviet conspiracy faked the Holocaust, a theme that would be picked up in later years by other authors.<ref>{{cite book |first=Deborah E. |last=Lipstadt |author-link=Deborah Lipstadt |title=History on Trial |publisher=Harcourt |date=2005 |isbn=0-06-059376-8}}</ref>{{page needed|date=June 2020}} | |||
Commentators and historians have noted the misleading nature of statements by the IHR that they are not Holocaust deniers. ] writes that: {{quote|The question appears to turn on IHR's Humpty-Dumpty word game with the word Holocaust. According to Mark Weber, associate editor of the IHR's ] , "If by the 'Holocaust' you mean the political persecution of Jews, some scattered killings, if you mean a cruel thing that happened, no one denies that. But if one says that the 'Holocaust' means the systematic extermination of six to eight million Jews in concentration camps, that's what we think there's not evidence for." That is, IHR doesn't deny that the Holocaust happened; they just deny that the word 'Holocaust' means what people customarily use it for.<ref>], '']'', January 17, 1992, page 4.</ref>}} According to British historian of Germany ]: | |||
{{quote|Like many individual Holocaust deniers, the Institute as a body denied that it was involved in Holocaust denial. It called this a 'smear' which was 'completely at variance with the facts' because 'revisionist scholars' such as Faurisson, Butz 'and bestselling British historian David Irving acknowledge that hundreds of thousands of Jews were killed and otherwise perished during the Second World War as a direct and indirect result of the harsh anti-Jewish policies of Germany and its allies'. But the concession that a relatively small number of Jews were killed was routinely used by Holocaust deniers to distract attention from the far more important fact of their refusal to admit that the figure ran into the millions, and that a large proportion of these victims were systematically murdered by gassing as well as by shooting.<ref>]. ''Telling Lies About Hitler: The Holocaust, History and the David Irving Trial'', Verso, 2002, ISBN 1-85984-417-0, p. 151.</ref>}} | |||
], a ] medieval English literature professor, is considered the first major mainstream American holocaust denier.<ref>{{cite book |last=Knight |first=Peter |title=Conspiracy Theories in American History: An Encyclopedia |volume=1 |year=2003 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1576078129 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qMIDrggs8TsC&q=%22Austin%20App%22%20holocaust&pg=PA322 |page=322 |access-date=March 20, 2021 |archive-date=July 5, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240705094705/https://books.google.com/books?id=qMIDrggs8TsC&q=%22Austin%20App%22%20holocaust&pg=PA322 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Atkins, Stephen E. 2009 pp. 153">{{cite book |last=Atkins |first=Stephen E. |year=2009 |title=Austin J. App and Holocaust Denial. Holocaust denial as an international movement |location=Westport, CT |publisher=Praeger |pages=153–155 |isbn=978-0-313-34539-5}}</ref> App defended the Germans and Nazi Germany during World War II. He published numerous articles, letters, and books on Holocaust denial, quickly building a loyal following. App's work inspired the ], a California center founded in 1978 whose sole task is the denial of the Holocaust.<ref>{{cite book |first1=Carlos C. |last1=Huerta |first2=Dafna |last2=Shiffman-Huerta |chapter=Holocaust Denial Literature: Its Place in Teaching the Holocaust |editor1-first=Rochelle L. |editor1-last=Millen |title=New Perspectives on the Holocaust: A Guide for Teachers and Scholars |publisher=] |date=1996 |isbn=0-8147-5540-2 |page=189}}</ref> | |||
===Bradley Smith and the Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust=== | |||
In 1987, Bradley R. Smith, a former media director of the Institute for Historical Review,<ref></ref> founded the Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust (CODOH).<ref> '']''. 2001. April 24, 2008.</ref> In the United States, CODOH has repeatedly tried to place advertisements questioning whether the Holocaust happened, especially in college campus newspapers,<ref> '']''. 2001. April 24, 2008.</ref> which have not always been rejected.<ref> '']''. 2001. April 24, 2008.</ref> | |||
The publication of ]'s '']: The case against the presumed extermination of European Jewry'' in 1976; and ]'s '']'' in 1977 brought other similarly inclined individuals into the fold.{{sfn|Lipstadt|1993|p=}}{{page needed|date=June 2020}} Butz was a tenured associate professor of electrical engineering at ]. In December 1978 and January 1979, ], a French professor of literature at the ], wrote two letters to '']'' claiming that the ] used by the Nazis to exterminate the Jews did not exist. A colleague of Faurisson, ], who initially shared Faurisson's views, later became convinced of the Holocaust's evidence while investigating documents at ] in 1979. He published his conclusions along with much of the underlying evidence in his 1989 book, ''Auschwitz: Technique and operation of the gas chambers''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Pressac |first=Jean-Claude |title=Auschwitz: Technique and operation of the gas chambers |url=http://phdn.org/archives/holocaust-history.org/auschwitz/pressac/technique-and-operation/ |via=Pratique de l'Histoire et Dévoiements Négationnistes |access-date=January 31, 2006 |year=1989 |publisher=The Beate Klarsfeld Foundation |location=New York |archive-date=January 28, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170128063557/http://phdn.org/archives/holocaust-history.org/auschwitz/pressac/technique-and-operation/ |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
Bradley Smith has sought other avenues to promote Holocaust denial – with little success. On September 8, 2009, the ''Harvard Crimson'' school paper ran a paid ad from Bradley R Smith. It was quickly criticized and an apology was issued from the editor, claiming it was a mistake.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2009/US/09/09/massachusetts.harvard.holocaust/index.html|title=Harvard Crimson says Holocaust denial ad published by accident|last=Buxbaum|first=Evan|date=September 10, 2009|publisher=CNN|accessdate=September 10, 2009}}</ref><!-- For the whole paragraph as it falls under ]--> | |||
], the former president of Northwestern University, has described Arthur Butz's view of the Holocaust as an "embarrassment to Northwestern".<ref name="bienen">{{cite web |url=http://www.northwestern.edu/president/arthurbutz.html |title=Message from President Bienen, Northwestern University |last=Bienen |first=Henry S. |date=February 6, 2006 |publisher=] |access-date=September 20, 2009 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070501100921/http://www.northwestern.edu/president/arthurbutz.html |archive-date= May 1, 2007}}</ref> In 2006, sixty of Butz's colleagues from the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science faculty signed a censure describing Butz's Holocaust denial as "an affront to our humanity and our standards as scholars".<ref name="tdn">{{cite news |url=http://dailynorthwestern.com/2006/02/16/archive-manual/students-faculty-oppose-butz-with-petitions/ |title=Students, faculty oppose Butz with petitions |last=Elizabeth |first=Campbell |date=February 16, 2006 |newspaper=The Daily Northwestern |access-date=May 17, 2012 |archive-date=January 16, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140116074722/http://dailynorthwestern.com/2006/02/16/archive-manual/students-faculty-oppose-butz-with-petitions/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The letter also called for Butz to "leave our Department and our University and stop trading on our reputation for academic excellence".{{R|tdn}} | |||
Smith referred to his tactics as the CODOH campus project. He says, "I don't want to spend time with adults anymore, I want to go to students. They are superficial. They are empty vessels to be filled." "What I wanted to do was I wanted to set forth three or four ideas that students might be interested in, that might cause them to think about things or to have questions about things. And I wanted to make it as simple as possible, and to set it up in a way that could not really be debated."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.adl.org/learn/ext_us/smith_codoh/words.asp?LEARN_Cat=Extremism&LEARN_SubCat=Extremism_in_America&xpicked=2&item=10 |title=Bradley Smith, Holocaust Denial, Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust – Extremism in America |publisher=Adl.org |accessdate=2013-03-26}}</ref> Holocaust deniers have placed "Full page advertisements in college and university newspaper, including those of Brandeis University, Boston College, Pennsylvania State University, and Queens College. Some of these ads arguing that Holocaust never happened ran without comment; others generated op-ed pieces by professors and students."<ref>{{cite book |last=Shermar |first=Michael |author2=Alex Grobman |title= ] |publisher=] |year= 2000 |isbn= 978-0-520-21612-9}}</ref> | |||
===Institute for Historical Review=== | |||
In 1978 the American ] activist ] founded the ] (IHR), an organization dedicated to publicly challenging the commonly accepted history of the Holocaust.<ref name="TooCloseForComfort">{{cite book |first1=Chip |last1=Berlet |first2=Matthew J. |last2=Lyons |title=Right-Wing Populism in America: Too Close for Comfort |location=New York |publisher=] |date=2000 |page=189}}</ref> The IHR's founding was inspired by ], a ] professor of medieval English literature and considered the first major American holocaust denier.{{R|Atkins, Stephen E. 2009 pp. 153}} The IHR sought from the beginning to establish itself within the broad tradition of historical revisionism, by soliciting token supporters who were not from a ] background such as ] and ], and by promoting the writings of French socialist Paul Rassinier and American anti-war historian Harry Elmer Barnes, in an attempt to show that Holocaust denial had a base of support beyond neo-Nazis. The IHR republished most of Barnes's writings, which had been out of print since his death. While it included articles on other topics and sold books by mainstream historians, the majority of material published and distributed by IHR was devoted to questioning the facts surrounding the Holocaust.<ref>{{cite book |first=Richard J. |last=Evans |title=Lying About Hitler: History, Holocaust, and the David Irving Trial |publisher=] |date=2002 |isbn=0-465-02153-0}}</ref>{{page needed|date=June 2020}} | |||
In 1980, the IHR promised a $50,000 reward to anyone who could prove that Jews were gassed at Auschwitz. ] wrote a ]s of the '']'' and others including '']''. The IHR wrote back, offering him $50,000 for proof that Jews were, in fact, gassed in the gas chambers at Auschwitz. Mermelstein, in turn, submitted a notarized account of his internment at Auschwitz and how he witnessed Nazi guards ushering his mother and two sisters and others towards (as he learned later) gas chamber number five. Despite this, the IHR refused to pay the reward. Represented by public interest attorney ], Mermelstein subsequently sued the IHR in the ] for ], ], ], ], ], and ]. On October 9, 1981, both parties in the Mermelstein case filed motions for ] in consideration of which Judge Thomas T. Johnson of the ] took "] of the fact that Jews were gassed to death at the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland during the summer of 1944,"<ref name="NYT">{{cite news |title=California Judge Rules Holocaust Did Happen |date=October 10, 1981 |page=A26 |newspaper=] |agency=] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/10/10/us/california-judge-rules-holocaust-did-happen.html |access-date=November 20, 2010 |archive-date=October 19, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181019142015/https://www.nytimes.com/1981/10/10/us/california-judge-rules-holocaust-did-happen.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="order">{{cite web |url=http://www.nizkor.org/ftp.cgi/people/m/mermelstein.mel/ftp.py?people/m/mermelstein.mel//mermelstein.order.072285 |title=Mel Mermelstein v. Institute for Historical Review Judgment and Statement of Record |access-date=November 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717102709/http://www.nizkor.org/ftp.cgi/people/m/mermelstein.mel/ftp.py?people%2Fm%2Fmermelstein.mel%2F%2Fmermelstein.order.072285 |archive-date=July 17, 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> judicial notice meaning that the court treated the gas chambers as common knowledge, and therefore did not require evidence that the gas chambers existed. On August 5, 1985, Judge Robert A. Wenke entered a judgment based upon the ] for Entry of Judgment agreed upon by the parties on July 22, 1985. The judgment required IHR and other defendants to pay $90,000 to Mermelstein and to issue a letter of apology to "Mr. Mel Mermelstein, a ] of Auschwitz-Birkenau and Buchenwald, and all other survivors of Auschwitz" for "pain, anguish and suffering" caused to them.{{R|order}} | |||
In the "About the IHR" statement on their website, the IHR states, "The IHR does not 'deny' the Holocaust. Indeed, the IHR as such has no 'position' on any specific event...."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ihr.org/main/about.shtml|title=About the IHR: Our Mission and Record |date=May 2018 |work=Institute for Historical Review |access-date=July 9, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013154000/http://ihr.org/main/about.shtml |archive-date=October 13, 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> British historian ] wrote that the Institute's acknowledgment "that a relatively small number of Jews were killed" was a means to draw attention away from its primary beliefs, i.e. that the number of victims was not in the millions and that Jews were not systematically murdered in gas chambers.<ref>]. ''Telling Lies About Hitler: The Holocaust, History and the David Irving Trial'', ], 2002, {{ISBN|1-85984-417-0}}, p. 151. Quote: Like many individual Holocaust deniers, the Institute as a body denied that it was involved in Holocaust denial. It called this a 'smear' which was 'completely at variance with the facts' because 'revisionist scholars' such as Faurisson, Butz 'and bestselling British historian David Irving acknowledge that hundreds of thousands of Jews were killed and otherwise perished during the Second World War as a direct and indirect result of the harsh anti-Jewish policies of Germany and its allies'. But the concession that a relatively small number of Jews were killed was routinely used by Holocaust deniers to distract attention from the far more important fact of their refusal to admit that the figure ran into the millions, and that a large proportion of these victims were systematically murdered by gassing as well as by shooting.</ref> | |||
===James Keegstra=== | ===James Keegstra=== | ||
{{ |
{{Further|R. v. Keegstra}} | ||
In 1984, ], a Canadian high-school teacher, was charged under the Canadian ] for "promoting hatred against an identifiable group by communicating anti-Semitic statements to his students". During class, he would describe Jews as a people of profound evil who had "created the Holocaust to gain sympathy." He also tested his students in exams on his theories and opinion of Jews.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Elman |first1=Bruce P. |editor1-last=DeCoste |editor1-first=F. C. |editor2-last=Schwartz |editor2-first=Bernard |title=The Holocaust's Ghost: Writings on Art, Politics, Law and Education |date=2000 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-88864-337-7 |page=316 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lLnBSq7YP0gC&pg=PA316 |language=en |chapter=The Belzberg Lecture: Honouring Memory, Doing Justice: Holocaust Denial, Hate Propaganda and Canadian Law |access-date=March 4, 2022 |archive-date=July 5, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240705094705/https://books.google.com/books?id=lLnBSq7YP0gC&pg=PA316#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
In 1984, ], a Canadian high-school teacher, was charged with denying the Holocaust and making antisemitic claims in his classroom as part of the course material. Keegstra and his lawyer, ], argued that the section of the ] (now section 319{2}), is an infringement of the ] (section 9{b}). The case was appealed to the ], where it was decided that the law he was convicted under did infringe on his freedom of expression, but it was a ]. Keegstra was convicted, and fired from his job.<ref> | |||
*. Retrieved June 27, 2007. | |||
*"The trouble erupted when the teacher's anti-Jewish (and, incidentally, anti-Catholic) views attracted complaints from certain Eckville parents, thereby inviting intervention from the district school superintendent, Robert David, in 1981. A train of events was launched that finally led to Keegstra's dismissal and subsequent indictment." Alan Davies, "The Keegstra Affair", in Alan T. Davies, ''Antisemitism in Canada: History and Interpretation'', Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 1992, ISBN |
Keegstra was charged under s 281.2(2) of the ''Criminal Code''{{citation needed|date=June 2020}} (now s 319(2)), which provides that "Every one who, by communicating statements, other than in private conversation, wilfully promotes hatred against any identifiable group" commits a criminal offense.<ref>''Criminal Code'', RSC 1970, c C-34, s 281.2(2); now ''Criminal Code'', RSC 1985, c C-46, s 319(2).</ref> He was convicted at trial before the ]. The court rejected the argument, advanced by Keegstra and his lawyer, ], that promoting hatred is a constitutionally protected freedom of expression as per ]. Keegstra appealed to the ]. That court agreed with Keegstra, and he was acquitted. The Crown then appealed the case to the ], which ruled by a 4–3 majority that promoting hatred could be ] restricted under ]. The Supreme Court restored Keegstra's conviction.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/695/index.do|title=R. v. Keegstra – SCC Cases (Lexum) |website=scc-csc.lexum.com |date=January 2001 |access-date=February 24, 2019 |archive-date=July 10, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190710021813/https://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/695/index.do |url-status=live}}</ref> He was fired from his teaching position shortly afterward.<ref>*"The trouble erupted when the teacher's anti-Jewish (and, incidentally, anti-Catholic) views attracted complaints from certain Eckville parents, thereby inviting intervention from the district school superintendent, Robert David, in 1981. A train of events was launched that finally led to Keegstra's dismissal and subsequent indictment." Alan Davies, "The Keegstra Affair", in Alan T. Davies, ''Antisemitism in Canada: History and Interpretation'', Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 1992, {{ISBN|0-88920-216-8}}, p. 228. | ||
*"Far from arguing that Keegstra had a civil right to continue spreading his dreck at Eckville High, civil libertarians wonder (along with the rest of Canada, we hope) why it took twelve years for the local school board to exercise its appropriate authority and fire him. But at least Keegstra was finally fired, and was finally removed from his position as Mayor of Eckville." John Dixon, , ] Position Paper, 1986. Retrieved June 27, 2007.</ref> | *"Far from arguing that Keegstra had a civil right to continue spreading his dreck at Eckville High, civil libertarians wonder (along with the rest of Canada, we hope) why it took twelve years for the local school board to exercise its appropriate authority and fire him. But at least Keegstra was finally fired, and was finally removed from his position as Mayor of Eckville." John Dixon, {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926232724/http://www.bccla.org/positions/freespeech/85keegstra.html |date=September 26, 2007 }}, ] Position Paper, 1986. Retrieved June 27, 2007.</ref> | ||
===Zündel trials=== | ===Zündel trials=== | ||
{{See also|Leuchter report}} | {{See also|Leuchter report}} | ||
The Toronto-based photo retoucher ] operated a small-press called ], which published and distributed Holocaust-denial material such as '']'' by Richard Harwood (a pseudonym of ] – a British neo-Nazi). In 1985, he was tried in '']'' and convicted under a "false news" law and sentenced to 15 months imprisonment by an ] court for "disseminating and publishing material denying the Holocaust".<ref name="Zundelcourt">{{cite court |litigants=R. v. Zundel |vol= |reporter= |opinion= |pinpoint= |court= |date=August 27, 1992 |url=http://scc.lexum.umontreal.ca/en/1992/1992rcs2-731/1992rcs2-731.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012161758/http://scc.lexum.umontreal.ca/en/1992/1992rcs2-731/1992rcs2-731.html |url-status=dead}}</ref> The Holocaust historian ] was a witness for the prosecution at the 1985 trial. Zündel's conviction was overturned in an appeal on a legal technicality, leading to a second trial in 1988, in which he was again convicted. The 1988 trial included, as witnesses for the defense, ], ] and ]. The pseudo-scientific ] was presented as a defense document and was published in Canada in 1988 by Zundel's Samisdat Publishers, and in Britain in 1989 by Irving's Focal Point Publishing. In both of his trials, Zündel was defended by ] and ]. His conviction was overturned in 1992 when the Supreme Court of Canada declared the "false news" law unconstitutional.{{R|Zundelcourt}} | |||
]'' by Richard Harwood (pseudonym of ]). The Supreme Court of Canada found in 1992 that the book "misrepresented the work of historians, misquoted witnesses, fabricated evidence, and cited non-existent authorities."<ref name="scc2">{{lexum-scc2|1992|2|731}}</ref>]] | |||
Zündel had a website, web-mastered by his wife Ingrid, which publicized his viewpoints.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.zundelsite.org/ |title=Zundelsite |website=www.zundelsite.org |access-date=June 27, 2007 |archive-date=December 21, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211221092253/http://www.zundelsite.org/ |url-status=live}}{{title missing|date=May 2022}}</ref> In January 2002, the ] delivered a ruling in a complaint involving his website, in which it was found to be contravening the ]. The court ordered Zündel to cease communicating hate messages. In February 2003, the American ] arrested him in ], US, on an immigration violations matter, and few days later, Zündel was sent back to Canada, where he tried to gain refugee status. Zündel remained in prison until March 1, 2005, when he was deported to Germany and prosecuted for disseminating hate propaganda. On February 15, 2007, Zündel was convicted on 14 counts of incitement under Germany's '']'' law, which bans the incitement of hatred against a portion of the population and given the maximum sentence of five years in prison.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=c61ce061-50b2-42a5-bb2f-a7bbaecccceb&k=32537 |title=German court sentences Ernst Zundel to 5 years in prison for Holocaust denial |agency=The Canadian Press |publisher=canada.com|date=February 15, 2007 |access-date=February 15, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929104434/http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=c61ce061-50b2-42a5-bb2f-a7bbaecccceb&k=32537 |archive-date=September 29, 2007}}</ref> | |||
===Bradley Smith and the CODOH=== | |||
The Toronto-based photo retoucher ] operated a small-press called ], which published and distributed Holocaust-denial material such as '']'' by Richard Harwood (a pseudonym of ] – a British neo-Nazi). In 1985, he was tried in '']'' and convicted under a "false news" law and sentenced to 15 months imprisonment by an ] court for "disseminating and publishing material denying the Holocaust".<ref name="Zundelcourt">{{cite court|litigants=R. v. Zundel |vol=|reporter=|opinion=|pinpoint=|court=|date=August 27, 1992|url=http://scc.lexum.umontreal.ca/en/1992/1992rcs2-731/1992rcs2-731.html}}</ref> The Holocaust historian ] was a witness for the prosecution at the 1985 trial. Zündel's conviction was overturned in an appeal on a legal technicality, leading to a second trial in 1988, in which he was again convicted. The 1988 trial included, as witnesses for the defense, ], ] and ]. The pseudo-scientific ] was presented as a defense document and was published in Canada in 1988 by Zundel's Samisdat Publishers and, in Britain, in 1989 by Irving's Focal Point Publishing. In both of his trials, Zündel was defended by ] and ]. His conviction was overturned in 1992 when the Supreme Court of Canada declared the "false news" law unconstitutional.<ref name="Zundelcourt"/> | |||
In 1987, Bradley R. Smith, a former media director of the Institute for Historical Review,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.axt.org.uk/antisem/archive/archive2/usa/usa.htm|title=United States of America|date=1998|work=axt.org.uk|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080620114155/http://www.axt.org.uk/antisem/archive/archive2/usa/usa.htm|archive-date=June 20, 2008}}</ref> founded the Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust (CODOH).<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115233738/http://www.adl.org/poisoning_web/codoh.asp |date=January 15, 2013 }} '']''. 2001. April 24, 2008.</ref> In the United States, CODOH has repeatedly attempted to place advertisements questioning whether the Holocaust happened, especially in college campus newspapers.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115233745/http://www.adl.org/holocaust/bradley_smith.asp |date=January 15, 2013 }} '']''. 2001. April 24, 2008.</ref> | |||
Bradley Smith took his message to college students—with little success. Smith referred to his tactics as the CODOH campus project. He said, "I don't want to spend time with adults anymore, I want to go to students. They are superficial. They are empty vessels to be filled." "What I wanted to do was I wanted to set forth three or four ideas that students might be interested in, that might cause them to think about things or to have questions about things. And I wanted to make it as simple as possible, and to set it up in a way that could not really be debated."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.adl.org/learn/ext_us/smith_codoh/words.asp?LEARN_Cat=Extremism&LEARN_SubCat=Extremism_in_America&xpicked=2&item=10 |title=Bradley Smith, Holocaust Denial, Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust – Extremism in America |publisher=] |access-date=March 26, 2013 |archive-date=January 15, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115233646/http://www.adl.org/learn/ext_us/smith_codoh/words.asp?LEARN_Cat=Extremism&LEARN_SubCat=Extremism_in_America&xpicked=2&item=10 |url-status=live}}</ref> Holocaust deniers have placed "Full page advertisements in college and university newspapers, including those of ], ], ], and ]. Some of these ads arguing that the Holocaust never happened ran without comment; others generated op-ed pieces by professors and students".<ref>{{cite book |last=Shermar |first=Michael |author2=Alex Grobman |title=Denying History: Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and Why Do They Say It? |publisher=] |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-520-21612-9 |title-link=Denying History: Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and Why Do They Say It?}}</ref> On September 8, 2009, student newspaper '']'' ran a paid ad from Bradley R Smith. It was quickly criticized, and the editor issued an apology, saying publishing the ad was a mistake.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2009/US/09/09/massachusetts.harvard.holocaust/index.html |title=Harvard Crimson says Holocaust denial ad published by accident |last=Buxbaum |first=Evan |date=September 10, 2009 |work=] |access-date=September 10, 2009 |archive-date=May 12, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190512200839/http://edition.cnn.com/2009/US/09/09/massachusetts.harvard.holocaust/index.html |url-status=live}}</ref><!-- For the whole paragraph as it falls under ]--> | |||
Zündel has a website, web-mastered by his wife Ingrid, which publicises his viewpoints.<ref> Accessed June 27, 2007</ref> In January 2002, the ] delivered a ruling in a complaint involving his website, in which it was found to be contravening the ]. The court ordered Zündel to cease communicating hate messages. In February 2003, the American ] arrested him in ], USA, on an immigration violations matter, and few days later, Zündel was sent back to Canada, where he tried to gain refugee status. Zündel remained in prison until March 1, 2005, when he was deported to Germany and prosecuted for disseminating hate propaganda. On February 15, 2007, Zündel was convicted on 14 counts of incitement under Germany's '']'' law, which bans the incitement of hatred against a portion of the population, and given the maximum sentence of five years in prison.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=c61ce061-50b2-42a5-bb2f-a7bbaecccceb&k=32537 | title = German court sentences Ernst Zundel to 5 years in prison for Holocaust denial | agency=The Canadian Press | publisher=canada.com | date= February 15, 2007 | accessdate =February 15, 2007}}</ref> | |||
===Ernst Nolte=== | ===Ernst Nolte=== | ||
The German philosopher and historian ], starting in the 1980s, advanced a set of theories, which though not denying the Holocaust appeared to flirt with Holocaust |
The German philosopher and historian ], starting in the 1980s, advanced a set of theories, which though not denying the Holocaust appeared to flirt with an Italian Holocaust denier, ], as a serious historian.<ref name="Evans, Richard J. page 83">{{cite book |last=Evans |first=Richard J. |author-link=Richard J. Evans |title=In Hitler's Shadow |location=New York |publisher=] |date=1989 |page=83}}</ref> In a letter to the Israeli historian ] of December 8, 1986, Nolte criticized the work of the French Holocaust denier ] on the ground that the Holocaust did occur, but went on to argue that Faurisson's work was motivated by what Nolte claimed were the admirable motives of sympathy towards the Palestinians and opposition to Israel.<ref>Maier, Charles ''The Unmasterable Past'', Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1988 page 190.</ref> In his 1987 book {{lang|de|Der europäische Bürgerkrieg}} (''The European Civil War''), Nolte claimed that the intentions of Holocaust deniers are "often honourable", and that some of their claims are "not obviously without foundation".{{R|Evans, Richard J. page 83}}<ref name=LipstadtDenying214>Lipstadt, Deborah ''Denying the Holocaust'', New York: Free Press, 1993 page 214</ref> Nolte himself, though he has never denied the occurrence of the Holocaust, has claimed that the ] of 1942 never happened and that the minutes of the conference were post-war forgeries done by "biased" Jewish historians designed to discredit Germany.{{R|LipstadtDenying214}} | ||
The British historian ] has argued that Nolte was operating on the borderlines of Holocaust denial with his implied claim that the "negative myth" of |
The British historian ] has argued that Nolte was operating on the borderlines of Holocaust denial with his implied claim that the "negative myth" of Nazi Germany was created by Jewish historians, his allegations of the domination of Holocaust scholarship by "biased" Jewish historians, and his statements that one should withhold judgment on Holocaust deniers, whom Nolte takes considerable pains to stress are not exclusively Germans or fascists.<ref name="Kershaw, Ian page 176">Kershaw, Ian ''The Nazi Dictatorship: Problems and Perspectives of Interpretations'', London: Arnold, 1989 page 176</ref> In Kershaw's opinion, Nolte is attempting to imply that perhaps Holocaust deniers are on to something.{{R|Kershaw, Ian page 176}} | ||
In a 1990 interview, Nolte implied that there was something to the ]: "If the revisionists and Leuchter among them have made it clear to the public that even 'Auschwitz' must be an object of scientific inquiry and controversy then they should be given credit for this. Even if it finally turned out that the number of victims was even greater and the procedures were even more horrific than has been assumed until now."<ref>Brinks |
In a 1990 interview, Nolte implied that there was something to the ]: "If the revisionists and Leuchter among them have made it clear to the public that even 'Auschwitz' must be an object of scientific inquiry and controversy then they should be given credit for this. Even if it finally turned out that the number of victims was even greater and the procedures were even more horrific than has been assumed until now."<ref>{{cite book |last=Brinks |first=Jan Hermann |title=Children of a New Fatherland |location=London |publisher=] |date=2000 |page=108}}</ref> In his 1993 book {{lang|de|Streitpunkte}} (''Points of Contention''), Nolte praised the work of Holocaust deniers as superior to "mainstream scholars".<ref name="Wistrich, Robert S pages 293-301">Wistrich, Robert S. "Holocaust Denial" pages 293–301 from ''The Holocaust Encyclopedia'' edited by Walter Laqueur, New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001 page 299</ref> Nolte wrote that "radical revisionists have presented research which, if one is familiar with the source material and the critique of the sources, is probably superior to that of the established historians of Germany".{{R|Wistrich, Robert S pages 293-301}}<ref>Lukacs, John ''The Hitler of History'' New York: Vintage Books, 1997, 1998 page 233.</ref> In a 1994 interview with {{lang|de|]}} magazine, Nolte stated "I cannot rule out the importance of the investigation of the gas chambers in which they looked for remnants of the ", and that "'Of course, I am against revisionists, but Fred Leuchter's 'study' of the Nazi gas ovens has to be given attention because one has to stay open to 'other' ideas."<ref>{{cite web |last=Charny |first=Israel |author-link=Israel Charny |title=The Psychological Satisfaction of Denials of the Holocaust or Other Genocides by Non-Extremists or Bigots, and Even by Known Scholars |publisher=Idea Journal |date=July 17, 2001 |url=http://www.ideajournal.com/articles.php?id=27 |access-date=August 7, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071224203627/http://www.ideajournal.com/articles.php?id=27 |archive-date=December 24, 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> | ||
| last = Charny | |||
| first = Israel | |||
| authorlink = Israel Charny | |||
| title = The Psychological Satisfaction of Denials of the Holocaust or Other Genocides by Non-Extremists or Bigots, and Even by Known Scholars | |||
| publisher=Idea Journal | |||
|date=July 17, 2001| url = http://www.ideajournal.com/articles.php?id=27 | |||
| accessdate =July 20, 2000}}</ref> | |||
The British historian ] in his 1989 book ''In Hitler's Shadow'' expressed the view that |
The British historian ] in his 1989 book ''In Hitler's Shadow'' expressed the view that Nolte's reputation as a scholar was in ruins as a result of these and other controversial statements on his part.<ref>Evans, Richard ''In Hitler's Shadow'', New York, NY: Pantheon, 1989 page 123</ref> The American historian ] in a 2003 interview stated: {{blockquote|Historians such as the German Ernst Nolte are, in some ways, even more dangerous than the deniers. Nolte is an anti-Semite of the first order, who attempts to rehabilitate Hitler by saying that he was no worse than Stalin; but he is careful not to deny the Holocaust. Holocaust-deniers make Nolte's life more comfortable. They have, with their radical argumentation, pulled the center a little more to their side. Consequently, a less radical extremist, such as Nolte, finds himself closer to the middle ground, which makes him more dangerous.<ref>{{cite web |last=Gerstenfeld |first=Manfred |title=Denial of the Holocaust and Immoral Equivalence An Interview with Deborah Lipstadt |publisher=Jerusalem Centre for Public Affairs |date=August 1, 2003 |url=http://www.jcpa.org/phas/phas-11.htm |access-date=June 21, 2007 |archive-date=August 16, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070816010915/http://www.jcpa.org/phas/phas-11.htm |url-status=live}}</ref>}} | ||
| last = Gerstenfeld | |||
| first = Manfred | |||
| title = Denial of the Holocaust and Immoral Equivalence An Interview with Deborah Lipstadt | |||
| publisher=Jerusalem Centre for Public Affairs | |||
|date= August 1, 2003 | |||
| url =http://www.jcpa.org/phas/phas-11.htm | |||
| accessdate = June 21, 2007}}</ref>}} | |||
===Mayer controversy=== | ===Mayer controversy=== | ||
In 1988, the American historian ] published a book entitled ''Why Did the Heavens Not Darken?'', which did not explicitly deny the Holocaust, but lent support to Holocaust denial by stating that most people who died at ] were the victims of "natural causes" such as disease, not gassing.<ref>Dawidowicz, Lucy ''What Is The Use of Jewish History?'', New York: Schocken Books, 1992 pages 129–130</ref> |
In 1988, the American historian ] published a book entitled ''Why Did the Heavens Not Darken?'', which did not explicitly deny the Holocaust, but according to ] lent support to Holocaust denial by stating that most people who died at ] were the victims of "natural causes" such as disease, not gassing.<ref>Dawidowicz, Lucy ''What Is The Use of Jewish History?'', New York: Schocken Books, 1992 pages 129–130</ref> Dawidowicz argued that Mayer's statements about Auschwitz were "a breathtaking assertion".<ref>Dawidowicz, Lucy ''What Is The Use of Jewish History?'', New York: Schocken Books, 1992 page 130</ref> Holocaust historian ] has written that Mayer's book is as close as a mainstream historian has ever come to supporting Holocaust denial.<ref name="Pelt pages 47-48">Pelt, Robert Jan van ''The Case for Auschwitz'', Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2002 pages 47–48</ref> Holocaust deniers such as ] have often cited Mayer's book as one reason for embracing Holocaust denial.{{R|Pelt pages 47-48}} Though Mayer has been often condemned for his statement about the reasons for the Auschwitz death toll, his book does not deny the use of gas chambers at Auschwitz, as Holocaust deniers often claim.<ref>{{cite news |last=Stein |first=Michael |title=The Mayer Gambit |newspaper=Nizkor Project |date=October 2, 2008 |url=http://www.nizkor.org/features/techniques-of-denial/mayer-01.html |access-date=June 4, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090502170033/http://www.nizkor.org/features/techniques-of-denial/mayer-01.html |archive-date=May 2, 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> | ||
| last = Stein | |||
| first = Michael | |||
| last2 = | |||
| first2 = | |||
| authorlink2 = | |||
| title = The Mayer Gambit | |||
| newspaper=Nizkor Project | |||
| date = October 2, 2008 | |||
| url = http://www.nizkor.org/features/techniques-of-denial/mayer-01.html | |||
| postscript = <!--None-->}}</ref> | |||
Some mainstream Holocaust historians have labeled Mayer a denier. The Israeli historian ] wrote that Mayer "popularizes the nonsense that the Nazis saw in Marxism and Bolshevism their main enemy, and the Jews unfortunately got caught up in this; when he links the destruction of the Jews to the ups and downs of German warfare in the Soviet Union, in a book that is so cocksure of itself that it does not need a proper scientific apparatus, he is really engaging in a much more subtle form of Holocaust denial".<ref> |
Some mainstream Holocaust historians have labeled Mayer a denier. The Israeli historian ] wrote that Mayer "popularizes the nonsense that the Nazis saw in Marxism and Bolshevism their main enemy, and the Jews unfortunately got caught up in this; when he links the destruction of the Jews to the ups and downs of German warfare in the Soviet Union, in a book that is so cocksure of itself that it does not need a proper scientific apparatus, he is really engaging in a much more subtle form of Holocaust denial".<ref>Bauer, Yehuda "A Past That Will Not Away" pages 12–22 from ''The Holocaust and History'' edited by Michael Berenbaum and Abrahm Peck, Bloomington: ], 1998 page 15.</ref> | ||
Defenders of Mayer argue that his statement that "Sources for the study of the gas chambers at once rare and unreliable" has been taken out of context, particularly by Holocaust deniers.<ref>Shermer, Michael & Grobman, Alex ''Denying History: Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and Why Do They Say It?'', Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002 page 126.</ref> ] and ] observe that the paragraph from which the statement is taken asserts that the SS destroyed the majority of the |
Defenders of Mayer argue that his statement that "Sources for the study of the gas chambers are at once rare and unreliable" has been taken out of context, particularly by Holocaust deniers.<ref>Shermer, Michael & Grobman, Alex ''Denying History: Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and Why Do They Say It?'', Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002 page 126.</ref> ] and ] observe that the paragraph from which the statement is taken asserts that the SS destroyed the majority of the documentation relating to the operation of the gas chambers in the death camps, which is why Mayer feels that sources for the operation of the gas chambers are "rare" and "unreliable".<ref>Shermer, Michael & Grobman, Alex ''Denying History: Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and Why Do They Say It?'', Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002 pages 126–127.</ref> | ||
== |
==False equivalence and effect== | ||
===Denialist focus on Allied war crimes=== | |||
], an American resident in Canada, was disturbed by the efforts of organizations like the ] to suppress the speech of the Holocaust deniers, feeling that it was better to confront them openly than to try to censor them. On the ] newsgroup ''alt.revisionism'' he began a campaign of "truth, fact, and evidence", working with other participants on the newsgroup to uncover factual information about the Holocaust and counter the arguments of the deniers by proving them to be based upon misleading evidence, false statements, and outright lies. He founded the ] to expose the activities of the Holocaust deniers, who responded to McVay with personal attacks, slander, and death threats.<ref></ref> | |||
The focus on so-called ] during the war has been a theme in Holocaust denial literature, particularly in countries where outright denial of the Holocaust is illegal.<ref>Stephen E. Atkins, ''Holocaust denial as an international movement'', ABC-CLIO, 2009, pg. 105</ref> According to historian ], the concept of "comparable Allied wrongs", such as the ] and the ],<ref>{{cite web|last=Evans|first=Richard|author-link=Richard J. Evans|title=Dresden and Holocaust Denial|work=David Irving, Hitler and Holocaust Denial: Electronic Edition|year=1996|url=http://hdot.org/en/trial/defense/evans/520e.html|access-date=December 23, 2013|archive-date=December 20, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131220011057/http://hdot.org/en/trial/defense/evans/520e.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> is at the center of, and a continuously repeated theme of, contemporary ]; she calls the phenomenon "immoral equivalencies".<ref>Lipstadt, Deborah. ''Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', Bt Bound, 1999, pg. 41</ref> In 1977, historian ], in a review of ]'s book '']'', maintained that the picture of World War II drawn by Irving was done in a such way to imply moral equivalence between the actions of the Axis and Allied states with both sides equally guilty of terrible crimes, leading to Hitler's "fanatical, destructive will to annihilate" being downgraded to being "no longer an exceptional phenomenon".<ref>Broszat, Martin. "Hitler and the Genesis of the 'Final Solution': An Assessment of David Irving's Theses" pages 390–429 from ''Aspects of the Third Reich'' edited by H.W. Koch page 395.</ref> | |||
]'']] | |||
===Propaganda=== | |||
===David Irving and the Lipstadt libel case=== | |||
According to James Najarian,{{who|date=December 2021}} Holocaust deniers working for the ] are not trained in history and "put out sham scholarly articles in the mock-academic publication, the '']''".<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Najarian|first1=James|year=1997|title=Gnawing at History: The Rhetoric of Holocaust Denial|journal=Midwest Quarterly|volume=39|issue=1|page=74|url=http://connection.ebscohost.com/c/articles/9711065531 |access-date=February 9, 2011}}</ref> They appeal to "our objectivity, our sense of fair play, and our distrust of figurative language".<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Najarian|first1=James|year=1997|title=Gnawing at History: The Rhetoric of Holocaust Denial|journal=Midwest Quarterly|volume=39|issue=1|page=76|url=http://connection.ebscohost.com/c/articles/9711065531 |access-date=February 9, 2011}}</ref> Thus, they rely on facts to grab the readers' attention. These facts, however, are strung by what Najarian calls "fabricated decorum" and are re-interpreted for their use. For example, they pay particular attention to inconsistencies in numbers.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Najarian|first1=James|year=1997|title=Gnawing at History: The Rhetoric of Holocaust Denial|journal=Midwest Quarterly|volume=39|issue=1|page=80|url=http://connection.ebscohost.com/c/articles/9711065531 |access-date=February 9, 2011}}</ref>{{clarify|date=December 2015}}<!-- Which "inconsistencies in numbers" are being referred to here? --> | |||
{{Main|Irving v Penguin Books and Lipstadt}} | |||
], 2003]] | |||
]'s 1993 book '']'' sharply criticized various Holocaust deniers, including British author ], for deliberately misrepresenting evidence to justify their preconceived conclusions. In 1996 Irving filed a ] suit against Lipstadt and her publisher, ]. American historian ], an expert witness for the defense, wrote a comprehensive essay for the court summarizing the voluminous evidence for the reality of the Holocaust, and under cross-examination, effectively countered all of Irving's principal arguments to the contrary.<ref>{{cite book | last = Evans | first = Richard J. | authorlink = Richard J. Evans | title = Telling Lies about Hitler | publisher=Verso | year = 2002 | isbn = 1-85984-417-0 | page = 35 }}</ref> Cambridge historian ], another defense expert witness, spent two years examining Irving's writings, and confirmed his misrepresentations, including evidence that he had knowingly used forged documents as source material. The judge, ], ultimately delivered a long and decisive verdict in favor of Lipstadt that referred to Irving as a "Holocaust denier" and "right-wing pro-Nazi ]ist."<ref>Lipstadt, ''History on Trial''</ref> | |||
Holocaust denial propaganda in all forms has been shown to influence the audiences that it reaches. In fact, even the well-educated—that is, college graduates and current university students alike—are susceptible to such propaganda when it is presented before them. This stems from the growing disbelief that audiences feel after being exposed to such information, especially since Holocaust witnesses themselves are decreasing in number.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Lasson|first=Kenneth|year=2007|title=Defending Truth: Legal and Psychological Aspects of Holocaust Denial|journal=Current Psychology|volume=26|issue=3–4|page=256|url=http://www.schaler.net/Lasson.pdf|access-date=February 7, 2011|doi=10.1007/s12144-007-9013-7|s2cid=143382566|archive-date=November 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171105193336/http://www.schaler.net/Lasson.pdf|url-status=live| issn=0737-8262 }}</ref> Studies centered on the psychological effects of Holocaust denial propaganda confirm this assertion. Linda M. Yelland and William F. Stone, in particular, show that Denial essays decrease readers' belief in the Holocaust, regardless of their prior Holocaust awareness.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Yelland|first1=Linda M.|last2=Stone|first2=William F.|year=1996|title=Belief in the Holocaust: Effects of Personality and Propaganda|journal=Political Psychology|volume=17|issue=3|page=559|jstor=3791968|doi=10.2307/3791968}}</ref> | |||
In February 2006 Irving was convicted in Austria, where Holocaust denial is illegal, for a speech he had made in 1989 in which he denied the existence of gas chambers at Auschwitz.<ref name="release"/> Irving was aware of the outstanding arrest warrant, but chose to go to Austria anyway "to give a lecture to a far-right student fraternity".<ref name="release">"Holocaust denier to be released" (December 20, 2006): Retrieved January 13, 2011.</ref> Although he pleaded guilty to the charge, Irving said he had been "mistaken", and had changed his opinions on the Holocaust. "I said that then, based on my knowledge at the time, but by 1991 when I came across the Eichmann papers, I wasn't saying that anymore and I wouldn't say that now. The Nazis did murder millions of Jews."<ref name="BBCCenshorship">BBC Report , February 20, 2006.</ref> Irving served 13 months of a 3-year sentence in an Austrian prison, including the period between his arrest and conviction, and was deported in early 2007.<ref name="release"/> The episode sparked intense international debate over the limits of freedom of speech. Upon hearing of Irving's sentence, Lipstadt said, "I am not happy when censorship wins, and I don't believe in winning battles via censorship.... The way of fighting Holocaust deniers is with history and with truth."<ref name="BBCCenshorship"/> | |||
==Middle East== | |||
According to '']'', upon Irving's return to the UK, he "vow to repeat views denying the Holocaust that led to his conviction" stating he felt "no need any longer to show remorse" for his Holocaust views.<ref>{{wayback|url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/europe/12/21/uk.irving.ap/index.html|title=Holocaust denier: 'No need to show remorse'|date=20070116221731}}</ref> | |||
===General=== | |||
], the President of Egypt, told a German newspaper in 1964 that "no person, not even the most simple one, takes seriously the lie of the six million Jews that were murdered ."<ref>{{cite book|last=Satloff|first=Robert|title=Among the Righteous: Lost Stories from the Holocaust's Long Reach Into Arab lands|publisher=PublicAffairs|year=2007|page=163|isbn=9781586485108}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Laqueur|first=Walter|title=The Changing Face of Antisemitism: From Ancient Times to the Present Day|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2006|page=|isbn=9780195304299|url=https://archive.org/details/changingfaceofan00laqu/page/141}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Robert S. Wistrich|title=Hitler's apocalypse: Jews and the Nazi legacy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=acBtAAAAMAAJ|date=17 October 1985|publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson|isbn=978-0-297-78719-8|page=188|quote="President Nasser of Egypt in a notorious interview with the editor of the neo-Nazi Deutsche Soldaten und National Zeitung, published on 1 May 1964, insisted that No one, not even the simplest man in our country, takes seriously the lie about six million Jews who were murdered"}}</ref> | |||
Denials of the Holocaust have been promoted by various Middle Eastern figures and media. Holocaust denial is sponsored by some Middle Eastern governments, including Iran<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6637685|title=Iran Further Isolates Itself with 'Holocaust Denial'|date=December 17, 2006|work=NPR.org|access-date=April 4, 2018|archive-date=September 1, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180901134402/https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6637685|url-status=live}}</ref> and Syria.<ref name="JVLSyria">{{cite web|title=Syrian Holocaust Denial|url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/syrian-holocaust-denial|website=jewishvirtuallibrary.org|publisher=Jewish Virtual Library|access-date=August 17, 2020|archive-date=December 17, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161217011440/http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/syrdenial.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2006 ] writing in '']'', reported that "A respected Holocaust research institution recently reported that Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia all promote Holocaust denial and protect Holocaust deniers."<ref>{{Cite news|author=Robert Satloff|author-link=Robert Satloff|title=The Holocaust's Arab Heroes|newspaper=The Washington Post|page=B01|date=October 8, 2006|access-date=October 29, 2010|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/06/AR2006100601417.html|archive-date=November 21, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181121035318/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/06/AR2006100601417.html|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
==Recent developments and trends== | |||
In February 1995 a Japanese magazine named ''Marco Polo'', a 250,000-circulation monthly published by ], ran a Holocaust denial article by physician Masanori Nishioka which stated: | |||
:"The ']' is a fabrication. There were no execution ] in ] or in any other ]. Today, what are displayed as 'gas chambers' at the remains of the Auschwitz camp in Poland are a post-war fabrication by the Polish communist regime or by the ], which controlled the country. Not once, neither at Auschwitz nor in any territory controlled by the Germans during the Second World War, was there 'mass murder of Jews' in 'gas chambers.'"<ref></ref> | |||
The Los Angeles-based ] instigated a ] of Bungei Shunju advertisers, including ], ], and ]. Within days, Bungei Shunju shut down ''Marco Polo'' and its editor, Kazuyoshi Hanada, quit, as did the president of Bungei Shunju, Kengo Tanaka.<ref></ref> | |||
Prominent figures from the Middle East have rarely made publicized visits to ]—] being the exception. In 2010, ] MK ] visited, following a previous visit of two other Arab-Israeli lawmakers, and a group of about 100 Arab-Israeli writers and clerics in 2003.<ref name="MK">{{cite news|date=January 26, 2010|url=http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/2.209/arab-mk-s-auschwitz-visit-draws-fire-from-jewish-arab-critics-1.262131|title=Arab MK's Auschwitz visit draws fire from Jewish, Arab critics|agency=]|newspaper=Haaretz|access-date=March 23, 2014|archive-date=October 19, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151019074444/http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/2.209/arab-mk-s-auschwitz-visit-draws-fire-from-jewish-arab-critics-1.262131|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
In Turkey, in 1996, the Islamic preacher ] distributed thousands of copies of a book which was originally published the previous year, entitled ''Soykırım Yalanı'' ("The Holocaust Lie") and mailed unsolicited texts to American and European schools and colleges.<ref>Michael Hopkins, , The TalkOrigins Archive .</ref> The publication of ''Soykırım Yalanı'' sparked much public debate.<ref name="axt" ></ref> This book claims, "what is presented as Holocaust is the death of some Jews due to the typhus plague during the war and the famine towards the end of the war caused by the defeat of the Germans."<ref></ref> In March 1996, a Turkish painter and intellectual, ], published a strongly worded critique of the book in the Ankara daily newspaper ''Siyah-Beyaz'' ("Black and White"). A legal suit for slander was brought against him. During the trial in September, Baykam exposed the real author of the book as ].<ref name="axt"/> The suit was withdrawn in March 1997.<ref></ref><ref>{{Cite news | |||
|first=Laurie | |||
|last=Udesky | |||
|title=American Jewish organization sees emergence of 'Holocaust denial' in Turkey | |||
|work=] | |||
|archivedate=November 13, 2008 | |||
|date=March 27, 1997 | |||
|url=http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/archives.php?id=2371 | |||
|archiveurl=http://tdnarchives.blogspot.com/1997/03/american-jewish-organization-sees.html | |||
}}</ref> | |||
===Palestine=== | |||
In France, Holocaust denial became more prominent in the 1990s as '']'', though the movement has existed in ultra-left French politics since at least the 1960s, led by figures such as ] (who was involved in the bookshop ] during the 1960s). Recently, elements of the extreme far right in France have begun to build on each other's negationist arguments, which often span beyond the Holocaust to cover a range of antisemitic views, incorporating attempts to tie the Holocaust to the Biblical massacre of the ], critiques of Zionism, and other material fanning what has been called a "conspiratorial Judeo-phobia" designed to legitimize and "banalize" antisemitism.<ref>Richard Joseph Golsan, ''Vichy's Afterlife'', University of Nevada Press, 2003, p. 130.</ref> | |||
{{See also|Racism in the Palestinian territories}} | |||
Individuals from the ], ], and a number of Palestinian groups have engaged in various aspects of Holocaust denial.<ref name="Karsh98">]. ''Arafat's War: The Man and His Battle for Israeli Conquest''. New York: Grove Press, 2003. p. 98–99.</ref> | |||
In Belgium in 2001, ], the ideologue and vice-president of one of the country's largest political parties, the ] (formerly named ], Flemish Bloc), gave an interview on Dutch TV where he cast doubt over the number of Jews murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust. In the same interview he questioned the scale of the Nazis' use of gas chambers and the authenticity of ] diary. In response to the media assault following the interview, Raes was forced to resign his position but vowed to remain active within the party.<ref>, ''The Guardian'', Friday, March 9, 2001.</ref> Three years later, the Vlaams Blok was convicted of racism and chose to disband. Immediately afterwards, it legally reformed under the new name Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) with the same leaders and the same membership.<ref>, BBC News, November 9, 2004.</ref> | |||
] have promoted Holocaust denial;<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190428190244/https://scholarworks.law.ubalt.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1386&context=all_fac |date=April 28, 2019 }}, Kenneth Lasson, ], 2007</ref> ] held that the Holocaust never occurred, that ] were behind the action of Nazis, and that Zionists funded Nazism.<ref name="wiesenthal"/> | |||
===Holocaust denial in the Arab world=== | |||
A press release by Hamas in April 2000 decried "the so-called Holocaust, which is an alleged and invented story with no basis".<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090110175744/http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/templateC05.php?CID=1946 |date=January 10, 2009 }}, 2000</ref> In August 2009, Hamas' ] that it would "refuse" to allow Palestinian children to study the Holocaust, which it called "a lie invented by the Zionists" and referred to Holocaust education as a "war crime".<ref>Hadid, Diaa (September 1, 2009) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190523093127/http://archive.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2009/09/01/hamas_leader_denies_holocaust/ |date=May 23, 2019 }} ] via '']''</ref> Hamas continued to hold this position in 2011, when the organization's Ministry for Refugee Affairs said that Holocaust education was "intended to poison the minds of our children."<ref>Oster, Marcy (March 1, 2011) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618125959/https://www.jta.org/2011/03/01/news-opinion/israel-middle-east/hamas-to-u-n-dont-teach-holocaust |date=June 18, 2018 }} '']''</ref> | |||
Denials of the Holocaust have been promoted by various Middle Eastern figures and media. Holocaust denial is sponsored by some Middle Eastern governments, including Iran<ref>http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6637685</ref> and Syria.<ref>https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/syrdenial.html</ref> Prominent Arab figures from the Middle East have rarely made publicized visits to ]—] being the exception. In 2010, ] MK ] visited, following a previous visit of two other Arab-Israeli lawmakers, and a group of about 100 Arab-Israeli writers and clerics in 2003.<ref name="MK">{{cite news |date=January 26, 2010 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/2.209/arab-mk-s-auschwitz-visit-draws-fire-from-jewish-arab-critics-1.262131 |title=Arab MK's Auschwitz visit draws fire from Jewish, Arab critics |agency=] |newspaper=Haaretz |accessdate=Marcy 23, 2014}}</ref> Individuals from the ]n government, the ], and a number of Palestinian groups have all engaged in various aspects of Holocaust denial.<ref name="Karsh98">]. ''Arafat's War: The Man and His Battle for Israeli Conquest''. New York: Grove Press, 2003. p. 98–99.</ref><ref>, , .</ref> In 2006 ] writing in '']'', reported that "A respected Holocaust research institution recently reported that Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia all promote Holocaust denial and protect Holocaust deniers."<ref>{{Cite news| author=Robert Satloff |authorlink = Robert Satloff| title = The Holocaust's Arab Heroes |work=The Washington Post | page = B01 | date = October 8, 2006 | accessdate =October 29, 2010 |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/06/AR2006100601417.html }}</ref> ] leaders have promoted Holocaust denial; ] held that the Holocaust never occurred, that ] were behind the action of Nazis, and that Zionists funded Nazism.<ref name="guardian.co.uk">{{Cite news| url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/jun/22/religion.guardiancolumnists |work=The Guardian |location=London | title=The new anti-Semitism | date=June 22, 2003 | accessdate=May 4, 2010}}</ref> A press release by Hamas in April 2000 decried "the so-called Holocaust, which is an alleged and invented story with no basis".<ref>, 2000</ref> In August 2009, Hamas ], which it called "a lie invented by the Zionists" and referred to Holocaust education as a "war crime".<ref> '']''. August 31, 2009.</ref> ] told a German newspaper in 1964 that "no person, not even the most simple one, takes seriously the lie of the six million Jews that were murdered ."<ref>{{cite book |last=Satloff |first=Robert |title=Among the Righteous: Lost Stories from the Holocaust's Long Reach Into Arab lands |publisher=PublicAffairs |year=2007 |page=163 |isbn=9781586485108}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Laqueur |first=Walter |title=The Changing Face of Antisemitism: From Ancient Times to the Present Day |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2006 |page=141 |isbn=9780195304299}}</ref> | |||
The thesis of the 1982 doctoral dissertation of ], a co-founder of ] and president of the ], was "The Secret Connection between the Nazis and the Leaders of the Zionist Movement".<ref> By Brynn Malone (History News Network)</ref><ref> by Yael Yehoshua (]) April 29, 2003</ref><ref name="wiesenthal">{{cite web |
The thesis of the 1982 doctoral dissertation of ], a co-founder of ] and president of the ], was "The Secret Connection between the Nazis and the Leaders of the Zionist Movement".<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190331052749/http://hnn.us/articles/1414.html |date=March 31, 2019 }} By Brynn Malone (History News Network)</ref><ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070310213751/http://www.memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Area=sr&ID=SR01503 |date=March 10, 2007 }} by Yael Yehoshua (]) April 29, 2003</ref><ref name="wiesenthal">{{cite web|url=http://www.wiesenthal.com/atf/cf/%7Bdfd2aac1-2ade-428a-9263-35234229d8d8%7D/denial_report.pdf|title=Holocaust Denial's Assault on Memory: Precursor to twenty first century genocide?|publisher=Simon Wiesenthal Center|year=2007 |access-date=May 2, 2012|author=Dr. Harold Brackman, Aaron Breitbart |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120206142427/http://www.wiesenthal.com/atf/cf/%7BDFD2AAC1-2ADE-428A-9263-35234229D8D8%7D/DENIAL_REPORT.PDF |archive-date=February 6, 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In his 1983 book '']'' based on the dissertation, Abbas denied that six million Jews had died in the Holocaust; dismissing it as a "myth" and a "fantastic lie".<ref name="Abbas">{{cite web|url=http://www.thecommentator.com/article/1524/holocaust_denial_undermines_the_palestinian_cause|title=Holocaust denial undermines the Palestinian cause|publisher=The Commentator|date=August 14, 2012 |access-date=May 18, 2015|author=Jeremy Havardi |archive-date=January 30, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190130174348/http://www.thecommentator.com/article/1524/holocaust_denial_undermines_the_palestinian_cause |url-status=dead}}</ref> At most, he wrote, 890,000 Jews were murdered by the Germans. Abbas claimed that the number of deaths has been exaggerated for political purposes. "It seems that the interest of the Zionist movement, however, is to inflate this figure so that their gains will be greater. This led them to emphasize this figure in order to gain the solidarity of international public opinion with Zionism. Many scholars have debated the figure of six million and reached stunning conclusions—fixing the number of Jewish victims at only a few hundred thousand."{{R|wiesenthal}}<ref name="wymaninstitute.org"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110908080728/http://www.wymaninstitute.org/articles/2003-03-denier.php |date=September 8, 2011 }} by Dr. Rafael Medoff (The David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies)</ref><ref name=autogenerated1> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190205035253/http://www.tomgrossmedia.com/mideastdispatches/archives/000032.html |date=February 5, 2019 }} by Tom Gross</ref> | ||
In his March 2006 interview with '']'', Abbas stated, "I wrote in detail about the Holocaust and said I did not want to discuss numbers. I quoted an argument between historians in which various numbers of casualties were mentioned. One wrote there were 12 million victims and another wrote there were 800,000. I have no desire to argue with the figures. The Holocaust was a terrible, unforgivable crime against the Jewish nation, a crime against humanity that cannot be accepted by humankind. The Holocaust was a terrible thing and nobody can claim I denied it."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/u-s-told-us-to-ignore-israeli-map-reservations-1.8840|title=U.S. told us to ignore Israeli map reservations|author=Akiva Eldar|newspaper=]|date=May 28, 2003|access-date=March 23, 2014|archive-date=January 20, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130120164725/http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/u-s-told-us-to-ignore-israeli-map-reservations-1.8840|url-status=live}}</ref> While acknowledging the existence of the Holocaust in 2006 and 2014,<ref name="Heinous">{{cite news|url=https://nypost.com/2014/04/27/palestinian-leader-abbas-admits-the-holocaust-was-heinous/|title=Palestinian leader Abbas admits the Holocaust was 'heinous'|newspaper=New York Post|date=April 27, 2014|access-date=May 18, 2015|archive-date=June 22, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180622164937/https://nypost.com/2014/04/27/palestinian-leader-abbas-admits-the-holocaust-was-heinous/|url-status=live}}</ref> Abbas has defended the position that Zionists collaborated with the Nazis to perpetrate it. In 2012, Abbas told ], a Beirut TV station affiliated with Iran and Hezbollah, that he "challenges anyone who can deny that the Zionist movement had ties with the Nazis before World War II".<ref name="Link">{{cite news|url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/01/23/abbas-alleges-link-between-zionists-and-nazis.html|title=Abbas Alleges Link Between Zionists And Nazis|website=The Daily Beast|date=January 23, 2013|access-date=May 18, 2015|author=Myers, David N.|archive-date=May 17, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150517195933/http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/01/23/abbas-alleges-link-between-zionists-and-nazis.html|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
Surveys conducted by ] of the ] found that the fraction of Israeli Arabs denying that millions of Jews were murdered by the Nazis increased from 28% in 2006 to 40% in 2008.<ref name=Smooha>{{cite web | author = Sammy Smooha | title = The 2008 Index of Arab-Jewish Relations in Israel: Main Findings and Trends of Change | url = http://soc.haifa.ac.il/~s.smooha/uploads/editor_uploads/files/Index2008MainFindings_TrendsChangeEng.pdf | year = 2009}}</ref> Smooha commented:<blockquote>In Arab | |||
eyes disbelief in the very happening of the Shoah is not hate of Jews (embedded in the denial of the Shoah in the West) but rather a form of protest. Arabs not believing in the event of Shoah intend to express strong objection to the portrayal of the Jews as the ultimate victim and to the underrating of the Palestinians as a victim. They deny Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state that the Shoah gives legitimacy to. Arab disbelief in the Shoah is a component of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, unlike the ideological and anti-Semitic denial of the Holocaust and the desire to escape guilt in the West.<ref name=Smooha/></blockquote> | |||
Surveys conducted by ] of the ] found that the fraction of Israeli Arabs denying that millions of Jews were murdered by the Nazis increased from 28% in 2006 to 40% in 2008.<ref name=Smooha>{{cite web|author=Sammy Smooha|title=The 2008 Index of Arab-Jewish Relations in Israel: Main Findings and Trends of Change|url=http://soc.haifa.ac.il/~s.smooha/uploads/editor_uploads/files/Index2008MainFindings_TrendsChangeEng.pdf|year=2009 |access-date=June 18, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140806134653/http://soc.haifa.ac.il/~s.smooha/uploads/editor_uploads/files/Index2008MainFindings_TrendsChangeEng.pdf |archive-date=August 6, 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Smooha commented: | |||
===Holocaust denial in Iran=== | |||
Former Iranian President ] frequently denied the Holocaust,<ref name = "InternationalList1">Variously: | |||
*, BBC News, Accessed December 14, 2005. | |||
*Esfandiari, Golnaz. . Radio Free Europe. Accessed January 28, 2008. | |||
*. ]. Accessed December 16, 2007. | |||
*. CNN. Accessed September 27, 2007. | |||
*. ]. December 14, 2006.</ref> formally 'questioning' the reliability of the historical evidence,<ref name="Spiegel"> ''Der Spiegel'' (May 30, 2006). Retrieved 07sep2013.</ref> although he on occasion confirmed belief in it.<ref> "However, I believe the Holocaust, from what we read, happened during World War II after 1930 in the 1940s."</ref><ref></ref> In a December 2005 speech, Ahmadinejad said that a legend was fabricated and had been promoted to protect ]. He said: | |||
{{quote|"They have fabricated a legend, under the name of the Massacre of the Jews, and they hold it higher than God himself, religion itself and the prophets themselves.... If somebody in their country questions God, nobody says anything, but if somebody denies the myth of the massacre of Jews, the Zionist loudspeakers and the governments in the pay of Zionism will start to scream."<ref>, ]</ref>}} | |||
<blockquote>In Arab eyes disbelief in the very happening of the Shoah is not hate of Jews (embedded in the denial of the Shoah in the West) but rather a form of protest. Arabs not believing in the event of Shoah intend to express strong objection to the portrayal of the Jews as the ultimate victim and to the underrating of the Palestinians as a victim. They deny Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state that the Shoah gives legitimacy to. Arab disbelief in the Shoah is a component of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, unlike the ideological and anti-Semitic denial of the Holocaust and the desire to escape guilt in the West.{{R|Smooha}}</blockquote> | |||
The remarks immediately provoked international controversy as well as swift condemnation from government officials in Israel, Europe, and the United States. All six political parties in the German parliament signed a joint resolution condemning this Holocaust denial.<ref>, ''Expatica'', December 16, 2005.</ref> In contrast, ] political leader ] described Ahmadinejad's comments as "courageous" and stated, "Muslim people will defend Iran because it voices what they have in their hearts, in particular the Palestinian people."<ref>Al Jazeera, {{Wayback |date=20071206115859 |url=http://english.aljazeera.net/English/archive/archive?ArchiveId=17093 |title="Hamas springs to Iran's defense"}}</ref> In the United States, the ] condemned Ahmadinejad's remarks.<ref name=mpac>{{cite news|title=MPAC Rebukes Iranian President's Comments|url=http://www.mpac.org/article.php?id=231|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080617083103/http://www.mpac.org/article.php?id=231|archivedate=2008-06-17|accessdate=January 31, 2012|date=December 8, 2005}}</ref> In 2005 the Egyptian ] leader, ], denounced what he called "the myth of the Holocaust" in defending Iranian president ]'s denial of the Holocaust.<ref>, December 23, 2005.</ref> | |||
Mohammed Dajani, a Palestinian professor of the ] took his students to visit the ] in ], but was later forced to resign over accusations of "promoting Zionist narrative to gain international support for Israel" from antisemitic administrators. Still, he defended Holocaust education as necessary for peace,<ref>{{cite news|work=]|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/palestinian-professor-who-took-students-to-auschwitz-holocaust-denial-imperils-peace|title=Palestinian professor who took students to Auschwitz: Holocaust denial imperils peace|date=17 September 2023}}</ref> | |||
On December 11, 2006, the Iranian state-sponsored "]" opened to widespread condemnation.<ref>{{Cite news | |||
| url = http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/12/11/iran.holocaust/index.html | |||
| title = Iran hosts Holocaust conference | |||
| accessdate =December 27, 2006 | |||
| date = December 11, 2006 | |||
| publisher=CNN | |||
}}</ref> The conference, called for by and held at the behest of Ahmadinejad,<ref>{{Cite journal | |||
| url = | |||
| title = Iran: Holocaust Conference Soon in Tehran | |||
| accessdate =December 27, 2006 | |||
| date = January 5, 2006 | |||
| publisher=Adnkronos International (AKI) | |||
| postscript = <!--None--> | |||
}}</ref> was widely described as a "Holocaust denial conference" or a "meeting of Holocaust deniers",<ref>*, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*. '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*"The conference for Holocaust deniers hosted by Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is a transparent polemical stunt." , '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*"What's the perfect way to top off a Holocaust denial conference featuring input from the likes of such scholars as former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke?" , '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*, '']'', December 12, 2006. | |||
*, '']'', December 12, 2006. | |||
*, '']'', December 12, 2006. | |||
*, '']'', December 12, 2006. | |||
*, '']'', December 11, 2006. | |||
*, '']'', December 11, 2006. | |||
*"Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, speaking at a Tehran conference denying the existence of the Holocaust, said Israel will disappear like the Soviet Union." , '']'', December 12, 2006.</ref> though Iran denied it was a Holocaust denial conference.<ref>{{cite web | |||
| url = http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,453691,00.html | |||
| title = Berlin Counters Holocaust Conference | |||
| accessdate =December 27, 2006 | |||
| date = December 11, 2006 | |||
|work=Der Spiegel | |||
}}</ref> A few months before it opened, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi stated: "The Holocaust is not a sacred issue that one can't touch. I have visited the Nazi camps in Eastern Europe. I think it is exaggerated."<ref>{{Cite news| title = Iran to Host Autumn Conference on Holocaust | agency=Associated Press | url = http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,212003,00.html | date= September 3, 2006 | accessdate =September 11, 2006 |publisher=Fox News}}</ref> | |||
{{Blockquote|text=Holocaust denial and distortion are historically incorrect, and factually wrong, and constitute a significant threat to morality and human dignity...}} | |||
In 2013, in an interview with CNN, newly elected Iranian President ] was quoted as condemning the Holocaust, stating, "I can tell you that any crime that happens in history against humanity, including the crime the Nazis created towards the Jews as well as non-Jews is reprehensible and condemnable. Whatever criminality they committed against the Jews, we condemn."<ref>http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/25/iran-rouhani-recognises-holocaust</ref> Iranian media later accused CNN of fabricating Rouhani’s comments.<ref>http://www.jpost.com/Iranian-Threat/News/Report-CNN-fabricated-Rouhani-Holocaust-interview-remarks-327171</ref> | |||
=== Syria === | |||
In his official 2013 ] address, ] ] questioned the veracity of the Holocaust, remarking that "The Holocaust is an event whose reality is uncertain and if it has happened, it’s uncertain how it has happened.”<ref>https://twitter.com/khamenei_ir/status/446928689943420928</ref><ref>http://backchannel.al-monitor.com/index.php/2014/03/8006/in-iran-new-years-address-khamenei-questions-holocaust/</ref> This was consistent with Khamenei's previous comments regarding the holocaust.<ref>http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/davidblair/100239211/what-does-irans-supreme-leader-really-think-about-the-holocaust/</ref> | |||
In a speech delivered at the ]'s central committee meeting in December 2023, the Ba'ath party secretary-general ] claimed that there was "no evidence" of the killings of six million Jews during ]. Assad alleged that the Holocaust was "politicized" by ] to facilitate the mass-deportation of ] to ]. Assad also accused the U.S. government of financially and militarily sponsoring the ] during the ].<ref name="Silkoff">{{Cite news |last=Silkoff |first=Shira |date=20 December 2023 |title=Syria's Assad claims Holocaust was a lie fabricated to justify creation of Israel |work=The Times of Israel |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/syrias-assad-claims-holocaust-was-a-lie-fabricated-to-justify-creation-of-israel/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231220150406/https://www.timesofisrael.com/syrias-assad-claims-holocaust-was-a-lie-fabricated-to-justify-creation-of-israel/ |archive-date=20 December 2023}}</ref><ref name="i24news">{{Cite news |date=20 December 2023 |title=Syrian President Assad denies Holocaust and accuses U.S. of funding Nazis in controversial speech |work=i24news |url=https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/diplomacy/1703081866-syrian-president-assad-denies-holocaust-and-accuses-u-s-of-funding-nazis-in-controversial-speech |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231220142407/https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/diplomacy/1703081866-syrian-president-assad-denies-holocaust-and-accuses-u-s-of-funding-nazis-in-controversial-speech |archive-date=20 December 2023}}</ref> Higlighting the ] during the ], Assad said: "there was no specific method of torture or killing specific to the Jews. The ] used the same methods everywhere."<ref name="Silkoff"/><ref name="i24news"/> | |||
===Iran=== | |||
In 2015, the House of Cartoon and the Sarcheshmeh Cultural Complex in Iran organized the ], a competition in which artists were encouraged to submit ] on the theme of Holocaust denial. The winner of the contest will receive $12,000. '']'', a popular Iranian newspaper, held a ] in 2006.<ref> ''Ynetnews''. 1 February 2015. 1 February 2015.</ref> | |||
] ], criticizing ]]] | |||
Former Iranian President ] frequently denied the Holocaust,<ref name="InternationalList1">Variously: | |||
* {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211112061120/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4529198.stm |date=November 12, 2021 }}, BBC News, Accessed December 14, 2005. | |||
*Esfandiari, Golnaz. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080820094906/http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2005/12/6f3acbdf-d5f9-4ba1-8c9d-278c700ae2ea.html |date=August 20, 2008 }}. Radio Free Europe. Accessed January 28, 2008. | |||
* {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090417214619/http://www.ncccusa.org/news/051216Ahmadinejad.html |date=April 17, 2009 }}. ]. Accessed December 16, 2007. | |||
* {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081207130247/http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/10/27/ahmadinejad.reaction/index.html |date=December 7, 2008 }}. CNN. Accessed September 27, 2007. | |||
* {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051216125829/http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/12/14/iran.israel/ |date=December 16, 2005 }}. ]. December 14, 2006.</ref> formally 'questioning' the reliability of the historical evidence,<ref name="Spiegel"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190512214220/https://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/spiegel-interview-with-iran-s-president-ahmadinejad-we-are-determined-a-418660.html |date=May 12, 2019 }}, ''Der Spiegel'' (May 30, 2006). Retrieved 07sep2013.</ref> although he on occasion confirmed belief in it.<ref> "However, I believe the Holocaust, from what we read, happened during World War II after 1930 in the 1940s."</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=773638342167920349|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629105844/http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=773638342167920349|url-status=dead|title=Video of his speech on September 24, 2007. Timecode 22:28 to 22:37.|archivedate=June 29, 2011}}</ref> In a December 2005 speech, Ahmadinejad said that a legend was fabricated and had been promoted to protect Israel. He said: | |||
{{blockquote|They have fabricated a legend, under the name of the Massacre of the Jews, and they hold it higher than God himself, religion itself and the prophets themselves.... If somebody in their country questions God, nobody says anything, but if somebody denies the myth of the massacre of Jews, the Zionist loudspeakers and the governments in the pay of Zionism will start to scream.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.aljazeera.net/archive/2005/12/200849154418141136.html|title=Ahmadinejad: Holocaust a myth|work=]|access-date=July 9, 2008|archive-date=September 23, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090923231908/http://english.aljazeera.net/archive/2005/12/200849154418141136.html|url-status=live}}</ref>}} | |||
===Propaganda in the media=== | |||
According to James Najarian, Holocaust deniers working for the Institute for Historical Review are not trained in history and "put out sham scholarly articles in the mock-academic publication, the ''Journal of Historical Review''".<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Najarian |first1=James |year=1997 |title=Gnawing at History: The Rhetoric of Holocaust Denial |journal=Midwest Quarterly |volume=39 |issue=1 |page=74 |url=http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?hid=106&sid=132224f1-624f-44b2-9db4-f89053786c68%40sessionmgr111&vid=4&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=9711065531 |accessdate=February 9, 2011}}</ref> They appeal to "our objectivity, our sense of fair play, and our distrust of figurative language".<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Najarian |first1=James |year=1997 |title=Gnawing at History: The Rhetoric of Holocaust Denial |journal=Midwest Quarterly |volume=39 |issue=1 |page=76 |url=http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?hid=106&sid=132224f1-624f-44b2-9db4-f89053786c68%40sessionmgr111&vid=4&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=9711065531 |accessdate=February 9, 2011}}</ref> Thus, they rely on facts to grab the readers' attention. These facts, however, are strung by what Najarian calls "fabricated decorum" and are re-interpreted for their use. For example, they pay particular attention to inconsistencies in numbers.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Najarian |first1=James |year=1997 |title=Gnawing at History: The Rhetoric of Holocaust Denial |journal=Midwest Quarterly |volume=39 |issue=1 |page=80 |url=http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?hid=106&sid=132224f1-624f-44b2-9db4-f89053786c68%40sessionmgr111&vid=4&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=9711065531 |accessdate=February 9, 2011}}</ref> | |||
The remarks immediately provoked international controversy as well as swift condemnation from government officials in Israel, Europe, and the United States. All six political parties in the German parliament signed a joint resolution condemning Ahmadinejad's Holocaust denial.<ref>, ''Expatica'', December 16, 2005.</ref> In contrast, ] political leader ] described Ahmadinejad's comments as "courageous" and stated, "Muslim people will defend Iran because it voices what they have in their hearts, in particular the Palestinian people."<ref>Al Jazeera,{{cite web|url=http://english.aljazeera.net/English/archive/archive?ArchiveId=17093|title=Hamas springs to Iran's defense |access-date=August 14, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071206115859/http://english.aljazeera.net/English/archive/archive?ArchiveId=17093 |archive-date=December 6, 2007}}</ref> In the United States, the ] condemned Ahmadinejad's remarks.<ref name=mpac>{{cite news|title=MPAC Rebukes Iranian President's Comments|url=http://www.mpac.org/article.php?id=231 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080617083103/http://www.mpac.org/article.php?id=231 |archive-date=June 17, 2008 |access-date=January 31, 2012|date=December 8, 2005}}</ref> In 2005, the Egyptian ] leader, ], denounced what he called "the myth of the Holocaust" in defending Ahmadinejad's denial of the Holocaust.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170906201530/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4554986.stm |date=September 6, 2017 }}, December 23, 2005.</ref> | |||
Holocaust denial propaganda in all forms has been shown to influence the audiences that it reaches. In fact, even the well-educated—that is, college graduates and current university students alike—are susceptible to such propaganda when it is presented before them. This stems from the growing disbelief that audiences feel after being exposed to such information, especially since Holocaust witnesses themselves are decreasing in number.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Lasson |first=Kenneth |year=2007 |title=Defending Truth: Legal and Psychological Aspects of Holocaust Denial |journal=Current Psychology |volume=26 |page=256 |url=http://www.schaler.net/Lasson.pdf |accessdate=February 7, 2011 |doi=10.1007/s12144-007-9013-7}}</ref> Studies centered on the psychological effects of Holocaust denial propaganda confirm this assertion. Linda M. Yelland and William F. Stone, in particular, show that Denial essays decrease readers' belief in the Holocaust, regardless of their prior Holocaust awareness.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Yelland |first1=Linda M. |last2=Stone |first2=William F. |year=1996 |title=Belief in the Holocaust: Effects of Personality and Propaganda |journal=Political Psychology |volume=17 |issue=3 |page=559 |jstor=3791968|doi=10.2307/3791968 }}</ref> | |||
On December 11, 2006, the Iranian state-sponsored "]" began to widespread condemnation.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/12/11/iran.holocaust/index.html|title=Iran hosts Holocaust conference|access-date=December 27, 2006|date=December 11, 2006|publisher=CNN|archive-date=February 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190201002703/http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/12/11/iran.holocaust/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The conference, called for and held at the behest of Ahmadinejad,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level.php?cat=Politics&loid=8.0.246551760&par=0 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060310075441/http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level.php?cat=Politics&loid=8.0.246551760&par=0|title=Iran: Holocaust Conference Soon in Tehran|date=January 5, 2006 |archive-date=March 10, 2006|publisher=Adnkronos International (AKI) |access-date=August 17, 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref> was widely described as a "Holocaust denial conference" or a "meeting of Holocaust deniers",<ref>* {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061225063527/http://www.washingtontimes.com/world/20061213-120143-8384r.htm |date=December 25, 2006 }}, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
* {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011091846/http://canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/story.html?id=c4b5cf88-207a-487d-b785-b97e119099d8 |date=October 11, 2007 }}, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*. '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
* {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070121004453/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20061213.wxholocaustprof13/BNStory/International/home |date=January 21, 2007 }}, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*"The conference for Holocaust deniers hosted by Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is a transparent polemical stunt." {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303211047/http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2006/12/13/irans_great_pretender/ |date=March 3, 2016 }}, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*"What's the perfect way to top off a Holocaust denial conference featuring input from the likes of such scholars as former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke?" {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070111102008/http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-iran13dec13,0,2528243.story?coll=la-opinion-leftrail |date=January 11, 2007 }}, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
* {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071223174719/http://www.zeenews.com/znnew/articles.asp?aid=341711&sid=WOR |date=December 23, 2007 }}, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
*{{usurped|1=}}, '']'', December 13, 2006. | |||
* {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061219093121/http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/world/4396632.html |date=December 19, 2006 }}, '']'', December 12, 2006. | |||
* {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061214071812/http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/12/europe/EU_GEN_Europe_Holocaust_Denial.php |date=December 14, 2006 }}, '']'', December 12, 2006. | |||
* {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210220161206/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/dec/12/iran.israel |date=February 20, 2021 }}, '']'', December 12, 2006. | |||
* {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070108183925/http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article2067598.ece |date=January 8, 2007 }}, '']'', December 12, 2006. | |||
* {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613163056/http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087 |date=June 13, 2010 }}, '']'', December 11, 2006. | |||
* {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201210055610/https://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/11/world/middleeast/11cnd-iran.html |date=December 10, 2020 }}, '']'', December 11, 2006. | |||
*"Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, speaking at a Tehran conference denying the existence of the Holocaust, said Israel will disappear like the Soviet Union." {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016065421/http://upi.com/NewsTrack/view.php?StoryID=20061212-072558-3819r |date=October 16, 2007 }}, '']'', December 12, 2006.</ref> though Iran denied it was a Holocaust denial conference.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,453691,00.html|title=Berlin Counters Holocaust Conference|access-date=December 27, 2006|date=December 11, 2006|work=Der Spiegel|archive-date=April 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406141032/https://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,453691,00.html|url-status=live}}</ref> A few months before it opened, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi stated: "The Holocaust is not a sacred issue that one can't touch. I have visited the Nazi camps in Eastern Europe. I think it is exaggerated."<ref>{{Cite news|title=Iran to Host Autumn Conference on Holocaust|agency=Associated Press|url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/iran-to-host-autumn-conference-on-holocaust|date=September 3, 2006 |access-date=September 11, 2006|publisher=Fox News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060930174449/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,212003,00.html |archive-date=September 30, 2006 |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
In 2013, in an interview with CNN, newly elected Iranian President ] condemned the Holocaust, stating: "I can tell you that any crime that happens in history against humanity, including the crime the Nazis created towards the Jews as well as non-Jews is reprehensible and condemnable. Whatever criminality they committed against the Jews, we condemn."<ref name="Saeed Kamali Dehghan">{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/25/iran-rouhani-recognises-holocaust|title=Iranian president Hassan Rouhani recognises 'reprehensible' Holocaust|author=Saeed Kamali Dehghan|work=The Guardian|date=September 25, 2013|access-date=December 11, 2016|archive-date=May 28, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190528221855/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/25/iran-rouhani-recognises-holocaust|url-status=live}}</ref> Iranian media later accused CNN of fabricating Rouhani's comments.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jpost.com/Iranian-Threat/News/Report-CNN-fabricated-Rouhani-Holocaust-interview-remarks-327171|title=Iranian press accuses CNN of 'fabricating' Rouhani Holocaust remarks|work=The Jerusalem Post - JPost.com|date=September 26, 2013|access-date=June 30, 2014|archive-date=March 2, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302203415/https://www.jpost.com/Iranian-Threat/News/Report-CNN-fabricated-Rouhani-Holocaust-interview-remarks-327171|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
In his official 2013 ] address, ] Grand Ayatollah ] questioned the veracity of the Holocaust, remarking that "The Holocaust is an event whose reality is uncertain and if it has happened, it's uncertain how it has happened."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/khamenei_ir/status/446928689943420928|title=Khamenei.ir|work=Twitter|access-date=March 23, 2014|archive-date=June 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190611091736/https://twitter.com/khamenei_ir/status/446928689943420928|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://backchannel.al-monitor.com/index.php/2014/03/8006/in-iran-new-years-address-khamenei-questions-holocaust/|title=In Iran new year's address, Khamenei questions Holocaust|work=al-monitor.com |access-date=March 23, 2014 |archive-date=March 24, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140324233740/http://backchannel.al-monitor.com/index.php/2014/03/8006/in-iran-new-years-address-khamenei-questions-holocaust/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> This was consistent with Khamenei's previous comments regarding the Holocaust.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/davidblair/100239211/what-does-irans-supreme-leader-really-think-about-the-holocaust/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002100418/http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/davidblair/100239211/what-does-irans-supreme-leader-really-think-about-the-holocaust/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 2, 2013|title=What does Iran's Supreme Leader really think about the Holocaust?|work=News – Telegraph Blogs}}</ref> | |||
In 2015, the House of Cartoon and the Sarcheshmeh Cultural Complex in Iran organized the ],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ushmm.org/m/pdfs/Iran-Holocaust-denial-timeline.pdf |title=Timeline: Holocaust Denial and Distortion from Iranian Government and Official Media Resources (1998–2016) |date=September 12, 2016 |website=] |access-date=June 9, 2019 |archive-date=March 15, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170315012458/https://www.ushmm.org/m/pdfs/Iran-Holocaust-denial-timeline.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> a competition in which artists were encouraged to submit ] on the theme of Holocaust denial. The winner of the contest will receive $12,000. '']'', a popular Iranian newspaper, held a ] in 2006.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180629102634/https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4621731,00.html |date=June 29, 2018 }} '']''. February 1, 2015. February 1, 2015.</ref> | |||
===Turkey=== | |||
In Turkey, in 1996, the Islamic preacher ] under the pen name of Harun Yahya, distributed thousands of copies of a book which was originally published the previous year, entitled ''Soykırım Yalanı'' ("The Genocide Lie", referring to the Holocaust) and mailed unsolicited texts to American and European schools and colleges.<ref>Michael Hopkins, {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190124202225/http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/organizations/harunyahya.html |date=January 24, 2019 }}, The TalkOrigins Archive .</ref> The publication of ''Soykırım Yalanı'' sparked much public debate.<ref name="axt">{{cite web|url=http://www.axt.org.uk/antisem/archive/archive1/turkey/turkey.htm|title=Turkey|date=1996|work=axt.org.uk |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120519190843/http://www.axt.org.uk/antisem/archive/archive1/turkey/turkey.htm |archive-date=May 19, 2012}}</ref> This book claims, "what is presented as Holocaust is the death of some Jews due to the typhus plague during the war and the famine towards the end of the war caused by the defeat of the Germans."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://members.fortunecity.com/vural/bks/HOLOCAUST.HTML|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081208201358/http://members.fortunecity.com/vural/bks/HOLOCAUST.HTML|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 8, 2008|title=The Holocaust Deception|date=December 8, 2008}}</ref> In March 1996, a Turkish painter and intellectual, ], published a strongly worded critique of the book in the Ankara daily newspaper ''Siyah-Beyaz'' ("Black and White"). A legal suit for slander was brought against him. During the trial in September, Baykam exposed the real author of the book as Adnan Oktar.{{R|axt}} The suit was withdrawn in March 1997.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.axt.org.uk/antisem/archive/archive2/turkey/turkey.htm#Parties|title=Turkey|work=axt.org.uk|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120519184740/http://www.axt.org.uk/antisem/archive/archive2/turkey/turkey.htm#Parties|archive-date=May 19, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|first=Laurie|last=Udesky|title=American Jewish organization sees emergence of 'Holocaust denial' in Turkey|work=] |archive-date=November 3, 2007|date=March 27, 1997|url=http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/archives.php?id=2371 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071103085344/http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/archives.php?id=2371}} {{dead link|date=April 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> | |||
==Eastern Europe== | |||
=== General === | |||
In some Eastern European countries, such as Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia, and Romania, Holocaust deniers do not deny the very fact of mass murder of Jews but deny some national or regional elements of the Holocaust.<ref name="post-Soviet" /> | |||
=== Soviet Union and Russia === | |||
According to ], Soviet writers tended either to ignore or downplay the Holocaust, treating it as one small part of a larger phenomenon of 20 million dead Soviet citizens during the ]. According to Gitelman, Soviet authorities were concerned about raising the consciousness of Soviet Jews and retarding their assimilation to the greater Soviet population. The Holocaust also raised the issue of collaboration with the Nazi occupiers, an uncomfortable topic for Soviet historiography.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Dobroszycki|first1=Lucjan|last2=Gurock|first2=Jeffrey S.|title=The Holocaust in the Soviet Union: Studies and Sources on the Destruction of the Jews in the Nazi-Occupied Territories of the Ussr, 1941–1945|date=1993|publisher=M.E. Sharpe|isbn=1563241730|pages=3–29}}</ref> According to historian ] in modern Russia this trend has returned with the ], culminating with July 19, 2023, article of ] who argued that it were the Soviet citizens who were the victims of Holocaust in the first place. In a number of popular history project sponsored by Russian state Jews were mentioned as one of many victim groups, or not mentioned at all.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Болтянская |first=Нателла |date=July 31, 2023 |title=Как и почему Россия стала отрицателем Холокоста. Часть 1: "Без срока давности" |url=https://detaly.co.il/kak-i-pochemu-rossiya-stala-otritsatelem-holokosta/ |access-date=August 2, 2023 |website=Детали |language=ru-RU |archive-date=July 5, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240705095216/https://detaly.co.il/kak-i-pochemu-rossiya-stala-otritsatelem-holokosta/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Holocaust denial literature is freely published in Russia, and one of the most prominent authors, ], lives there since his escape from prosecution in Switzerland in the 2000s.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Atkins |first=Stephen E. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M9Uj6u6b-ZIC |title=Holocaust Denial as an International Movement |date=April 30, 2009 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-0-313-34538-8 |language=en |access-date=April 8, 2018 |archive-date=July 5, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240705095221/https://books.google.com/books?id=M9Uj6u6b-ZIC |url-status=live }}</ref> | |||
=== Ukraine === | |||
The post-Soviet radical right activists in Ukraine do not question the existence of Nazi death camps or Jewish ghettos. However, they deny the participation of local population in anti-Jewish ]s or the contribution of national paramilitary organizations in capture and execution of Jews.<ref name="post-Soviet" /> Thus, denial of the antisemitic nature and participation in the Holocaust of the ] and the ] has become a central component of the intellectual history of the Ukrainian diaspora and nationalists.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rudling |first=Per Anders |date=2011 |title=The OUN, the UPA and the Holocaust: A Study in the Manufacturing of Historical Myths |url=https://www.academia.edu/1122859 |url-status=live |journal=The Carl Beck Papers in Russian and East European Studies |issue=2107 |doi=10.5195/CBP.2011.164 |issn=2163-839X |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319171628/https://www.academia.edu/1122859 |archive-date=March 19, 2022 |access-date=August 24, 2022 |doi-access=free}}</ref> | |||
=== Croatia === | |||
In 2018, the ] warned about "the glorification of the ] regime and denial of the Holocaust" in Croatia, citing the placement of a plaque with the Ustasha-era salute ']' on the grounds of a concentration camp memorial site, far-right rallies and the concert of the controversial band ] among other events.<ref>{{cite news|title=US Warns about Ustasha Glorification and Holocaust Denial|url=https://www.total-croatia-news.com/politics/28735-us-warns-about-ustasha-glorification-and-holocaust-denial|publisher=Croatian News Agency (HINA)|date=May 30, 2018|access-date=April 21, 2020|archive-date=November 9, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109015519/https://www.total-croatia-news.com/politics/28735-us-warns-about-ustasha-glorification-and-holocaust-denial|url-status=dead}}</ref> ] of the Simon Wiesenthal Center describes Croatia as a "cradle of Holocaust distortion".<ref name="BIRN2">{{cite web|last1=Opačić|first1=Tamara|title=Selective Amnesia: Croatia's Holocaust Deniers|url=https://balkaninsight.com/2017/11/24/selective-amnesia-croatia-s-holocaust-deniers-11-16-2017/|website=BalkanInsight|publisher=BIRN|date=November 24, 2017|access-date=April 3, 2020|archive-date=January 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122022345/https://balkaninsight.com/2017/11/24/selective-amnesia-croatia-s-holocaust-deniers-11-16-2017/|url-status=live}}</ref> Holocaust denial in Croatia typically involves the downplaying or denial of the ] carried out by the Ustasha regime, particularly against Serbs and Jews at the ] and it is done by public figures, though the regime's victims also included Roma and anti-fascist Croats.<ref name="BIRN2" /><ref>{{cite web|title=Croatia Must Not Whitewash the Horrors of Jasenovac|url=https://balkaninsight.com/2018/08/27/croatia-must-not-whitewash-the-horrors-of-jasenovac-08-27-2018/|website=Balkan Insight|date=August 27, 2018|access-date=April 17, 2020|archive-date=February 9, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209044459/https://balkaninsight.com/2018/08/27/croatia-must-not-whitewash-the-horrors-of-jasenovac-08-27-2018/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Rosensaft|first1=Menachem Z.|title=Croatia Is Brazenly Attempting to Rewrite its Holocaust Crimes Out of History|url=https://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/246116/croatia-rewrite-holocaust-crimes-out-of-history|publisher=Tablet Magazine|date=October 9, 2017|access-date=April 3, 2020|archive-date=March 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200319061627/https://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/246116/croatia-rewrite-holocaust-crimes-out-of-history|url-status=live}}</ref> The Society for Research of the Threefold Jasenovac Camp in Croatia, an NGO with authors and academics among its members, claims that Jasenovac was a labor camp during World War II and that it was later used by Yugoslav Communists to imprison Ustasha members and regular Croatian Home Guard army troops until 1948, then alleged Stalinists until 1951.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Vladisavljevic|first1=Anja|title=Book Event Questioning WWII Crimes Planned for Zagreb Church|url=https://balkaninsight.com/2019/01/07/new-revisionist-book-on-jasenovac-wwii-camp-01-07-2019-1/|website=Balkan Insight|publisher=BIRN|date=January 7, 2019|access-date=April 17, 2020|archive-date=October 4, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201004203436/https://balkaninsight.com/2019/01/07/new-revisionist-book-on-jasenovac-wwii-camp-01-07-2019-1/|url-status=live}}</ref> Following a series of book publications denying the Ustashe regime's crimes, the Simon Wiesenthal Center urged Croatian authorities in 2019 to ban such works, noting that they "would immediately be banned in Germany and Austria and rightfully so".<ref>{{cite web|title=Simon Wiesenthal Centre urges Croatia to ban Jasenovac revisionist works|url=http://hr.n1info.com/English/NEWS/a361178/Simon-Wiesenthal-Centre-urges-Croatia-to-ban-Jasenovac-revisionist-works.html|website=hr.n1info.com|publisher=N1 Zagreb|date=January 9, 2019|access-date=April 17, 2020|archive-date=October 9, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201009060853/http://hr.n1info.com/English/NEWS/a361178/Simon-Wiesenthal-Centre-urges-Croatia-to-ban-Jasenovac-revisionist-works.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Jewish rights group urges Croatia to ban pro-Nazi book|url=https://apnews.com/11edaa150f63423989db3540cbbdbd69|publisher=Associated Press|date=January 9, 2019|access-date=April 17, 2020|archive-date=November 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201107223954/https://apnews.com/11edaa150f63423989db3540cbbdbd69|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
=== Hungary === | |||
In Hungary, Holocaust distortion and denial take place in the form of downplaying the country's role in the killing and deportation of Jews. The ] committed numerous crimes and killed or deported Jews. A total of 437,000 Jews were deported by ]'s government in the ], an Axis collaborator.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Mansky|first1=Jackie|title=Why It Matters That Hungary's Prime Minister Denounced His Country's Role in the Holocaust|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/holocaust-and-hungary-prime-minister-180964139/|website=Smithsonian Magazine|access-date=November 14, 2020|archive-date=November 9, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109040634/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/holocaust-and-hungary-prime-minister-180964139/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Hungary: Holocaust Denial, Incitement and Intimidation|url=http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/14378|website=Israel National News|date=January 14, 2014|access-date=November 14, 2020|archive-date=October 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201006110018/http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/14378|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
=== Serbia === | |||
In Serbia, Holocaust distortion and denial is manifested in the downplaying of ] and ]'s roles in the ] in concentration camps in ], by a number of Serbian historians.<ref name="Perica151">{{harvnb|Perica|2002|p=151.}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Ramet|first1=Sabrina|title=The denial syndrome and its consequences: Serbian political culture since 2000|journal=Communist and Post-Communist Studies|year=2007|volume=40|pages=41–58|doi=10.1016/j.postcomstud.2006.12.004|url=https://online.ucpress.edu/cpcs/article/40/1/41/63/The-denial-syndrome-and-its-consequences-Serbian|access-date=April 17, 2020|archive-date=June 21, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200621180604/https://online.ucpress.edu/cpcs/article/40/1/41/63/The-denial-syndrome-and-its-consequences-Serbian|url-status=live}}</ref> Serb collaborationist armed forces, including the ], were involved, either directly or indirectly, in the mass killings of mainly Jews and Roma as well as Croats, Muslims and those Serbs who sided with any anti-German resistance.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Ridgeway|first1=James|last2=Udovickii|first2=Jasminka|title=Burn This House: The Making and Unmaking of Yugoslavia|date=2000|publisher=Duke University Press|isbn=978-0-82232-590-1|page=133|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GuGe9fy4raoC|access-date=May 27, 2020|archive-date=July 5, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240705095217/https://books.google.com/books?id=GuGe9fy4raoC|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Cohen|1996|pp=76–81}} Since the end of the war, Serbian collaboration in the Holocaust has been the subject of historical revisionism by Serbian leaders.{{sfn|Cohen|1996|p=113}} | |||
=== Slovakia === | |||
In Slovakia, some anti-communist writers claim that ] was a savior of Jews or that the ] was not responsible for ].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Sniegon|first1=Tomas|title=Vanished History: The Holocaust in Czech and Slovak Historical Culture|date=2014|publisher=]|isbn=978-1-78238-294-2|language=en|location=New York|title-link=Vanished History: The Holocaust in Czech and Slovak Historical Culture|quote=As far back as during the Cold War, the SWC had adapted its ideological history usage to fit its main goal – to fight for a ‘Slovak Slovakia’.8 The Holocaust was used in the narrative, but to a small degree and without much attention from the surrounding world. The use of history was focused, above all, on defending the memory of Jozef Tiso. What was most important, it seemed, was not to question the Holocaust as such, but rather to present it as a German crime which in Slovakia was supported solely by a few German-friendly radicals whom Tiso, against his will, was forced to keep in the government so as not to enrage the Germans too much. |pages=77–78)}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Nina |last=Paulovičová |editor1-first=John-Paul |editor1-last=Himka |editor2-first=Joanna Beata |editor2-last=Michlic |title=Bringing the Dark Past to Light. The Reception of the Holocaust in Postcommunist Europe. |title-link=Bringing the Dark Past to Light |chapter=The "Unmasterable Past"? The Reception of the Holocaust in Postcommunist Slovakia |location=Lincoln |publisher=] |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-8032-2544-2 |pages=549–590 |quote=Because of émigrés’ attempts to whitewash history and degrade historical scholarship in order to sustain the reservoir of national mythologization, liberal historians denounce the émigrés as “misinformers” and “misinterpreters.” The claims that fascism never occurred in Slovakia (František Vnuk), that the deportation of Jews was an “evacuation” (Milan S. Durica), that Tiso (whose anti-Semitic invectives fueled the radicalism against the Jewish minority) was a “martyr” and a “savior” of the Jews, and that the Holocaust should be omitted from the context of the Slovak national identity discourse are the key markers of the émigré historians’ views. (p. 564)}}</ref> | |||
==Western Europe== | |||
=== France === | |||
In France, Holocaust denial became more prominent in the 1990s as {{lang|fr|]}}, though the movement has existed in ultra-left French politics since at least the 1960s, led by figures such as ] (who was involved in the bookshop ] during the 1960s). Elements of the extreme far-right in France have begun to build on each other's negationist arguments, which often span beyond the Holocaust to cover a range of antisemitic views, incorporating attempts to tie the Holocaust to the Biblical massacre of the ], critiques of Zionism, and other material fanning what has been called a "conspiratorial Judeo-phobia" designed to legitimize and "banalize" antisemitism.<ref>Richard Joseph Golsan, ''Vichy's Afterlife'', University of Nevada Press, 2003, p. 130.</ref> | |||
=== Belgium === | |||
In Belgium in 2001, ], the ideologue and vice-president of one of the country's largest political parties, the ], gave an interview on Dutch TV where he cast doubt over the number of Jews murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust. In the same interview, he questioned the scale of the Nazis' use of gas chambers and the authenticity of ]'s diary. In response to the media assault following the interview, Raes was forced to resign his position but vowed to remain active within the party.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411130223/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/mar/09/worlddispatch.thefarright |date=April 11, 2020 }}, ''The Guardian'', Friday, March 9, 2001.</ref> Three years later, the Vlaams Blok was convicted of racism and chose to disband. Immediately afterwards, it legally reformed under the new name Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) with the same leaders and the same membership.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190303022858/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3994867.stm |date=March 3, 2019 }}, BBC News, November 9, 2004.</ref> | |||
In September 2024, the Belgian far-right ] party sparked controversy by putting a convicted Holocaust denier as one of its candidates in the upcoming municipal elections.<ref>{{cite news |last=Starcevic |first=Seb |date=18 September 2024 |title=Belgian far-right party puts convicted Holocaust denier up for local elections |url=https://www.politico.eu/article/belgium-far-right-party-vlaams-belang-holocaust-denier-roeland-raes-local-elections/ |access-date=19 September 2024 |work=Politico}}</ref> | |||
=== Germany === | |||
The trial of a Canadian woman, Monika Schaefer, and her German-Canadian brother, Alfred Schaefer started in Germany in early July 2018. They were charged with {{lang|de|Volksverhetzung}} (literally 'incitement of the people', often phrased as 'incitement to hatred' in English-language media). The pair had published video clips on ] of their denial of the genocide of Jews. In the clips, Alfred Schaefer said that Jews wanted to destroy Germans, blamed them for starting both World Wars, and referred to the Holocaust as a "Jewish fantasy".<ref>Cohen, Reut (May 8, 2018) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180707230455/https://www.bnaibrith.ca/canadian_alfred_schaefer_convicted_of_holocaust_denial_in_germany |date=July 7, 2018 }} ]</ref> Monika Schaefer was arrested in January 2018 in Germany while attending a court hearing of ].<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200223193320/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/holocaust-denier-monika-schaefer-trial-jasper-alberta-germany-1.4735103Bell, |date=February 23, 2020 }} '']''</ref><ref>Staff (January 4, 2018) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190206195309/https://edmontonsun.com/news/national/canadian-holocaust-denier-arrested-in-germany-report/wcm/84bc1065-59bc-4da1-963f-638940a457f3 |date=February 6, 2019 }} '']''</ref><ref>JTA (January 9, 2018) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180707230508/https://www.timesofisrael.com/canadian-holocaust-denier-arrested-in-germany/ |date=July 7, 2018 }}'']''</ref> Schaefer had been the ] candidate in the ] riding of ] during the federal elections in 2006, 2008, and 2011, but was expelled from the party after news reports surfaced of a July 2016 video<ref>Alfred S. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190808115751/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0_BZphQ7Qo |date=August 8, 2019 }} ]</ref> where she describes the Holocaust as "the most persistent lie in all of history" and insisted that those in concentration camps had been kept as healthy and as well-fed as possible.<ref>Staff (January 5, 2018) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190807170547/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/monika-schaefer-alberta-holocaust-denier-arrested-germany-1.4474400 |date=August 7, 2019 }} '']''</ref><ref>Fishman, Aidan (January 4, 2018) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180707202207/https://www.bnaibrith.ca/canadian_holocaust_denier_arrested_in_germany_following_b_nai_brith_complaint |date=July 7, 2018 }} ]</ref> In late October 2018, Monika Schaefer was convicted of the charge of 'incitement of hatred'. She was sentenced to ten months while Alfred Schaefer, also convicted, received a sentence of three years and two months.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://nationalpost.com/pmn/news-pmn/canada-news-pmn/alberta-holocaust-denier-guilty-of-inciting-hatred-in-german-court|title=Alberta Holocaust denier guilty of inciting hatred in German court|date=October 26, 2018|work=National Post|access-date=October 28, 2018|archive-date=June 23, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230623215748/https://nationalpost.com/pmn/news-pmn/canada-news-pmn/alberta-holocaust-denier-guilty-of-inciting-hatred-in-german-court|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
=== United Kingdom === | |||
In January 2019, a survey conducted by Opinion Matters, on behalf of the ] found that 5% of UK adults did not believe the Holocaust took place and one in 12 (8%) believed its scale has been exaggerated. One in five respondents incorrectly answered that less than 2 million Jews were murdered, and 45% couldn't say how many people were murdered in the Holocaust. Speaking in light of the survey's findings, ], chief executive of the ], said: "One person questioning the truth of the Holocaust is one too many, and so it is up to us to redouble our efforts to ensure future generations know that it did happen and become witnesses to one of the darkest episodes in our history."<ref name=guardian-20190127>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/27/one-in-20-britons-does-not-believe-holocaust-happened|title=One in 20 Britons does not believe Holocaust took place, poll finds|last=Sherwood|first=Harriet|newspaper=The Guardian|date=January 27, 2019|access-date=February 2, 2019|archive-date=July 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190730023456/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/27/one-in-20-britons-does-not-believe-holocaust-happened|url-status=live}}</ref> The ] programme '']'', specializing on statistics, investigated the survey finding it was unlikely to be accurate. Participants were incentivized to complete the online survey by shopping vouchers encouraging speedy answering, and the principal question was a "reverse question" with most participants having to give the reverse answer to surrounding questions requiring careful answering. Another question asked how many Jewish people had been murdered in the holocaust with only 0.2% of participants giving the answer zero, which was considered to be a closer estimate of the number of UK adults that did not believe the Holocaust took place.<ref name=bbcr4-20190201>{{cite AV media|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00028cf|series=More or Less|title=Holocaust deniers, Venezuelan hyperinflation, Tinder likes|people=], Peter Lynn (Professor of Survey Methodology)|publisher=BBC Radio 4|date=February 1, 2019|time=0m27s|access-date=February 2, 2019|archive-date=August 16, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190816103617/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00028cf|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
==Other== | |||
=== Japan === | |||
Japanese Holocaust denial first appeared in 1989 and reached its peak in 1995 with the publication in February 1995 by the Japanese magazine ''{{ill|Marco Polo (magazine)|lt=Marco Polo|ja|マルコポーロ (雑誌)}}'', a 250,000-circulation monthly published by ], of a Holocaust denial article by physician Masanori Nishioka<ref>{{cite book|last=Falk|first=Avner|year=2008|title=Anti-Semitism: a History and Psychoanalysis of Contemporary Hatred|publisher=Praeger|location=Westport, CT|isbn=978-0-313-35384-0|page=106}}</ref> which stated: "The ']' is a fabrication. There were no execution ] in ] or in any other ]. Today, what is displayed as 'gas chambers' at the remains of the Auschwitz camp in Poland are a post-war fabrication by the Polish communist regime or by the ], which controlled the country. Not once, neither at Auschwitz nor in any territory controlled by the Germans during the Second World War, was there 'mass murder of Jews' in 'gas chambers."<ref></ref> The Los Angeles-based ] instigated a ] of Bungei Shunju advertisers, including ], ], and ]. Within days, Bungei Shunju shut down ''Marco Polo'' and its editor, Kazuyoshi Hanada, quit, as did the president of Bungei Shunju, Kengo Tanaka.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The IHR Denounces Campaign Against Japanese Publishing Company |url=http://www.ihr.org//jhr/v15/v15n2p-9_Weber.html |website=] |access-date=April 17, 2014 |archive-date=October 23, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181023162624/http://www.ihr.org/jhr/v15/v15n2p-9_Weber.html |url-status=live }}</ref>{{Unreliable source?|date=September 2023}} | |||
=== Finland === | |||
Holocaust denial started in Finland almost immediately after the war, with many Finns who had been involved in the ] publishing articles questioning the Holocaust. Prominent early Finnish Holocaust deniers include professor ], CEO ], architech ] and ambassador ].<ref>"!" (Äärioikeiston pikkupommit ja isänmaallinen paatos) Yle Areena. ].</ref><ref name=Kotonen>Tommi Kotonen: Politiikan juoksuhaudat – Äärioikeistoliikkeet Suomessa kylmän sodan aikana, s. 64–67. Atena, Jyväskylä 2018.</ref> ]'s Nazi group started distributing a Finnish translation of Richard Harwood’s ] in 1976.<ref>Häkkinen, Perttu; Iitti, Vesa (2022). Lightbringers of the North: Secrets of the Occult Tradition of Finland. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-64411-464-3. p. 146</ref> | |||
In 2013, the ] asked President Niinistö to condemn a neo-Nazi newspaper circulated to some 660,000 households. The newspaper published articles denying the Holocaust and articles such as "Zionist terrorism" and "CNN, Goldman Sachs and Zionist Control" translated from ].<ref name="yle2">Oosi, Riikka: Yle. October 21, 2013. Retrieved January 22, 2017.</ref><ref name="yle3">Hirvonen, Tuomas: Yle. November 4, 2013. Retrieved January 22, 2017.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wiesenthal.com/about/news/wiesenthal-centre-to-11.html|title=Wiesenthal Centre to President of Finland: "Condemn Kärkkäinen Department Stores Tycoon Publisher of Antisemitic Free Newspapers as a National Danger."|website=www.wiesenthal.com}}</ref> Popular Finnish alternative media sites ], Verkkomedia and ] are known for publishing articles denying the Holocaust.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://yle.fi/a/3-8407726|work=]|title=Holokausti on myytti ja muita väitteitä – näin toimii suomalainen vastamedia|date=11 July 2024}}</ref> Prominent modern Finnish Holocaust deniers include the owner of KauppaSuomi newspaper and department store tycoon ].<ref>{{cite news|last=Hyttinen|first=Kati|url=https://www.mtvuutiset.fi/artikkeli/tavarataloyrittaja-karkkaiselta-hurja-syytos-presidentti-sauli-niinistosta-nwo-katyri-kiisti-paivityksessaan-myos-holokaustin/8272656|title=Tavarataloyrittäjä Kärkkäiseltä hurja syytös presidentti Sauli Niinistöstä: "Nwo-kätyri" – kiisti päivityksessään myös holokaustin|work=]|date=24 October 2021|language=fi}}</ref> Members of the ] have also distributed material denying the Holocaust.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.iltalehti.fi/uutiset/a/2016012721026224|title=Suomen Vastarintaliike jakoi holokaustin kieltäviä lappuja ympäri kouluja: "Opettajat sanoivat, että ulos täältä"|work=]|date=23 November 2024}}</ref> | |||
=== American youth === | |||
According to a 2020 survey of American adult Millennials and Generation Z members, 24% said the Holocaust might be a myth or had been exaggerated.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Conference|first=Claims|title=FIRST-EVER 50-STATE SURVEY ON HOLOCAUST KNOWLEDGE OF AMERICAN MILLENNIALS AND GEN Z REVEALS SHOCKING RESULTS|url=http://www.claimscon.org/millennial-study/|access-date=February 10, 2021|website=Claims Conference|date=August 13, 2020|language=en-US|archive-date=February 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210204100207/http://www.claimscon.org/millennial-study/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=September 16, 2020|title=Nearly two-thirds of US young adults unaware 6m Jews killed in the Holocaust|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/16/holocaust-us-adults-study|access-date=February 10, 2021|website=The Guardian|language=en|archive-date=February 13, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213030410/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/16/holocaust-us-adults-study|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
==Reactions to Holocaust denial== | ==Reactions to Holocaust denial== | ||
In 2022, the ] adopted a resolution aimed at combating Holocaust denial and antisemitism. The resolution was proposed by Germany and Israel.<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 20, 2022 |title=UN defines Holocaust denial in new resolution |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-60072506 |access-date=March 24, 2022 |archive-date=March 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220324224821/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-60072506 |url-status=live }}</ref> | |||
{{Further|Criticism of Holocaust denial}} | |||
=== |
===Scholars=== | ||
{{See also|Irving v Penguin Books and Lipstadt}} | |||
Scholarly response to Holocaust denial can be roughly divided into three categories: Some academics refuse to engage Holocaust deniers or their arguments at all, on grounds that doing so lends them unwarranted legitimacy.<ref>] and John Hagan, ''International Handbook of Violence Research'', Springer: 2003</ref> A second group of scholars, typified by the American historian ], have tried to raise awareness of the methods and motivations of Holocaust denial without legitimizing the deniers themselves. "We need not waste time or effort answering the deniers' contentions," Lipstadt wrote. "It would be never-ending.... Their commitment is to an ideology and their 'findings' are shaped to support it."<ref>Deborah Lipstadt, 1992 interview with Ken Stern of the American Jewish Committee</ref> A third group, typified by the ], responds to arguments and claims made by Holocaust denial groups by pointing out inaccuracies and errors in their evidence.<ref name=66-q&a/><ref>Robert L. Hilliard & Michael C. Keith. ''Waves of Rancor: tuning in the radical right'', M.E. Sharpe, 1999, ISBN 0-7656-0131-1, p. 250</ref><ref>Daniel Wolfish & Gordon S. Smith. ''Who Is Afraid of the State?: Canada in a World of Multiple Centres of Power'', University of Toronto Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8020-8388-9, p. 108.</ref> | |||
Scholarly response to Holocaust denial can be roughly divided into three categories. Some academics refuse to engage Holocaust deniers or their arguments at all, on grounds that doing so lends them unwarranted legitimacy.<ref>{{cite book |author-link1=Wilhelm Heitmeyer |first1=Wilhelm |last1=Heitmeyer |first2=John |last2=Hagan |title=International Handbook of Violence Research |publisher=Springer |year=2003}}</ref> The second group of scholars, typified by the American historian ], have tried to raise awareness of the methods and motivations of Holocaust denial without legitimizing the deniers themselves. "We need not waste time or effort answering the deniers' contentions," Lipstadt wrote. "It would be never-ending.... Their commitment is to an ideology and their 'findings' are shaped to support it."<ref>Deborah Lipstadt, 1992 interview with Ken Stern of the American Jewish Committee</ref> A third group, typified by the ], responds to arguments and claims made by Holocaust denial groups by pointing out inaccuracies and errors in their evidence.<ref name=66-q&a>{{cite web|title=Holocaust denial – The IHR's Questions & Answers, and Nizkor's Responses|url=http://www.nizkor.org/features/qar/qar00.html|work=]|access-date=September 28, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202230742/http://www.nizkor.org/features/qar/qar00.html|archive-date=December 2, 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first1=Robert L. |last1=Hilliard |first2=Michael C. |last2=Keith |title=Waves of Rancor: tuning in the radical right |publisher=M.E. Sharpe |year=1999 |isbn=0-7656-0131-1 |page=250}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first1=Daniel |last1=Wolfish |first2=Gordon S. |last2=Smith |title=Who Is Afraid of the State?: Canada in a World of Multiple Centres of Power |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2001 |isbn=0-8020-8388-9 |page=108}}</ref> | |||
In December 1991 the ], the oldest and largest society of historians and teachers of history in the United States, issued the following statement: "The American Historical Association Council strongly deplores the publicly reported attempts to deny the fact of the Holocaust. No serious historian questions that the Holocaust took place."<ref name=":0" /> This followed a strong reaction by many of its members and commentary in the press against a near-unanimous decision that the AHA had made in May 1991 that studying the ''significance of the Holocaust'' should be encouraged. The association's May 1991 statement was in response to an incident where certain of its members had questioned the reality of the Holocaust. The December 1991 declaration is a reversal of the AHA's earlier stance that the association should not set a precedent by certifying historical facts.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |url=http://www.historians.org/perspectives/issues/1991/9112/9112RES.CFM |title=AHA Statement on Holocaust Denial |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100201141606/http://www.historians.org/perspectives/issues/1991/9112/9112RES.CFM |archive-date=February 1, 2010 |publisher=] |access-date=October 11, 2013}}</ref> The AHA has also stated that Holocaust denial is "at best, a form of academic fraud".<ref name="adaaha">{{Cite book |last1=Gerstenfeld |first1=Phyllis B. |last2=Grant |first2=Diana Ruth |title=Crimes of hate: selected readings |publisher=] |page=190 |year=2004 |isbn=0-7619-2943-6}}</ref> | |||
Even scholarly responses, however, can trigger vigorous rebuttals. In 1996, the British historian ] brought ] against Lipstadt and her publisher, stemming from Lipstadt's book '']'', in which she named Irving as "one of the more dangerous" Holocaust deniers, because he was a published author, and was viewed by some as a legitimate military historian. He was "familiar with historical evidence", she wrote, and "bends it until it conforms with his ideological leanings and political agenda". Irving, who appeared as a defense witness in ]'s ] in Canada, and once declared at a rally of Holocaust deniers that "more women died in the ] than ever died in a gas chamber at ],"<ref>Holocaust Denial on Trial . Retrieved September 29, 2010.</ref> claimed that Lipstadt's allegation damaged his reputation. After a two-month trial in London, the trial judge issued a 333-page ruling against Irving.<ref>Bazyler, Prof. Michael J: Holocaust Denial Laws and Other Legislation Criminalizing Promotion of Nazism. Retrieved September 29, 2010.</ref> | |||
Literary theorist ] described Holocaust denial as "part of the extermination itself".<ref>Golsan, 130</ref> Holocaust survivor and Nobel Prize winner ], during a 1999 discussion at the ] in Washington, D.C., called the Holocaust "the most documented tragedy in ]. Never before has a tragedy elicited so much witness from the killers, from the victims and even from the bystanders—millions of pieces here in the museum what you have, all other museums, archives in the thousands, in the millions."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/eliewiesel/resources/millennium.html |title=Millennium Evening with Elie Wiesel |work=] |date= April 12, 1999 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230405050622/https://www.pbs.org/eliewiesel/resources/millennium.html |archive-date=April 5, 2023}}</ref> | |||
In December 1991 the ] issued the following statement: ''The American Historical Association Council strongly deplores the publicly reported attempts to deny the fact of the Holocaust. No serious historian questions that the Holocaust took place.'' This followed a strong reaction by many of its members and commentary in the press against a near-unanimous decision that the AHA had made in May 1991 that studying the ''significance of the Holocaust'' should be encouraged. The association's May 1991 statement was in response to an incident where certain of its members had questioned the reality of the Holocaust. The December 1991 declaration is a reversal of the AHA's earlier stance that the association should not set a precedent by certifying historical facts.<ref>, ] website. Retrieved October 11, 2013.</ref> | |||
Deborah Lipstadt's 1993 book, '']'', sharply criticized various Holocaust deniers, including British author ], for deliberately misrepresenting evidence to justify their preconceived conclusions. In the book, Lipstadt named Irving as "one of the more dangerous" Holocaust deniers, because he was a published author, and was viewed by some as a legitimate military historian. He was "familiar with historical evidence", she wrote, and "bends it until it conforms with his ideological leanings and political agenda". In 1996, Irving filed a libel suit against Lipstadt and her publisher, ]. Irving, who appeared as a defense witness in ]'s ] in Canada, and once declared at a rally of Holocaust deniers that "more women died in the ] than ever died in a gas chamber at ]",<ref>{{cite web |title=Irving v. Lipstadt |url=http://www.hdot.org/trial |website=Holocaust Denial on Trial |access-date=September 29, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100927204545/http://www.hdot.org/trial |archive-date=September 27, 2010}}</ref> claimed that Lipstadt's allegation damaged his reputation. American historian ], an expert witness for the defense, wrote a comprehensive essay for the court summarizing the voluminous evidence for the reality of the Holocaust, and under cross-examination, effectively countered all of Irving's principal arguments to the contrary. ] historian ], another defense expert witness, spent two years examining Irving's writings and confirmed his misrepresentations, including evidence that he had knowingly used forged documents as source material. After a two-month trial in London the trial judge, ], issued a 333-page ruling against Irving, which referred to him as a "Holocaust denier" and "right-wing pro-Nazi polemicist".<ref>{{cite web |last=Bazyler |first=Michael J. |title=Holocaust Denial Laws and Other Legislation Criminalizing Promotion of Nazism |url=http://www1.yadvashem.org/yv/en/holocaust/insights/pdf/bazyler.pdf |website=International Institute for Holocaust Studies |publisher=] |access-date=September 29, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111105153114/http://www1.yadvashem.org/yv/en/holocaust/insights/pdf/bazyler.pdf |archive-date=November 5, 2011}}</ref> | |||
===Public figures and scholars=== | |||
], an American resident in Canada, was disturbed by the efforts of organizations like the ] to suppress the speech of the Holocaust deniers, feeling that it was better to confront them openly than to try to censor them. On the ] newsgroup ''alt.revisionism'' he began a campaign of "truth, fact, and evidence", working with other participants on the newsgroup to uncover factual information about the Holocaust and counter the arguments of the deniers by proving them to be based upon misleading evidence, false statements, and outright lies. He founded the ] to expose the activities of the Holocaust deniers, who responded to McVay with personal attacks, slander, and death threats.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.protocol.gov.bc.ca/protocol/prgs/obc/1995/1995_KMcVay.htm|website=Order of British Columbia |title=Biography: Kenneth McVay |access-date=June 30, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080516081625/http://www.protocol.gov.bc.ca/protocol/prgs/obc/1995/1995_KMcVay.htm |archive-date=May 16, 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> | |||
A number of public figures and scholars have spoken out against Holocaust denial. The ], the oldest and largest society of historians and teachers of history in the United States, states that Holocaust denial is "at best, a form of academic fraud".<ref name="adaaha">{{Cite book|last=Gerstenfeld|first=Phyllis B.|author2=Grant, Diana Ruth|title=Crimes of hate: selected readings|publisher=SAGE|location=p. 190.|year=2004|page=391|isbn=0-7619-2943-6}}</ref> Dr. William Shulman, director of the Holocaust Research Center, described the denial "as if these people were killed twice",<ref>{{cite news |author=Sophia Chang |url=http://www.timesledger.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=13569863&BRD=2676&PAG=461&dept_id=542415&rfi=6 |work=Times Ledger |date=December 16, 2004}}{{dead link|date=March 2014}}</ref> a sentiment echoed by literary theorist ], who argued, "Forgetting the extermination is part of the extermination itself."<ref>Golsan, 130</ref> In 2006, UN Secretary General ] said: "Remembering is a necessary rebuke to those who say the Holocaust never happened or has been exaggerated. Holocaust denial is the work of bigots; we must reject their false claims whenever, wherever and by whomever they are made."<ref>BBC News, , January 2006</ref> Holocaust survivor and Nobel Prize winner ] calls the Holocaust "the most documented tragedy in ]. Never before has a tragedy elicited so much witness from the killers, from the victims and even from the bystanders—millions of pieces here in the museum what you have, all other museums, archives in the thousands, in the millions."<ref></ref> He made a similar statement on a special edition of '']'' after his final trip to ], along with host Winfrey. | |||
===Public figures=== | |||
In January 2007, the ] condemned "without reservation any denial of the Holocaust", though Iran disassociated itself from the resolution.<ref>, U.N. News Centre, January 26, 2007.</ref> In July 2013, Iran's then president-elect Hassan Rohani described Ahmadinejad's remarks about the Holocaust and Israel as "] rhetoric"<ref>{{cite news |agency=DPA |date=July 7, 2013 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/1.534337 |title=Ahmadinejad touts Holocaust denial as great success of his tenure |newspaper=Haaretz |accessdate=March 23, 2014}}</ref> and in September 2013 ] stated that "The Nazis carried out a massacre that cannot be denied, especially against the Jewish people" and "The massacre by the Nazis was condemnable. We never want to sit by side with the Nazis..They committed a crime against Jews — which is a crime against..all of humanity."<ref></ref> While declining to give a specific number of Jewish victims, Iranian analysts suggested that "Rouhani pushed the envelope as far as it could go..without infuriating the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and other conservatives back home."<ref></ref> | |||
A number of public figures have spoken out against Holocaust denial. In 2006, UN Secretary-General ] said: "Remembering is a necessary rebuke to those who say the Holocaust never happened or has been exaggerated. Holocaust denial is the work of bigots; we must reject their false claims whenever, wherever and by whomever they are made."<ref>{{cite news |work=] |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4653666.stm |title=Annan condemns Holocaust denial |date=January 2006 |access-date=February 14, 2006 |archive-date=September 6, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170906210833/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4653666.stm |url-status=live}}</ref> In January 2007, the ] condemned "without reservation any denial of the Holocaust", though Iran disassociated itself from the resolution.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=21355&Cr=holocaust&Cr1 |title=UN Assembly condemns Holocaust denial by consensus; Iran disassociates itself |work=U.N. News Centre |publisher=] |date=January 26, 2007 |access-date=June 28, 2017 |archive-date=November 26, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171126010350/http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=21355&Cr=holocaust&Cr1 |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
In July 2013, Iran's then president-elect Hassan Rohani described Ahmadinejad's remarks about the Holocaust and Israel as "] rhetoric"<ref>{{cite news |agency=DPA |date=July 7, 2013 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/1.534337 |title=Ahmadinejad touts Holocaust denial as great success of his tenure |newspaper=] |access-date=March 23, 2014 |archive-date=July 17, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150717185816/http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/1.534337 |url-status=live}}</ref> and in September 2013 ] stated that "The Nazis carried out a massacre that cannot be denied, especially against the Jewish people" and "The massacre by the Nazis was condemnable. We never want to sit by side with the Nazis...They committed a crime against Jews — which is a crime against ... all of humanity."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/09/25/20693723-irans-rouhani-on-holocaust-a-massacre-that-cannot-be-denied |title=Iran's Rouhani on Holocaust: 'A massacre that cannot be denied' |first1=Andrea |last1=Mitchell |first2=Tracy |last2=Connor |work=] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927154909/http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/09/25/20693723-irans-rouhani-on-holocaust-a-massacre-that-cannot-be-denied |archive-date=September 27, 2013}}</ref> While declining to give a specific number of Jewish victims, Iranian analysts suggested that "Rouhani pushed the envelope as far as it could go ... without infuriating the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and other conservatives back home."{{R|Saeed Kamali Dehghan}} | |||
===Former SS members=== | |||
Critics of Holocaust denial also include members of the Auschwitz SS. Camp physician and SS-'']'' ] considered the facts of Auschwitz "so firmly determined that one cannot have any doubt at all", and described those who negate what happened at the camp as "malevolent" people who have "personal interest to want to bury in silence things that cannot be buried in silence".<ref>Frankfurter, Bernhard. ''Die Begegnung. Auschwitz-Ein Opfer und ein Täter im Gespräch''. Vienna, Verlag für Gesellschaftskritik, 1995, p. 102. cited in ]. ''The Case for Auschwitz: Evidence from the Irving Trial''. Indiana University Press, 2002, p. 291.</ref> ] handler and SS-'']'' ] has said that anyone who maintains that nobody was gassed at Auschwitz must be "crazy or in the wrong".<ref>Demant, Ebbo (Hg.): ''Auschwitz – "Direkt von der Rampe weg...." Kaduk, Erber, Klehr: Drei Täter geben zu Protokoll'', p. 114. Hamburg: Rowohlt, 1979 ISBN 3-499-14438-7</ref> SS-''Unterscharführer'' ] has stated that he does not consider those who maintain such a thing as normal people.<ref>''Drei Deutsche Mörder. Aufzeichnungen über die Banalität des Bösen'', Germany 1998 (filmed in 1978). Directed by Ebbo Demant, produced by ].</ref> Hearing about Holocaust denial compelled former SS-'']'' ] to publicly speak about what he witnessed at Auschwitz, and denounce Holocaust deniers,<ref>]. ''Auschwitz: The Nazis & The "Final Solution"'', p. 300. London: BBC Books, 2005. ISBN 0-563-52117-1</ref> stating: | |||
===Former Auschwitz SS personnel=== | |||
{{quote|I would like you to believe me. I saw the gas chambers. I saw the crematoria. I saw the open fires. I was on the ramp when the selections took place. I would like you to believe that these atrocities happened because I was there.<ref>Rees, p. 301</ref>}} | |||
Critics of Holocaust denial also include members of the ]. Camp physician and SS-'']'' ] considered the facts of Auschwitz "so firmly determined that one cannot have any doubt at all", and described those who negate what happened at the camp as "malevolent" people who have "personal interest to want to bury in silence things that cannot be buried in silence".<ref>Frankfurter, Bernhard. ''Die Begegnung. Auschwitz-Ein Opfer und ein Täter im Gespräch''. Vienna, Verlag für Gesellschaftskritik, 1995, p. 102. cited in ]. ''The Case for Auschwitz: Evidence from the Irving Trial''. ], 2002, p. 291.</ref> ] handler and SS-'']'' ] said that anyone who maintains that nobody was gassed at Auschwitz must be "crazy or in the wrong".<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Demant |editor-first=Ebbo |title=Auschwitz – "Direkt von der Rampe weg...." Kaduk, Erber, Klehr: Drei Täter geben zu Protokoll |language=de |trans-title=Auschwitz - "Straight from the ramp..." Kaduk, Erber, Klehr: Three perpetrators testify |page=114 |location=Hamburg |publisher=Rowohlt |date=1979 |isbn=3-499-14438-7}}</ref> SS-''Unterscharführer'' ] stated that he did not consider those who maintain such a thing as normal people.<ref>''Drei Deutsche Mörder. Aufzeichnungen über die Banalität des Bösen'', Germany 1998 (filmed in 1978). Directed by Ebbo Demant, produced by ].</ref> Hearing about Holocaust denial compelled former SS-'']'' ] to publicly speak about what he witnessed at Auschwitz, and denounce Holocaust deniers,{{sfn|Rees|2005|p=300}} stating: | |||
{{blockquote|I would like you to believe me. I saw the gas chambers. I saw the crematoria. I saw the open fires. I was on the ramp when the selections took place. I would like you to believe that these atrocities happened because I was there.{{sfn|Rees|2005|p=301}}<ref name="Online 2005">{{cite news |title=An SS Officer Remembers: The Bookkeeper from Auschwitz |newspaper=] |date=May 9, 2005 |url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/an-ss-officer-remembers-the-bookkeeper-from-auschwitz-a-355188.html |access-date=April 22, 2016 |archive-date=March 2, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070302085046/http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,355188,00.html |url-status=live}}</ref>}} | |||
===Holocaust denial and antisemitism=== | ===Holocaust denial and antisemitism=== | ||
Holocaust denial is given as an example of antisemitism in the ],<ref>{{cite web |title=Holocaust Remembrance Press Release |url=https://www.holocaustremembrance.com/sites/default/files/press_release_document_antisemitism.pdf |publisher=Romanian Chairmanship |date=May 26, 2016 |access-date=April 15, 2018 |archive-date=October 24, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171024070944/https://www.holocaustremembrance.com/sites/default/files/press_release_document_antisemitism.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref> adopted by the ] as well as the United Kingdom, Israel, Austria, Scotland, Romania, Germany and Bulgaria. The European Parliament voted in favor of a resolution calling for member states to adopt the definition on June 1, 2017.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/EU-Parliament-votes-in-favor-of-adopting-antisemitism-definition-494479 |title=EU Parliament votes in favor of adopting antisemitism definition |work=] |date=June 2017 |access-date=February 24, 2019 |archive-date=July 18, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180718001345/https://www.jpost.com//Diaspora/EU-Parliament-votes-in-favor-of-adopting-antisemitism-definition-494479 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Fact Sheet: Working Definition of Antisemitism |url=https://holocaustremembrance.com/sites/default/files/fcat_sheet_working_definition_of_antisemitism.pdf |publisher=] |date=October 24, 2017 |access-date=August 17, 2020 |archive-date=July 13, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180713161250/http://holocaustremembrance.com/sites/default/files/fcat_sheet_working_definition_of_antisemitism.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.momentmag.com/defining-anti-semitism-conversation-eu-coordinator-combating-anti-semitism/ |title=Defining Anti-Semitism: A Conversation With the EU Coordinator on Combating Anti-Semitism |date=June 28, 2017 |access-date=April 15, 2018 |archive-date=June 18, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618025721/https://www.momentmag.com/defining-anti-semitism-conversation-eu-coordinator-combating-anti-semitism/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> | |||
Holocaust denial is widely known to be antisemitic.<ref name="antisemitic"/> The ''Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity'', for example, defines Holocaust denial as "a new form of anti-Semitism, but one that hinges on age-old motifs".<ref name=EGCAH45>"Holocaust denial is a new form of anti-Semitism, but one that hinges on age-old motifs." Dinah Shelton, ''Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity'', Macmillan Reference, 2005, p. 45.</ref> The ] has stated that "Holocaust denial is a contemporary form of the classic anti-Semitic doctrine of the evil, manipulative and threatening world Jewish conspiracy"<ref name=ADLguide>, Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda, ] website. Retrieved August 27, 2009.</ref> and French historian Valérie Igounet has written that "Holocaust denial is a convenient polemical substitute for anti-semitism."<ref name=Igounet>Igounet, Valérie. , '']'', May 1998.</ref> In 2005, the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (now the ]) published a "working definition" of antisemitism which gave as an example of the way that antisemitism might manifest itself, "denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust)".<ref name=EFRAWorkingDefinition>{{PDF||33.8 KB}}, ], March 16, 2005.</ref> | |||
The ''Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity'' defines Holocaust denial as "a new form of anti-Semitism, but one that hinges on age-old motifs".<ref name=EGCAH45>{{cite book |quote=Holocaust denial is a new form of anti-Semitism, but one that hinges on age-old motifs. |first=Dinah |last=Shelton |title=Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity |publisher=Macmillan Reference |date=2005 |page=45}}</ref> The ] has stated that "Holocaust denial is a contemporary form of the classic anti-Semitic doctrine of the evil, manipulative and threatening world Jewish conspiracy"<ref name=ADLguide>{{cite web |url=http://www.adl.org/Holocaust/theory.asp |title=Introduction: Denial as Anti-Semitism |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604020743/http://www.adl.org/holocaust/theory.asp |archive-date=June 4, 2011 |website=Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda |publisher=] |access-date=August 27, 2009}}</ref> and French historian ] has written that "Holocaust denial is a convenient polemical substitute for anti-semitism."<ref name=Igounet>{{cite news |last=Igounet |first=Valérie |url=http://mondediplo.com/1998/05/08igou |title=Holocaust denial is part of a strategy |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190613014018/https://mondediplo.com/1998/05/08igou |archive-date=June 13, 2019 |work=] |date=8 May 1998}}</ref> | |||
Some have argued that not all Holocaust deniers are necessarily antisemitic. | |||
According to Walter Reich, psychiatrist and then a senior scholar at the ], one-time director of the ], and now professor of international affairs at ]: | |||
In a defense of Holocaust denier Bishop ] against the charge of being antisemitic, the journalist and writer ] argued "It is not anti-Semitic to make a fool of yourself in public about a historical fact. It is anti-Semitic to preach or promote a dislike of Jews because they are Jews, which is what Bishop Williamson has not done."<ref name=Myers>, '']'', March 13, 2009.</ref> | |||
{{blockquote|The primary motivation for most deniers is anti-Semitism, and for them the Holocaust is an infuriatingly inconvenient fact of history. After all, the Holocaust has generally been recognized as one of the most terrible crimes that ever took place, and surely the very emblem of evil in the modern age. If that crime was a direct result of anti-Semitism taken to its logical end, then anti-Semitism itself, even when expressed in private conversation, is inevitably discredited among most people. What better way to rehabilitate anti-Semitism, make anti-Semitic arguments seem once again respectable in civilized discourse and even make it acceptable for governments to pursue anti-Semitic policies than by convincing the world that the great crime for which anti-Semitism was blamed simply never happened—indeed, that it was nothing more than a frame-up invented by the Jews, and propagated by them through their control of the media? What better way, in short, to make the world safe again for anti-Semitism than by denying the Holocaust?<ref name=ReichNYT>{{cite news |last=Reich |first=Walter |author-link=Walter Reich |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/07/11/books/erasing-the-holocaust.html |title=Erasing the Holocaust |work=] |date=July 11, 1993 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230628213512/https://www.nytimes.com/1993/07/11/books/erasing-the-holocaust.html |archive-date=June 28, 2023}}</ref>}} | |||
The French historian ] described the motivation of deniers more succinctly |
The French historian ] described the motivation of deniers more succinctly, explaining, "One revives the dead in order the better to strike the living."<ref name=Vidal-NaquetMotivations>{{cite book |author-link=Pierre Vidal-Naquet |last=Vidal-Naquet |first=Pierre |url=http://www.anti-rev.org/textes/VidalNaquet92a/part-4.html |chapter=A Paper Eichmann (1980) – Anatomy of a Lie: On the Revisionist Method |title=Assassins of Memory |publisher=] |date=1992 |access-date=August 27, 2009 |archive-date=September 5, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180905180131/http://www.anti-rev.org/textes/VidalNaquet92a/part-4.html |url-status=live}}</ref> German political scientist ] has argued, "Every denial of the Holocaust... contains an appeal to repeat it."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Küntzel |first1=Matthias |title=Holocaust Denial: The Politics of Perfidy |date=2012 |publisher=] |isbn=978-3-11-028821-6 |language=en |chapter=Judeophobia and the Denial of the Holocaust in Iran}}</ref> | ||
==Examination of claims== | ==Examination of claims== | ||
{{Main| |
{{Main|Evidence and documentation for the Holocaust}} | ||
The key claims which cause Holocaust denial to differ from established fact are: |
The key claims which cause Holocaust denial to differ from established fact are:{{R|Key elements|Assertions}} | ||
*The Nazis had no official policy or intention of exterminating Jews. | *The Nazis had no official policy or intention of exterminating Jews. | ||
*Nazis did not use ]s to mass murder Jews.<ref name=NP-gas-chambers>{{cite web|title=Response to Holocaust denial on the existence of Gas Chambers and Crematoria|url=http://www.nizkor.org/hweb/orgs/american/skeptic-magazine/skeptic-12.html|work=]| |
*The Nazis did not use ]s to mass murder Jews.<ref name=NP-gas-chambers>{{cite web |title=Response to Holocaust denial on the existence of Gas Chambers and Crematoria |url=http://www.nizkor.org/hweb/orgs/american/skeptic-magazine/skeptic-12.html |work=] |access-date=November 16, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131120124932/http://www.nizkor.org/hweb/orgs/american/skeptic-magazine/skeptic-12.html |archive-date=November 20, 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref> | ||
*The figure of 5 to 6 million Jewish deaths is a gross exaggeration, and the actual number is an ] lower. | *The figure of 5 to 6 million Jewish deaths is a gross exaggeration, and the actual number is an ] lower. | ||
Other claims include the following: | Other claims include the following: | ||
*Stories of the Holocaust were a myth initially created by the ] to demonize Germans, |
*Stories of the Holocaust were a myth initially created by the ] to demonize Germans,{{R|Assertions}} Jews having spread this myth as part of a grander plot intended to enable the creation of a Jewish homeland in ], and now to garner continuing support for the state of Israel.<ref>A plot designed to garner support of Israel: | ||
*"The central assertion for the deniers is that Jews are not victims but victimizers. They 'stole' billions in reparations, destroyed Germany's good name by spreading the 'myth' of the Holocaust, and won international sympathy because of what they claimed had been done to them. In the paramount miscarriage of injustice, they used the world's sympathy to 'displace' another people so that the state of Israel could be established. This contention relating to the establishment of Israel is a linchpin of their argument." ]. ''Denying the Holocaust – The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', Penguin, 1993, p. 27. ISBN |
*"The central assertion for the deniers is that Jews are not victims but victimizers. They 'stole' billions in reparations, destroyed Germany's good name by spreading the 'myth' of the Holocaust, and won international sympathy because of what they claimed had been done to them. In the paramount miscarriage of injustice, they used the world's sympathy to 'displace' another people so that the state of Israel could be established. This contention relating to the establishment of Israel is a linchpin of their argument." ]. ''Denying the Holocaust – The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', ], 1993, p. 27. {{ISBN|0-452-27274-2}}. | ||
*"Jews are thus depicted as manipulative and powerful conspirators who have fabricated myths of their own suffering for their own ends. According to the Holocaust deniers, by forging evidence and mounting a massive propaganda effort, the Jews have established their lies as 'truth' and reaped enormous rewards from doing so: for example, in making financial claims on Germany and acquiring international support for Israel." , JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007. | *"Jews are thus depicted as manipulative and powerful conspirators who have fabricated myths of their own suffering for their own ends. According to the Holocaust deniers, by forging evidence and mounting a massive propaganda effort, the Jews have established their lies as 'truth' and reaped enormous rewards from doing so: for example, in making financial claims on Germany and acquiring international support for Israel." {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718044959/http://www.jpr.org.uk/Reports/CS_Reports/no_3_2000/index.htm |date=July 18, 2011 }}, JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007. | ||
*"Why, we might ask the deniers, if the Holocaust did not happen would any group concoct such a horrific story? Because, some deniers claim, there was a conspiracy by Zionists to exaggerate the plight of Jews during the war in order to finance the state of Israel through war reparations." Michael Shermer & Alex Grobman. ''Denying History: who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and why Do They Say It?'', University of California Press, 2000, ISBN |
*"Why, we might ask the deniers, if the Holocaust did not happen would any group concoct such a horrific story? Because, some deniers claim, there was a conspiracy by Zionists to exaggerate the plight of Jews during the war in order to finance the state of Israel through war reparations." Michael Shermer & Alex Grobman. ''Denying History: who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and why Do They Say It?'', ], 2000, {{ISBN|0-520-23469-3}}, p. 106. | ||
*"They picture a vast shadowy conspiracy that controls and manipulates the institutions of education, culture, the media and government in order to disseminate a pernicious mythology. The purpose of this Holocaust mythology, they assert, is the inculcation of a sense of guilt in the white, Western Christian world. Those who can make others feel guilty have power over them and can make them do their bidding. This power is used to advance an international Jewish agenda centered in the Zionist enterprise of the State of Israel." , "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", ], 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | *"They picture a vast shadowy conspiracy that controls and manipulates the institutions of education, culture, the media and government in order to disseminate a pernicious mythology. The purpose of this Holocaust mythology, they assert, is the inculcation of a sense of guilt in the white, Western Christian world. Those who can make others feel guilty have power over them and can make them do their bidding. This power is used to advance an international Jewish agenda centered in the Zionist enterprise of the State of Israel." {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604020743/http://www.adl.org/holocaust/theory.asp |date=June 4, 2011 }}, "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", ], 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | ||
*"The stress on Holocaust revisionism underscored the new anti-Semitic agenda gaining ground within the Klan movement. Holocaust denial refurbished conspiratorial anti-Semitism. Who else but the Jews had the media power to hoodwink unsuspecting masses with one of the greatest hoaxes in history? And for what motive? To promote the claims of the illegitimate state of Israel by making non-Jews feel guilty, of course." Lawrence N. Powell, ''Troubled Memory: Anne Levy, the Holocaust, and David Duke's Louisiana'', University of North Carolina Press, 2000, ISBN |
*"The stress on Holocaust revisionism underscored the new anti-Semitic agenda gaining ground within the Klan movement. Holocaust denial refurbished conspiratorial anti-Semitism. Who else but the Jews had the media power to hoodwink unsuspecting masses with one of the greatest hoaxes in history? And for what motive? To promote the claims of the illegitimate state of Israel by making non-Jews feel guilty, of course." Lawrence N. Powell, ''Troubled Memory: Anne Levy, the Holocaust, and David Duke's Louisiana'', University of North Carolina Press, 2000, {{ISBN|0-8078-5374-7}}, p. 445.</ref> | ||
*Documentary evidence of the Holocaust, from photographs to '']'', is fabricated. |
*Documentary evidence of the Holocaust, from photographs to '']'', is fabricated.{{R|Assertions}} | ||
*Survivor testimonies are filled with errors and inconsistencies |
*Survivor testimonies are filled with errors and inconsistencies and are thus unreliable.{{R|Assertions}} | ||
*Interrogators obtained Nazi prisoners' confessions of war crimes through the use of torture. |
*Interrogators obtained Nazi prisoners' confessions of war crimes through the use of torture.{{R|Assertions}} | ||
*The Nazi treatment of Jews was no different from what the ] did to their enemies in World War II.<ref>Shermer & Grobman, 2002, pp. 103–14.</ref> | *The Nazi treatment of Jews was no different from what the ] did to their enemies in World War II.<ref>Shermer & Grobman, 2002, pp. 103–14.</ref> | ||
Holocaust denial is widely viewed as failing to adhere to ] that mainstream historians (as well as scholars in other fields) regard as basic to ].<ref>"(H)istory is the attempt to describe events of the past and move from description to analysis, in accordance with certain agreed rules of evidence, of analysis of language, and of logic." "Yehuda Bauer, Historian of the Holocaust – Portrait of an Historian" – ''Online Dimensions, a Journal of Holocaust Studies'', Fall, 2004</ref> | Holocaust denial is widely viewed as failing to adhere to ] that mainstream historians (as well as scholars in other fields) regard as basic to ].<ref>"(H)istory is the attempt to describe events of the past and move from description to analysis, in accordance with certain agreed rules of evidence, of analysis of language, and of logic." "Yehuda Bauer, Historian of the Holocaust – Portrait of an Historian" – ''Online Dimensions, a Journal of Holocaust Studies'', Fall, 2004</ref> | ||
The Holocaust was well documented by the ] of the Nazi government itself.<ref>"... the German bureaucrats' collective actions are relatively well-documented for the historian...." ], ''The Path to Genocide: essays on launching the final solution'', Cambridge University Press, 1992, ISBN |
The Holocaust was well documented by the ] of the Nazi government itself.<ref>"... the German bureaucrats' collective actions are relatively well-documented for the historian...." ], ''The Path to Genocide: essays on launching the final solution'', Cambridge University Press, 1992, {{ISBN|0-521-55878-6}}, p. 125.</ref><ref>"According to the historian ], the United States alone captured forty thousand linear feet of documents on the murder of European Jews ... we can say that the Holocaust is a uniquely well-documented historical event." Deák, István. ''Essays on Hitler's Europe'', ], 2001, {{ISBN|0-8032-1716-1}}, p. 67</ref> It was further witnessed by the ] forces who entered Germany and its associated ] states towards the end of World War II.<ref>''Holocaust: The events and their impact on real people'', DK Publishing in conjunction with the USC Shoah Foundation Institute for Visual History and Education, p. 146. "There our troops found sights, sounds, and stenches horrible beyond belief, cruelties so enormous as to be incomprehensible to the normal mind."</ref><ref>Kelly Oliver. ''Witnessing: beyond recognition'', ], 2001, {{ISBN|0-8166-3627-3}}, p. 90.</ref><ref>Shelley Hornstein and Florence Jacobowitz. ''Image and remembrance: representation and the Holocaust'', 2003, Indiana University Press, {{ISBN|0-253-34188-4}}, pp. 205–206.</ref> It was also witnessed from the inside by non-Jewish captives such as Catholic ] member ] who wrote extensively and testified about his experiences in seven camps including Auschwitz-Birkenau<ref name="ina-shoah"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170629162948/http://grands-entretiens.ina.fr/video/Shoah |date=June 29, 2017 }}; audio recording</ref> and also produced the oldest contemporary sketch of a camp crematorium.<ref name=Wieviorka>Annette Wieviorka, ''Déportation et génocide. Entre la mémoire et l'oubli'', Plon, 1992, p. 249.</ref> | ||
According to researchers ] and ], there is a "convergence of evidence" that proves that the Holocaust happened. This evidence includes:<ref>Shermer & Grobman, 2002, p. 33.</ref> | According to researchers ] and ], there is a "convergence of evidence" that proves that the Holocaust happened. This evidence includes:<ref>Shermer & Grobman, 2002, p. 33.</ref> | ||
]]] | |||
{{quote| | |||
{{blockquote| | |||
#''Written documents''—hundreds of thousands of letters, memos, blueprints, orders, bills, speeches, articles, memoirs, and confessions. | #''Written documents''—hundreds of thousands of letters, memos, blueprints, orders, bills, speeches, articles, memoirs, and confessions. | ||
#''Eyewitness testimony''—accounts from survivors, Jewish ]s (who helped load bodies from the gas chambers into the crematoria in exchange for a chance of survival), ] guards, commandants, local townspeople, and even high-ranking Nazis who spoke openly about the mass murder of the Jews. | #''Eyewitness testimony''—accounts from survivors, Jewish '']s'' (who helped load bodies from the gas chambers into the crematoria in exchange for a chance of survival), ] guards, commandants, local townspeople, and even high-ranking Nazis who spoke openly about the mass murder of the Jews. | ||
#''Photographs''—including official military and press photographs, civilian photographs, secret photographs taken by survivors, aerial photographs, German and Allied film footage, and unofficial photographs taken by the German military. | #''Photographs''—including official military and press photographs, civilian photographs, secret photographs taken by survivors, aerial photographs, German and Allied film footage, and unofficial photographs taken by the German military. | ||
#''The camps themselves''—concentration camps, work camps, and ]s that still exist in varying degrees of originality and reconstruction. | #''The camps themselves''—concentration camps, work camps, and ]s that still exist in varying degrees of originality and reconstruction. | ||
#''Inferential evidence'' or '']'' |
#''Inferential evidence'' or '']''—population demographics, reconstructed from the pre–World War II era; if six million Jews were not murdered, what happened to them?}} | ||
Much of the controversy surrounding the claims of Holocaust deniers centers on the methods used to present arguments that the Holocaust allegedly ''never happened as commonly accepted''. Numerous accounts have been given by Holocaust deniers (including evidence presented in court cases) of claimed facts and evidence; however, independent research has shown these claims to be based upon flawed research, |
Much of the controversy surrounding the claims of Holocaust deniers' centers on the methods used to present arguments that the Holocaust allegedly ''never happened as commonly accepted''. Numerous accounts have been given by Holocaust deniers (including evidence presented in court cases) of claimed facts and evidence; however, independent research has shown these claims to be based upon flawed research, biassed statements, or even deliberately falsified evidence. Opponents of Holocaust denial have documented numerous instances in which such evidence was altered or manufactured (see ] and ]). According to ], "in our society of image and spectacle, extermination on paper leads to extermination in reality."<ref>], French "une tentative d'extermination sur le papier qui relaie l'extermination réelle" in ''Les assassins de la mémoire'', ''Un Eichmann de papier'', Postface de ], Nouvelle édition revue et augmentée, La Découverte, Paris, 2005, {{ISBN|2-7071-4545-9}}.</ref> | ||
==Laws against Holocaust denial== | ==Laws against Holocaust denial== | ||
{{Main| |
{{Main|Legality of Holocaust denial}} | ||
] | |||
Holocaust denial is explicitly or implicitly illegal in 16 countries: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, and Switzerland.<ref>Lechtholz-Zey, Jacqueline: Laws Banning Holocaust Denial. . Retrieved September 29, 2010.</ref> Romania officially denied the Holocaust occurred on its territory up until the ] in 2004.<ref name=bbc-news>{{cite news|title=Romania holds first Holocaust Day|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3736864.stm|accessdate=24 September 2013|newspaper=]|date=12 October 2004}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2997616.stm | title= Romania sparks Holocaust row | work=BBC News | date=June 17, 2003 | accessdate=May 22, 2010|archiveurl = http://www.webcitation.org/5wQo4lXSx |archivedate = 2011-02-11|deadurl=no}}</ref> The European Union's Framework decision on Racism and Xenophobia states that denying or grossly trivializing "crimes of genocide" should be made "punishable in all ]".<ref></ref> Slovakia criminalized denial of fascist crimes in general in late 2001; in May 2005, the term "Holocaust" was explicitly adopted by the penal code and in 2009, it became illegal to deny any act regarded by an international criminal court as genocide. The Parliament of Hungary adopted the most recent legislation, which declared denial or trivialization of the Holocaust a crime punishable by up to three years imprisonment, in February 2010.<ref></ref> | |||
Holocaust denial is explicitly or implicitly illegal in 18 countries: ], ], ], the ], ], Germany, ], Israel, ], ], ], the ], ], ], ], ], ], and ].<ref>Lechtholz-Zey, Jacqueline: Laws Banning Holocaust Denial. . Retrieved October 4, 2020.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.jta.org/2014/05/05/global/russia-makes-holocaust-denial-illegal |title=Russia makes Holocaust denial illegal |date=May 5, 2014 |access-date=February 24, 2019 |archive-date=February 25, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190225044746/https://www.jta.org/2014/05/05/global/russia-makes-holocaust-denial-illegal |url-status=live}}</ref> Romania officially denied the Holocaust occurred on its territory up until the ] in 2004.<ref name=bbc-news>{{cite news |title=Romania holds first Holocaust Day |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3736864.stm |access-date=September 24, 2013 |work=] |date=October 12, 2004 |archive-date=October 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181029200156/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3736864.stm |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2997616.stm |title=Romania sparks Holocaust row |work=] |date=June 17, 2003 |access-date=May 22, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928085609/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2997616.stm |archive-date=September 28, 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> The European Union's Framework decision on Racism and ] states that denying or grossly trivializing "crimes of genocide" should be made "punishable in all ]".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/misc/93739.pdf |title=See Luxembourg, April 19, 2007, 8665/07 (Presse 84) |access-date=January 8, 2010 |archive-date=November 11, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111185351/https://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/misc/93739.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
Such legislation remains controversial. In October 2007, a tribunal declared Spain's Holocaust denial law ].<ref>By way of of the ], which ruled the criminalization to be unconstitutional and void.</ref> In 2007 Italy rejected a denial law proposing a prison sentence of up to four years. In 2006 the Netherlands rejected a draft law proposing a maximum sentence of one year on denial of genocidal acts in general, although specifically denying the Holocaust remains a criminal offense there. The United Kingdom has twice rejected ]. Denmark and Sweden have also rejected such legislation.<ref>. By Dan Bilefsky. '']'', April 19, 2007 .</ref> | |||
Such legislation remains controversial. In October 2007, a tribunal declared Spain's genocide denial law ].<ref>By way of {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080215233053/http://www.tribunalconstitucional.es/jurisprudencia/Stc2007/STC2007-5152-2000.html |date=February 15, 2008 }} of the ], which ruled the criminalization to be unconstitutional and void.</ref> In 2007 Italy rejected a denial law proposing a prison sentence of up to four years. In 2006 the Netherlands rejected a draft law proposing a maximum sentence of one year on denial of genocidal acts in general, although specifically denying the Holocaust remains a criminal offense there. The United Kingdom has twice rejected ]. Denmark and Sweden have also rejected such legislation.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/19/world/europe/19iht-eu.4.5359640.html |title=EU adopts measure outlawing Holocaust denial |first=Dan |last=Bilefsky |work=] |date=April 19, 2007 |access-date=February 8, 2017 |archive-date=April 4, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190404010722/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/19/world/europe/19iht-eu.4.5359640.html |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
A number of deniers have been prosecuted under various countries' denial laws. French literature professor ], for example, was convicted and punished under the ] in 1990. Some historians oppose such laws, among them ], an outspoken critic of Faurisson, on the grounds that denial legislation imposes "historical truth as legal truth".<ref>''To live with Faurisson? Any other attitude would imply that we were imposing historical truth as legal truth, which is a dangerous attitude available to other fields of application.'' </ref> Other academics favor ]. Holocaust denial, they contend, is "the worst form of racism and its most respectable version because it pretends to be a research".<ref>François de Smet, Philosopher of the ]: ''Le négationnisme est l’une des pires formes de racisme. Elle en est aussi sa version la plus « respectable », se parant des oripeaux de la science. C’est pour cela qu’il faut continuer à le sanctionner'', in '']'', on April 28, 2006</ref> In the Belgian Senate, the Minister of Justice ] compared laws criminalizing Holocaust denial with those condemning ] in several other countries, such as the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.{{Citation needed|date=September 2010}} | |||
A number of deniers have been prosecuted under various countries' denial laws. French literature professor ], for example, was convicted and punished under the ] in 1990. Some historians oppose such laws, among them ], an outspoken critic of Faurisson, on the grounds that denial legislation imposes "historical truth as legal truth".<ref>{{cite web |quote=To live with Faurisson? Any other attitude would imply that we were imposing historical truth as legal truth, which is a dangerous attitude available to other fields of application. |url=http://www.anti-rev.org/textes/VidalNaquet92a/ |title=Pierre Vidal-Naquet: A Paper Eichmann (1980) – Anatomy of a Lie (10) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190119100310/http://www.anti-rev.org/textes/VidalNaquet92a/ |archive-date=January 19, 2019}}</ref> Other academics favor ]. Holocaust denial, they contend, is "the worst form of racism and its most respectable version because it pretends to be a research".<ref>François de Smet, Philosopher of the ]: ''Le négationnisme est l'une des pires formes de racisme. Elle en est aussi sa version la plus « respectable », se parant des oripeaux de la science. C'est pour cela qu'il faut continuer à le sanctionner'', in '']'', on April 28, 2006</ref> Holocaust historian ] expressed her opposition to laws against expressing Holocaust denial, saying, "I don't think they work. I think they turn whatever is being outlawed into forbidden fruit." She also said that politicians should not be able to decide what can and cannot be said.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Chotiner |first=Isaac |date=January 24, 2019 |url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-new-yorker-interview/looking-at-anti-semitism-on-the-left-and-the-right-an-interview-with-deborah-e-lipstadt |title=Looking at Anti-Semitism on the Left and the Right: An Interview with Deborah E. Lipstadt |magazine=] |access-date=January 28, 2019 |archive-date=July 15, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190715004921/https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-new-yorker-interview/looking-at-anti-semitism-on-the-left-and-the-right-an-interview-with-deborah-e-lipstadt |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
==Focus on Allied war crimes in Holocaust denial literature== | |||
The focus on supposed Allied atrocities during the war has also been a theme in Holocaust denial literature, particularly in countries where outright denial of the Holocaust is illegal.<ref>Stephen E. Atkins, ''Holocaust denial as an international movement'', ABC-CLIO, 2009, pg. 105</ref> According to historian ], the concept of "comparable Allied wrongs" such as the ] and alleged ] like the ],<ref>{{cite web| last = Evans| first = Richard| authorlink = Richard J. Evans| title = Dresden and Holocaust Denial| work=David Irving, Hitler and Holocaust Denial: Electronic Edition| year = 1996| url = http://hdot.org/en/trial/defense/evans/520e.html| accessdate =23 December 2013}}</ref> is at the center of, and a continuously repeated theme of, contemporary ]; phenomenon she calls "immoral equivalencies".<ref>Deborah Lipstadt, ''Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', Bt Bound, 1999, pg. 41</ref> Pierre Vidal-Naquet pointed out the same phenomenon in the earlier version of ''Les Assassins de la mémoire'' under the title ''Auschwitz et le tiers monde'' (''Les Assassins de la mémoire'', Paris, 2005, pp. 170–180), and accurately about the declarations of ]'s lawyer ]. In 1977, ], in a review of ]'s book '']'', maintained that the picture of World War II drawn by Irving was done in a such way to imply moral equivalence between the actions of the Axis and Allied states with both sides equally guilty of terrible crimes, leading to Hitler's "fanatical, destructive will to annihilate" being downgraded to being "no longer an exceptional phenomenon".<ref>Broszat, Martin "Hitler and the Genesis of the 'Final Solution': An Assessment of David Irving's Theses" pages 390–429 from ''Aspects of the Third Reich'' edited by H.W. Koch page 395.</ref> | |||
===David Irving conviction=== | |||
==Other genocide denials== | |||
In February 2006, Irving was convicted in Austria, where Holocaust denial is illegal, for a speech he had made in 1989 in which he denied the existence of gas chambers at Auschwitz.{{R|release}} Irving was aware of the outstanding arrest warrant but chose to go to Austria anyway "to give a lecture to a far-right student fraternity".<ref name="release">{{cite news |title=Holocaust denier to be released |date=December 20, 2006 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/6196073.stm |work=] |access-date=January 13, 2011 |archive-date=July 25, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180725005507/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/6196073.stm |url-status=live}}</ref> Although he pleaded guilty to the charge, Irving said he had been "mistaken", and had changed his opinions on the Holocaust. "I said that then, based on my knowledge at the time, but by 1991 when I came across the Eichmann papers, I wasn't saying that anymore and I wouldn't say that now. The Nazis did murder millions of Jews."<ref name="BBCCenshorship">{{cite news |work=] |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4733820.stm |title=Holocaust Denier is Jailed |date=February 20, 2006 |access-date=February 21, 2006 |archive-date=August 5, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805031758/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4733820.stm |url-status=live}}</ref> Irving served 13 months of a 3-year sentence in an Austrian prison, including the period between his arrest and conviction, and was deported in early 2007.{{R|release}} The episode sparked intense international debate over the limits of freedom of speech. Upon hearing of Irving's sentence, Lipstadt said:<blockquote>I am not happy when censorship wins, and I don't believe in winning battles via censorship.... The way of fighting Holocaust deniers is with history and with truth.{{R|BBCCenshorship}}</blockquote>According to '']'', upon Irving's return to the UK, he "vow to repeat views denying the Holocaust that led to his conviction" stating he felt "no need any longer to show remorse" for his Holocaust views.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/europe/12/21/uk.irving.ap/index.html|title=Holocaust denier: 'No need to show remorse' |work=] |access-date=November 27, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070116221731/http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/europe/12/21/uk.irving.ap/index.html |archive-date=January 16, 2007}}</ref> | |||
==Genocide denials== | |||
{{Main|Genocide denial}} | {{Main|Genocide denial}} | ||
{{denial of mass killings}} | |||
Other acts of genocide have met similar attempts to deny and minimize them. ], formerly of the ] and the founder of ], lists denial as the final stage of a genocide development: "Denial is the eighth stage that always follows a genocide. It is among the surest indicators of further ]s. The perpetrators of genocide dig up the mass graves, burn the bodies, try to cover up the evidence and intimidate the witnesses. They deny that they committed any crimes, and often blame what happened on the victims."<ref>{{cite web |first=Gregory |last=Stanton |url=http://www.genocidewatch.org/aboutgenocide/8stagesofgenocide.html |title=Eight Stages of Genocide Denial |website=] |access-date=June 19, 2013 |archive-date=March 2, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080302002304/http://www.genocidewatch.org/aboutgenocide/8stagesofgenocide.html |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
Holocaust denial is often compared to ] because of similar tactics of misrepresenting evidence, false equivalence, claiming that atrocities were invented by ] and that powerful lobbies manufacture genocide allegations for their own profit, subsuming one-sided systematic extermination into war deaths, and shifting blame from the perpetrators to the victims of genocide. Both forms of ] share the goal of rehabilitating the ideologies which brought genocide about.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bloxham |first1=Donald |author-link=Donald Bloxham |title=The Great Game of Genocide: Imperialism, Nationalism, and the Destruction of the Ottoman Armenians |title-link=The Great Game of Genocide |date=2005 |publisher=] |isbn=978-0-19-922688-7 |language=en |page=208}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=MacDonald |first1=David B. |author-link=David Bruce MacDonald |title=Identity Politics in the Age of Genocide: The Holocaust and Historical Representation |date=2008 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-134-08572-9 |language=en |page=133}}</ref> | |||
Other acts of genocide have met similar attempts to deny and minimize. ], formerly of the US State Department and the founder of Genocide Watch, lists denial as the final stage of a genocide development: "Denial is the eighth stage that always follows a genocide. It is among the surest indicators of further ]s. The perpetrators of genocide dig up the mass graves, burn the bodies, try to cover up the evidence and intimidate the witnesses. They deny that they committed any crimes, and often blame what happened on the victims."<ref>Gregory Stanton, , Genocide Watch</ref> | |||
==Notable Holocaust deniers== | |||
<!-- If you wish to add a name, please discuss it first on the talk page. Names added without consensus will most likely be REMOVED.--> | |||
{{Category see also|Holocaust deniers}} | |||
{{columns-list|colwidth=15em| | |||
*]<ref name = "InternationalList1"/><ref>{{cite news|title=Reacting against Iranian leader’s reported Holocaust denial, Annan points to facts|url=http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=16869|accessdate=2 July 2013|publisher=United Nations News Centre|date=8 December 2005|quote=The Secretary-General was shocked to see the remarks attributed to H.E. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in which he reportedly cast doubt on the truth of the Holocaust....}}</ref> | |||
*] | |||
*]<ref name="guardian.co.uk"/> | |||
*] | |||
*]<ref>Lipstadt, ''Denying the Holocaust'', p. 85.</ref> | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*]<ref>{{cite news|last=Anthony|first=Andrew|title=From prodigy to pariah|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/may/15/bobby-fischer-chess-downfall|accessdate=2 July 2013|newspaper=The Guardian|date=15 May 2011}}</ref> | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*]<ref>{{cite news|title=Neo-Nazi chief denies gas chambers existed|url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/world/neo-nazi-chief-denies-gas-chambers-existed-1.1297376#.UdIf4tigy-0|accessdate=2 July 2013|newspaper=Independent Online|date=May 15, 2012|agency=SAPA}}</ref> | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*]<ref>{{cite news |title=Oud-senator Roeland Raes schuldig aan negationisme |trans_title=Former Senator Roeland Raes guilty of denial |url=http://www.standaard.be/cnt/DMF20100915_031 |newspaper=De Standaard |accessdate=2 July 2013 |author=|date=15 September 2010|language=Dutch}}</ref> | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
}} | |||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
Holocaust: | Holocaust: | ||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | * ] | ||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
Other sources: | Other sources: | ||
* ] | * ] | ||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | * ] | ||
* ] | * ] | ||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
{{clear}} | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
==Notes== | |||
{{Reflist|2}} | |||
==References== | ==References== | ||
===Citations=== | |||
{{refbegin}} | |||
<references> | |||
<ref name="definition">{{cite web |url=https://www.ushmm.org/antisemitism/holocaust-denial-and-distortion |title=Holocaust Denial and Distortion |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230929174928/https://www.ushmm.org/antisemitism/holocaust-denial-and-distortion |archive-date=September 29, 2023 |website=] |access-date=September 28, 2017 |quote=Holocaust denial is an attempt to negate the established facts of the Nazi genocide of European Jewry. Holocaust denial and distortion are forms of antisemitism. They are generally motivated by hatred of Jews and build on the claim that the Holocaust was invented or exaggerated by Jews as part of a plot to advance Jewish interests.}}</ref> | |||
<ref name="often claims">{{cite web |url=http://www1.yadvashem.org/yv/en/holocaust/resource_center/faq.asp |title=How many Jews were murdered in the Holocaust? How do we know? Do we have their names? The Holocaust Resource Center Faqs |website=] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200731203421/https://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/holocaust/resource_center/faq.asp|archive-date=July 31, 2020 |url-status=dead}} See also ] for the death toll.</ref> | |||
<ref name="Key elements">Key elements of Holocaust denial: | |||
*"Before discussing how Holocaust denial constitutes a conspiracy theory, and how the theory is distinctly American, it is important to understand what is meant by the term 'Holocaust denial'. Holocaust deniers, or 'revisionists', as they call themselves, question all three major points of definition of the Nazi Holocaust. First, they contend that, while mass murders of Jews did occur (although they dispute both the intentionality of such murders as well as the supposed deservedness of these killings), there was no official Nazi policy to murder Jews. Second, and perhaps most prominently, they contend that there were no homicidal gas chambers, particularly at Auschwitz-Birkenau, where mainstream historians believe over 1 million Jews were murdered, primarily in gas chambers. And third, Holocaust deniers contend that the death toll of European Jews during World War II was well below 6 million. Deniers float numbers anywhere between 300,000 and 1.5 million, as a general rule." Mathis, Andrew E. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213171733/https://phdn.org/archives/holocaust-history.org/denial/abc-clio/ |date=February 13, 2021 }}, ], July 2, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2006. | |||
*"In part III we directly address the three major foundations upon which Holocaust denial rests, including ... the claim that gas chambers and crematoria were used not for mass extermination but rather for delousing clothing and disposing of people who died of disease and overwork; ... the claim that the six million figure is an exaggeration by an order of magnitude—that about six hundred thousand, not six million, died at the hands of the Nazis; ... the claim that there was no intention on the part of the Nazis to exterminate European Jewry and that the Holocaust was nothing more than the unfortunate by-product of the vicissitudes of war." Michael Shermer and Alex Grobman. ''Denying History: who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and why Do They Say It?'', University of California Press, 2000, {{ISBN|0-520-23469-3}}, p. 3. | |||
*"Holocaust Denial: Claims that the mass extermination of the Jews by the Nazis never happened; that the number of Jewish losses has been greatly exaggerated; that the Holocaust was not systematic nor a result of an official policy; or simply that the Holocaust never took place." {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20050216030123/http://www1.yadvashem.org/about_holocaust/faqs/answers/faq_35.html |date=February 16, 2005 }}, ] website, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2006. | |||
*"Among the untruths routinely promoted are the claims that no gas chambers existed at Auschwitz, that only 600,000 Jews were killed rather than six million, and that Hitler had no murderous intentions toward Jews or other groups persecuted by his government." {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070404130634/http://www.adl.org/hate-patrol/holocaust.asp |date=April 4, 2007 }}, ], 2001. Retrieved June 28, 2007. | |||
*"In general, Holocaust denial consists of four central points: minimization of numbers killed, denial of use of gassing, denial of the systematic nature of the genocide, and claims that the evidence was fabricated, above all after the war." Mark M. Hull, Vera Moynes. ''Masquerade: Treason, the Holocaust, and an Irish Impostor'', ], 2017, p. 181. {{ISBN|978-0-80615836-5}} | |||
*"According to the deniers, the Nazis did not murder six million Jews, the notion of homicidal gas chambers is a myth, and any deaths of Jews that did occur under the Nazis were the result of wartime privations, not of systematic persecution and state-organised mass murder." Deborah Lipstadt. , History, ]. Retrieved June 7, 2018.</ref> | |||
<ref name=Assertions>"The kinds of assertions made in Holocaust-denial material include the following: | |||
*Several hundred thousand rather than approximately six million Jews died during the war. | |||
*Scientific evidence proves that gas chambers could not have been used to kill large numbers of people. | |||
*The Nazi command had a policy of deporting Jews, not exterminating them. | |||
*Some deliberate killings of Jews did occur, but were carried out by the peoples of Eastern Europe rather than the Nazis. | |||
*Jews died in camps of various kinds, but did so as the result of hunger and disease (most died to the unavailability of food due to allied bombings). The Holocaust is a myth created by the Allies for propaganda purposes, and subsequently nurtured by the Jews for their own ends. | |||
*Errors and inconsistencies in survivors' testimonies point to their essential unreliability. | |||
*Alleged documentary evidence of the Holocaust, from photographs of concentration camp victims to Anne Frank's diary, is fabricated. | |||
*The confessions of former Nazis to war crimes were extracted through torture." {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718044959/http://www.jpr.org.uk/Reports/CS_Reports/no_3_2000/index.htm |date=July 18, 2011 }}, JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved December 18, 2006.</ref> | |||
<ref name="terminology">Denial vs. "revisionism": | |||
*"This is the phenomenon of what has come to be known as 'revisionism', 'negationism', or 'Holocaust denial,' whose main characteristic is either an outright rejection of the very veracity of the Nazi genocide of the Jews, or at least a concerted attempt to minimize both its scale and importance.... It is just as crucial, however, to distinguish between the wholly objectionable politics of denial and the fully legitimate scholarly revision of previously accepted conventional interpretations of any historical event, including the Holocaust." ]. ''The Holocaust: Origins, Implementation and Aftermath'', Routledge, pp.11–12. Bartov is John P. Birkelund Distinguished Professor of European History at the Watson Institute, and is regarded as one of the world's leading authorities on ] ( {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081216115629/http://www.watsoninstitute.org/contacts_detail.cfm?id=97 |date=December 16, 2008 }}, The Watson Institute for International Studies). | |||
*"The two leading critical exposés of Holocaust denial in the United States were written by historians ] (1993) and ] and Alex Grobman (2000). These scholars make a distinction between historical revisionism and denial. Revisionism, in their view, entails a refinement of existing knowledge about an historical event, not a denial of the event itself, that comes through the examination of new empirical evidence or a reexamination or reinterpretation of existing evidence. Legitimate historical revisionism acknowledges a 'certain body of irrefutable evidence' or a 'convergence of evidence' that suggest that an event—like the black plague, American slavery, or the Holocaust—did in fact occur (Lipstadt 1993:21; Shermer & Grobman 200:34). Denial, on the other hand, rejects the entire foundation of historical evidence...." Ronald J. Berger. ''Fathoming the Holocaust: A Social Problems Approach'', Aldine Transaction, 2002, {{ISBN|0-202-30670-4}}, p. 154. | |||
*"At this time, in the mid-1970s, the specter of Holocaust Denial (masked as 'revisionism') had begun to raise its head in Australia...." ] "A Little More Understanding: The Experience of a Holocaust Educator in Australia" in Samuel Totten, Steven Leonard Jacobs, Paul R Bartrop. ''Teaching about the Holocaust'', Praeger/Greenwood, 2004, p. xix. {{ISBN|0-275-98232-7}} | |||
*"] urges that denial of the Holocaust should not be called 'revisionism' because 'to deny history is not to revise it'. ''Les Assassins de la Memoire. Un Eichmann de papier et autres essays sur le revisionisme'' (The Assassins of Memory—A Paper-Eichmann and Other Essays on Revisionism) 15 (1987)." Cited in Roth, Stephen J. "Denial of the Holocaust as an Issue of Law" in the ''Israel Yearbook on Human Rights'', Volume 23, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1993, {{ISBN|0-7923-2581-8}}, p. 215. | |||
*"This essay describes, from a methodological perspective, some of the inherent flaws in the 'revisionist' approach to the history of the Holocaust. It is not intended as a polemic, nor does it attempt to ascribe motives. Rather, it seeks to explain the fundamental error in the 'revisionist' approach, as well as why that approach of necessity leaves no other choice. It concludes that 'revisionism' is a misnomer because the facts do not accord with the position it puts forward and, more importantly, its methodology reverses the appropriate approach to historical investigation.... 'Revisionism' is obliged to deviate from the standard methodology of historical pursuit, because it seeks to mold facts to fit a preconceived result; it denies events that have been objectively and empirically proved to have occurred; and because it works backward from the conclusion to the facts, thus necessitating the distortion and manipulation of those facts where they differ from the preordained conclusion (which they almost always do). In short, 'revisionism' denies something that demonstrably happened, through methodological dishonesty." McFee, Gordon. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180629074312/https://phdn.org/archives/holocaust-history.org/revisionism-isnt/ |date=June 29, 2018 }}, ], May 15, 1999. Retrieved December 22, 2006. | |||
*"Holocaust denial can be a particularly insidious form of antisemitism precisely because it often tries to disguise itself as something quite different: as genuine scholarly debate (in the pages, for example, of the innocuous-sounding Journal for Historical Review). Holocaust deniers often refer to themselves as 'revisionists', in an attempt to claim legitimacy for their activities. There are, of course, a great many scholars engaged in historical debates about the Holocaust whose work should not be confused with the output of the Holocaust deniers. Debate continues about such subjects as, for example, the extent and nature of ordinary Germans' involvement in and knowledge of the policy of genocide, and the timing of orders given for the extermination of the Jews. However, the valid endeavour of historical revisionism, which involves the re-interpretation of historical knowledge in the light of newly emerging evidence, is a very different task from that of claiming that the essential facts of the Holocaust, and the evidence for those facts, are fabrications." {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718044959/http://www.jpr.org.uk/Reports/CS_Reports/no_3_2000/index.htm |date=July 18, 2011 }}, JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007. | |||
*"The deniers' selection of the name revisionist to describe themselves is indicative of their basic strategy of deceit and distortion and of their attempt to portray themselves as legitimate historians engaged in the traditional practice of illuminating the past. For historians, in fact, the name revisionism has a resonance that is perfectly legitimate – it recalls the controversial historical school known as World War I 'revisionists', who argued that the Germans were unjustly held responsible for the war and that consequently the Versailles treaty was a politically misguided document based on a ]. Thus the deniers link themselves to a specific historiographic tradition of reevaluating the past. Claiming the mantle of the World War I revisionists and denying they have any objective other than the dissemination of the truth constitute a tactical attempt to acquire an intellectual credibility that would otherwise elude them." ]. ''Denying the Holocaust – The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', Penguin, 1993, {{ISBN|0-452-27274-2}}, p. 25.</ref> | |||
<ref name=Revisionist>Refer to themselves as revisionists: | |||
*"The deniers' selection of the name revisionist to describe themselves is indicative of their basic strategy of deceit and distortion and of their attempt to portray themselves as legitimate historians engaged in the traditional practice of illuminating the past." ]. ''Denying the Holocaust—The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', Penguin, 1993, {{ISBN|0-452-27274-2}}, p. 25. | |||
*"Dressing themselves in pseudo-academic garb, they have adopted the term 'revisionism' in order to mask and legitimate their enterprise." {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604020743/http://www.adl.org/holocaust/theory.asp |date=June 4, 2011 }}, "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", ], 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | |||
*"Holocaust deniers often refer to themselves as 'revisionists', in an attempt to claim legitimacy for their activities. There are, of course, a great many scholars engaged in historical debates about the Holocaust whose work should not be confused with the output of the Holocaust deniers. Debate continues about such subjects as, for example, the extent and nature of ordinary Germans' involvement in and knowledge of the policy of genocide, and the timing of orders given for the extermination of the Jews. However, the valid endeavour of historical revisionism, which involves the re-interpretation of historical knowledge in the light of newly emerging evidence, is a very different task from that of claiming that the essential facts of the Holocaust, and the evidence for those facts, are fabrications." " {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718044959/http://www.jpr.org.uk/Reports/CS_Reports/no_3_2000/index.htm |date=July 18, 2011 }}", JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007.</ref> | |||
<ref name="predetermined">Predetermined conclusion: | |||
*"'Revisionism' is obliged to deviate from the standard methodology of historical pursuit because it seeks to mold facts to fit a preconceived result, it denies events that have been objectively and empirically proved to have occurred, and because it works backward from the conclusion to the facts, thus necessitating the distortion and manipulation of those facts where they differ from the preordained conclusion (which they almost always do). In short, 'revisionism' denies something that demonstrably happened, through methodological dishonesty." McFee, Gordon. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180629074312/https://phdn.org/archives/holocaust-history.org/revisionism-isnt/ |date=June 29, 2018 }}, ], May 15, 1999. Retrieved December 22, 2006. | |||
*Alan L. Berger, "Holocaust Denial: Tempest in a Teapot, or Storm on the Horizon?", in Zev Garber and Richard Libowitz (eds), ''Peace, in Deed: Essays in Honor of Harry James Cargas'', Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1998, p. 154.</ref> | |||
<ref name="hoax">A hoax designed to advance the interests of Jews: | |||
*"The title of App's major work on the Holocaust, ''The Six Million Swindle'', is informative because it implies on its very own the existence of a conspiracy of Jews to perpetrate a hoax against non-Jews for monetary gain." Mathis, Andrew E. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213171733/https://phdn.org/archives/holocaust-history.org/denial/abc-clio/ |date=February 13, 2021 }}, ], July 2, 2004. Retrieved May 16, 2007. | |||
*Another belief of deniers is the death of the millions of Jews was caused by sickness and disease.{{cite web|title=Holocaust Denial and Distortion|url=http://www.ushmm.org/antisemitism/holocaust-denial-and-distortion|publisher=]|access-date=November 6, 2013|archive-date=December 10, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191210022522/https://www.ushmm.org/antisemitism/holocaust-denial-and-distortion|url-status=live}} | |||
*"Jews are thus depicted as manipulative and powerful conspirators who have fabricated myths of their own suffering for their own ends. According to the Holocaust deniers, by forging evidence and mounting a massive propaganda effort, the Jews have established their lies as 'truth' and reaped enormous rewards from doing so: for example, in making financial claims on Germany and acquiring international support for Israel." {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718044959/http://www.jpr.org.uk/Reports/CS_Reports/no_3_2000/index.htm |date=July 18, 2011 }}, JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007. | |||
*"Why, we might ask the deniers, if the Holocaust did not happen would any group concoct such a horrific story? Because, some deniers claim, there was a conspiracy by Zionists to exaggerate the plight of Jews during the war in order to finance the state of Israel through war reparations." Michael Shermer & Alex Grobman. ''Denying History: who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and why Do They Say It?'', University of California Press, 2000, {{ISBN|0-520-23469-3}}, p. 106. | |||
*"Since its inception ... the Institute for Historical Review (IHR), a California-based Holocaust denial organization founded by Willis Carto of Liberty Lobby, has promoted the antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews fabricated tales of their own genocide to manipulate the sympathies of the non-Jewish world." {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628184616/http://www.tau.ac.il/Anti-Semitism/asw2000-1/usa.htm |date=June 28, 2011 }}, ], 2000. Retrieved May 17, 2007. | |||
*"The central assertion for the deniers is that Jews are not victims but victimizers. They 'stole' billions in reparations, destroyed Germany's good name by spreading the 'myth' of the Holocaust, and won international sympathy because of what they claimed had been done to them. In the paramount miscarriage of injustice, they used the world's sympathy to 'displace' another people so that the state of Israel could be established. This contention relating to the establishment of Israel is a linchpin of their argument." ]. ''Denying the Holocaust – The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', Penguin, 1993, {{ISBN|0-452-27274-2}}, p. 27. | |||
*"They picture a vast shadowy conspiracy that controls and manipulates the institutions of education, culture, the media and government in order to disseminate a pernicious mythology. The purpose of this Holocaust mythology, they assert, is the inculcation of a sense of guilt in the white, Western Christian world. Those who can make others feel guilty have power over them and can make them do their bidding. This power is used to advance an international Jewish agenda centered in the Zionist enterprise of the State of Israel." {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604020743/http://www.adl.org/holocaust/theory.asp |date=June 4, 2011 }}, "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", ], 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | |||
*"Deniers argue that the manufactured guilt and shame over a mythological Holocaust led to Western, specifically United States, support for the establishment and sustenance of the Israeli state – a sustenance that costs the American taxpayer over three billion dollars per year. They assert that American taxpayers have been and continue to be swindled...." , "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", ], 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | |||
*"The stress on Holocaust revisionism underscored the new anti-Semitic agenda gaining ground within the Klan movement. Holocaust denial refurbished conspiratorial anti-Semitism. Who else but the Jews had the media power to hoodwink unsuspecting masses with one of the greatest hoaxes in history? And for what motive? To promote the claims of the illegitimate state of Israel by making non-Jews feel guilty, of course." Lawrence N. Powell, ''Troubled Memory: Anne Levy, the Holocaust, and David Duke's Louisiana'', ], 2000, {{ISBN|0-8078-5374-7}}, p. 445</ref> | |||
<ref name="antisemitic">Antisemitic: | |||
*"Contemporary examples of antisemitism in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere could, taking into account the overall context, include ... denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust)." {{cite web |url=http://fra.europa.eu/fraWebsite/material/pub/AS/AS-WorkingDefinition-draft.pdf |title=''Working Definition of Antisemitism'' |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110125001633/http://fra.europa.eu/fraWebsite/material/pub/AS/AS-WorkingDefinition-draft.pdf |archive-date=January 25, 2011 }} {{small|(33.8 KB)}}, ] | |||
*"It would elevate their antisemitic ideology – which is what Holocaust denial is – to the level of responsible historiography – which it is not." ], ''Denying the Holocaust'', {{ISBN|0-14-024157-4}}, p. 11. | |||
*"The denial of the Holocaust is among the most insidious forms of anti-Semitism...." Roth, Stephen J. "Denial of the Holocaust as an Issue of Law" in the ''Israel Yearbook on Human Rights'', Volume 23, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1993, {{ISBN|0-7923-2581-8}}, p. 215. | |||
*"Holocaust denial can be a particularly insidious form of antisemitism precisely because it often tries to disguise itself as something quite different: as genuine scholarly debate (in the pages, for example, of the innocuous-sounding Journal for Historical Review)." " {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718044959/http://www.jpr.org.uk/Reports/CS_Reports/no_3_2000/index.htm |date=July 18, 2011 }}", JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007. | |||
*"This books treats several of the myths that have made antisemitism so lethal.... In addition to these historic myths, we also treat the new, maliciously manufactured myth of Holocaust denial, another groundless belief that is used to stir up Jew-hatred." Schweitzer, Frederick M. & Perry, Marvin. ''Anti-Semitism: myth and hate from antiquity to the present'', Palgrave Macmillan, 2002, {{ISBN|0-312-16561-7}}, p. 3. | |||
*"One predictable strand of Arab Islamic antisemitism is Holocaust denial...." Schweitzer, Frederick M. & Perry, Marvin. ''Anti-Semitism: myth and hate from antiquity to the present'', Palgrave Macmillan, 2002, {{ISBN|0-312-16561-7}}, p. 10. | |||
*"Anti-Semitism, in the form of Holocaust denial, had been experienced by just one teacher when working in a Catholic school with large numbers of Polish and Croatian students." Geoffrey Short, Carole Ann Reed. ''Issues in Holocaust Education'', ], 2004, {{ISBN|0-7546-4211-9}}, p. 71. | |||
*"Indeed, the task of organized antisemitism in the last decade of the century has been the establishment of Holocaust Revisionism – the denial that the Holocaust occurred." Stephen Trombley, "antisemitism", ''The Norton Dictionary of Modern Thought'', ], 1999, {{ISBN|0-393-04696-6}}, p. 40. | |||
*"After the Yom Kippur War an apparent reappearance of antisemitism in France troubled the tranquility of the community; there were several notorious terrorist attacks on synagogues, Holocaust revisionism appeared, and a new antisemitic political right tried to achieve respectability." Howard K. Wettstein, ''Diasporas and Exiles: Varieties of Jewish Identity'', ], 2002, {{ISBN|0-520-22864-2}}, p. 169. | |||
*"Holocaust denial is a convenient polemical substitute for anti-semitism." Igounet, Valérie. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190613014018/https://mondediplo.com/1998/05/08igou |date=June 13, 2019 }}, '']'', May 1998. | |||
*"Holocaust denial is a contemporary form of the classic anti-Semitic doctrine of the evil, manipulative and threatening world Jewish conspiracy." {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604020743/http://www.adl.org/holocaust/theory.asp |date=June 4, 2011 }}, "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", ], 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | |||
*"In a number of countries, in Europe as well as in the United States, the negation or gross minimization of the Nazi genocide of Jews has been the subject of books, essay and articles. Should their authors be protected by freedom of speech? The European answer has been in the negative: such writings are not only a perverse form of anti-semitism but also an aggression against the dead, their families, the survivors and society at large." Roger Errera, "Freedom of speech in Europe", in Georg Nolte, ''European and US Constitutionalism'', ], 2005, {{ISBN|0-521-85401-6}}, pp. 39–40. | |||
*"Particularly popular in Syria is Holocaust denial, another staple of Arab anti-Semitism that is sometimes coupled with overt sympathy for Nazi Germany." ], ''Rethinking the Middle East'', ], 2003, {{ISBN|0-7146-5418-3}}, p. 104. | |||
*"Holocaust denial is a new form of anti-Semitism, but one that hinges on age-old motifs." Dinah Shelton, ''Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity'', Macmillan Reference, 2005, p. 45. | |||
*"The stress on Holocaust revisionism underscored the new anti-Semitic agenda gaining ground within the Klan movement. Holocaust denial refurbished conspiratorial anti-Semitism. Who else but the Jews had the media power to hoodwink unsuspecting masses with one of the greatest hoaxes in history? And for what motive? To promote the claims of the illegitimate state of Israel by making non-Jews feel guilty, of course." Lawrence N. Powell, ''Troubled Memory: Anne Levy, the Holocaust, and David Duke's Louisiana'', ], 2000, {{ISBN|0-8078-5374-7}}, p. 445. | |||
*"Since its inception ... the Institute for Historical Review (IHR), a California-based Holocaust denial organization founded by Willis Carto of Liberty Lobby, has promoted the antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews fabricated tales of their own genocide to manipulate the sympathies of the non-Jewish world." {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628184616/http://www.tau.ac.il/Anti-Semitism/asw2000-1/usa.htm |date=June 28, 2011 }}, ], 2000. Retrieved May 17, 2007. | |||
*"The primary motivation for most deniers is anti-Semitism, and for them the Holocaust is an infuriatingly inconvenient fact of history. After all, the Holocaust has generally been recognized as one of the most terrible crimes that ever took place, and surely the very emblem of evil in the modern age. If that crime was a direct result of anti-Semitism taken to its logical end, then anti-Semitism itself, even when expressed in private conversation, is inevitably discredited among most people. What better way to rehabilitate anti-Semitism, make anti-Semitic arguments seem once again respectable in civilized discourse and even make it acceptable for governments to pursue anti-Semitic policies than by convincing the world that the great crime for which anti-Semitism was blamed simply never happened – indeed, that it was nothing more than a frame-up invented by the Jews, and propagated by them through their control of the media? What better way, in short, to make the world safe again for anti-Semitism than by denying the Holocaust?" Reich, Walter. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230628213512/https://www.nytimes.com/1993/07/11/books/erasing-the-holocaust.html |date=June 28, 2023 }}, '']'', July 11, 1993. | |||
*"There is now a creeping, nasty wave of anti-Semitism ... insinuating itself into our political thought and rhetoric.... The history of the Arab world ... is disfigured ... by a whole series of outmoded and discredited ideas, of which the notion that the Jews never suffered and that the Holocaust is an obfuscatory confection created by the elders of Zion is one that is acquiring too much, far too much, currency." ], "A Desolation, and They Called it Peace" in ''Those who forget the past'', Ron Rosenbaum (ed), ] 2004, p. 518.</ref> | |||
<ref name="conspiracy">Conspiracy theory: | |||
*"While appearing on the surface as a rather arcane pseudo-scholarly challenge to the well-established record of Nazi genocide during the Second World War, Holocaust denial serves as a powerful conspiracy theory uniting otherwise disparate fringe groups...." {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604020743/http://www.adl.org/holocaust/theory.asp |date=June 4, 2011 }}, "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", ], 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007. | |||
*"Before discussing how Holocaust denial constitutes a conspiracy theory, and how the theory is distinctly American, it is important to understand what is meant by the term 'Holocaust denial.'" Mathis, Andrew E. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213171733/https://phdn.org/archives/holocaust-history.org/denial/abc-clio/ |date=February 13, 2021 }}, ], July 2, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2006. | |||
*"Since its inception ... the Institute for Historical Review (IHR), a California-based Holocaust denial organization founded by Willis Carto of Liberty Lobby, has promoted the antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews fabricated tales of their own genocide to manipulate the sympathies of the non-Jewish world." {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628184616/http://www.tau.ac.il/Anti-Semitism/asw2000-1/usa.htm |date=June 28, 2011 }}, ], 2000. Retrieved May 17, 2007.</ref> | |||
<ref name="post-Soviet">{{Cite journal |doi=10.1080/13501674.2012.730732 |quote=In general, post-Soviet Holocaust denial has differed from Holocaust denial in the style of David Irving or Ernst Zündel. In post-Soviet space, the Holocaust has not usually been denied as such and post-Soviet radical right activists did not question the existence of gas chambers in Auschwitz, or the anti-Jewish politics of Nazi Germany. Instead, nationalist post-Soviet discourses denied some of the national or regional elements of the Holocaust, like, for example, the contribution of different nationalist organizations or armies to it, or very frequently the participation of local populations in pogroms and other forms of anti-Jewish violence. |title=Debating, obfuscating and disciplining the Holocaust: Post-Soviet historical discourses on the OUN–UPA and other nationalist movements |journal=East European Jewish Affairs |volume=42 |issue=3 |pages=199–241 |year=2012 |last1=Rossoliński-Liebe |first1=Grzegorz |s2cid=154067506}}</ref> | |||
</references> | |||
===About Holocaust denial=== | |||
{{Reflist}} | |||
*Richard J. Evans, ''In Defense of History'', New York: Norton, 1999. | |||
*Richard J. Evans, ''Lying About Hitler: History, Holocaust, and the David Irving Trial'', Basic Books, 2002 (ISBN 0-465-02153-0). As well as the story of the Irving case, this is an excellent case study on historical research. | |||
*Charles Gray, ''The Irving Judgment'', Penguin, 2000 (ISBN 0-14-029899-1). Actual text of the judgment in the Irving case. | |||
*D. D. Guttenplan, ''The Holocaust on Trial'', Norton 2002 | |||
*Deborah Lipstadt, ''Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory'', Plume (The Penguin Group), 1994. Debunking Holocaust revisionism. | |||
*Donald L. Niewyk, ed. ''The Holocaust: Problems and Perspectives of Interpretation'', ], 1992. | |||
*], ''The Case for Auschwitz: Evidence from the Irving Trial'' (ISBN 0-253-34016-0). | |||
*Michael Shermer and Alex Grobman, '']'' University of California Press (ISBN 0-520-23469-3). | |||
*Michael Shermer, '']'', Freeman, New York 1997 (ISBN 0-8050-7089-3). | |||
*{{cite journal | last1 = Shermer | first1 = Michael | year = 1998 | title = Holocaust Revisionism Update: David Cole Recants/David Irving Says Churchill Knew About Pearl Harbor | url = | journal = Skeptic | volume = 6 | issue = 1| pages = 23–25 }} | |||
*], a documentary by Errol Morris. | |||
*Abbot A., "Holocaust Denial Research Disclaimed", ''Nature'', 368, 1994 | |||
*John C. Zimmerman, ''Holocaust denial: demographics, testimonies, and ideologies'' Lanham, Md., University Press of America, 2000. | |||
*John C. Zimmerman, "Holocaust Denial". ''Los Angeles Times'', January 16, 2000, M4 | |||
*]: "Les carences et incohérences du Rapport Leuchter" ''Jour J., la lettre télégraphique juive'', 12 December 1988. | |||
* | |||
*Jean Claude Pressac, ''Les Crématoires d'Auschwitz: La Machinerie Du Meurtre De Masse'', CNRS editions, Paris, 1993. | |||
*Pierre Vidal-Naquet, "Les assassins de la mémoire", ''Un Eichman de papier'', Postface de Gisèle Sapiro, Nouvelle édition revue et augmentée, La Découverte, Paris, 2005, ISBN 2-7071-4545-9. | |||
*Pierre Vidal-Naquet, "Qui sont les assassins de la mémoire?" in ''Réflexions sur le génocide. Les juifs, la mémoire et le présent'', vol. III. La Découverte 1995. | |||
*Brigitte Bailer-Galanda, Wilhelm Lasek, ''Amoklauf gegen die Wirklichkeit. NS-Verbrechen und revisionistische Geschichtsschreibung''. Wien, 1992. | |||
*George Wellers, "A propos du «Rapport Leuchter» et les chambres à gaz d'Auschwitz", ''Le Monde Juif'', 134, 1989. | |||
*Till Bastian, "Auschwitz und die «Auschwitz-Lüge». Massenmord und Geschichtsfälschung", Beck'sche Reihe München, 1994. | |||
*Francesco Germinario, ''Estranei alla democrazia. Negazionismo e antisemitismo nella destra radicale italiana'' BFS Editore, Pisa, 2001. | |||
*Francesco Rotondi, ''Luna di miele ad Auschwitz. Riflessioni sul negazionismo della Shoah'', Edizioni Scientifiche Italiane, Napoli, 2005. | |||
*Flores M., ''Storia, Verità e Giustizia'', Mondadori, Milano, 2001. | |||
*Valentina Pisanty, ''L'irritante questione delle camere a gas. Logica del negazionismo'', Bompiani, Milano, 1998. | |||
*Ted Gottfried, ''Deniers of the Holocaust: Who They Are, What They Do, Why They Do It'', Brookfield Conn Twenty-First Century Books, 2001. | |||
*Henry Rousso, ''Le dossier Lyon III: le rapport sur le racisme et le négationnisme à l'université Jean-Moulin'', Paris, 2004. | |||
*Nadine Fresco "Les redresseurs de morts. Chambres à gaz: la bonne nouvelle. Comment on révise l'histoire", ''Les Temps Modernes'', 407, June 1980. | |||
*Nadine Fresco, ''The Denial of the Dead On the Faurisson Affair'' 1981. | |||
*Georges Bensoussan "Négationnisme et antisionnisme: récurrences et convergences des discours du rejet", ''Revue d'histoire de la Shoah'', 166, May–August 1999. Centre de documentation juive contemporaine 1999. | |||
*Valérie Igounet, "Dossier «Les terroirs de l'extrême-droite»: Un négationnisme stratégique", ''Le Monde diplomatique'' (May 1998). | |||
*Valérie Igounet, ''Histoire du négationnisme en France'', Paris, Le Seuil, 2000 | |||
*Pierre Bridonneau, ''Oui, il faut parler des négationnistes'', Éditions du Cerf 1997. | |||
*Yehuda Bauer "A Past that Will Not Go Away". in ''The Holocaust and History: The Known, the Unknown, the Disputed, and the Reexamined''. Ed. Michael Berenbaum and Abraham J. Peck. Bloomington: Published in association with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum by Indiana University Press, 1998, pp. 12–22. | |||
*Alan L. Berger, "Holocaust Denial: Tempest in a Teapot, or Storm on the Horizon?" in ''Peace, in Deed: Essays in Honor of Harry James Cargas''. Ed. Zev Garber and Richard Libowitz. Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1998, pp. 31–45. | |||
*Joseph Dan, "Four Ways of Holocaust Denial". in ''Bruch und Kontinuität: Jüdisches Denken in der europäischen Geistesgeschichte''. Ed. Eveline Goodman-Thau and Michael Daxner. Berlin: Akademie Verlag, 1995, pp. 39–46. | |||
*Patrick Finney "Ethics, Historical Relativism and Holocaust Denial." Rethinking History 2 (1998), pp. 359–369. | |||
*Jan Markiewicz, Wojciech Gubala, Jerzy Labedz, "A Study of the Cyanide Compounds Content in the Walls of the Gas Chambers in the Former Auschwitz & Birkenau Concentration Camps", ''Z Zagadnien Sqdowych'', XXX, 1994. | |||
*Wayne Klein, "Truth's Turning: History and the Holocaust". In ''Postmodernism and the Holocaust''. Ed. Alan Milchman and Alan Rosenberg. Amsterdam: Editions Rodopi, 1998, pp. 53–83. | |||
*Jonathan Petropoulos, "Holocaust Denial: A Generational Typology." In ''Lessons and Legacies'' III: ''Memory, Memorialization, and Denial''. Ed. Peter Hayes. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press, 1999. | |||
*Werner Wegner: "Keine Massenvergasungen in Auschwitz? Zur Kritik des Leuchter-Gutachtens", in: ''Die Schatten der Vergangenheit. Impulse zur Historisierung der Vergangenheit'', hg. v. Uwe Backes, Eckhard Jesse und Rainer Zitelmann, Propyläen Verlag, Berlin 1990, S. pp. 450–476 (ISBN 3-549-07407-7). | |||
*{{cite journal|last=Wicken|first=Stephen|title=Views of the Holocaust in Arab Media and Public Discourse|journal=Yale Journal of International Affairs|year=2006|pages=103–15|url=http://yalejournal.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/061209wicken.pdf}} | |||
*Jürgen Zarusky: "Leugnung des Holocaust. Die antisemitische Strategie nach Auschwitz. Bundesprüfstelle für jugendgefährdende Schriften Aktuell – Amtliches Mitteilungsblatt". ''Jahrestagung'' 9./10. Nov. 1999, Marburg. Auch als Internet-Veröffentlichung (pdf-Dokument) erhältlich. | |||
*Martin Finkenberger/Horst Junginger (Hrsg.): ''Im Dienste der Lügen. Herbert Grabert (1901–1978) und seine Verlage''. Aschaffenburg: Alibri-Verl., 2004 (ISBN 3-932710-76-2). | |||
*Thomas Wandres: ''Die Strafbarkeit des Auschwitz-Leugnens''. Berlin 2000 (ISBN 3-428-10055-7). | |||
*{{cite web| title = Holocaust Denial Literature: A Bibliography | accessdate =December 8, 2008 | url = http://york.cuny.edu/~drobnick/holbib1.html }} | |||
*{{cite web| title = Who Denies the Holocaust And Why Do They Deny It? | accessdate =February 9, 2009 | url = http://www.jewishmag.com/115mag/holocaustdeny/holocaustdeny.htm }} | |||
=== |
===Sources=== | ||
* {{cite book |last=Cohen |first=Philip J. |title=Serbia's Secret War: Propaganda and the Deceit of History |publisher=] |location=] |year=1996 |isbn=0-89096-760-1 |url=https://archive.org/details/serbiassecretwar0000cohe |url-access=registration}} | |||
*], '']'', Newport Beach: Institute for Historical Review, 1994 (ISBN 0-9679856-9-2). | |||
* {{cite journal |last=Herwig |first=Holger |title=Clio Deceived |pages=5–44 |journal=International Security |volume=12 |number=2 |date=Fall 1987|doi=10.2307/2538811 |jstor=2538811 }} | |||
*], ''My Life As a Revisionist'', The Journal of Historical Review, volume 9 no. 1 (Spring 1989), p. 5. | |||
* {{cite book |last=Perica |first=Vjekoslav |title=Balkan Idols: Religion and Nationalism in Yugoslav States |publisher=] |year=2002 |isbn=9780195174298}} | |||
*] (Ed.), ''Dissecting the Holocaust: The Growing Critique of 'Truth' and 'Memory''', Alabama: Theses & Dissertations Press, 2000 (ISBN 0-9679856-0-9). "Gauss" is a pseudonym for ], the founder of "Theses & Dissertations Press." | |||
* {{cite book |last=Rees |first=Laurence |author-link=Laurence Rees |title=Auschwitz: The Nazis & The 'Final Solution' |location=London |publisher=BBC Books |date=2005 |isbn=0-563-52117-1}} | |||
*], ''Der Holocaust auf dem Prüfstand'', 1992. | |||
*], '']'', Noontide Press. | |||
===Bibliography=== | |||
*], ''The Great Holocaust Trial'', (June 1985, 2nd Edition) (ISBN 0-939484-22-6). | |||
;About Holocaust denial | |||
*], ], ], '']'', Chicago, Theses & Dissertations Press, 2005 (ISBN 1-59148-015-9). | |||
{{refbegin}} | |||
* is a 1999 documentary film by Errol Morris about execution technician Fred A. Leuchter. | |||
* {{Cite journal |last=Abbot |first=A. |year=1994 |title=Holocaust Denial Research Disclaimed |journal=] |volume=368 |issue=6471 |pages=483 |bibcode=1994Natur.368..483A |doi=10.1038/368483a0 |doi-access=free}} | |||
*], ''The Rudolf Report: Expert Report on Chemical and Technical Aspects of the 'Gas Chambers' of Auschwitz'', Chicago: Theses & Dissertations Press, 2001. | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Algazy |first=Joseph |title=La tentation néo-fasciste en France: de 1944 à 1965 |date=1984 |publisher=Fayard |isbn=978-2213014265}} | |||
* by Mohammad Daoud, ''Syria Times'' September 6, 2000. Retrieved November 8, 2005. | |||
* {{Cite magazine |last=Amarasingam |first=Amarnath |date=July 2007 |title=Who Denies the Holocaust And Why Do They Deny It? |url=http://www.jewishmag.com/115mag/holocaustdeny/holocaustdeny.htm |access-date=February 9, 2009 |magazine=The Jewish Magazine |archive-date=February 22, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090222173647/http://www.jewishmag.com/115mag/holocaustdeny/holocaustdeny.htm |url-status=live}} | |||
* MEMRI Special Dispatch Series no 855, January 28, 2005. Retrieved November 8, 2005. | |||
* {{Cite book |last1=Bailer-Galanda |first1=Brigitte |author-link=Brigitte Bailer-Galanda |title=Amoklauf gegen die Wirklichkeit. NS-Verbrechen und revisionistische Geschichtsschreibung |last2=Lasek |first2=Wilhelm |year=1992 |location=Wien}} | |||
* Reuven Paz, ''Peacewatch'' April 21, 2000. Retrieved November 8, 2005. At ] | |||
* {{Cite journal |last=Barnes |first=Ian R. |date=2002 |title=I am a Fascist Writer: Maurice Bardèche–Ideologist and Defender of French Fascism |journal=The European Legacy |volume=7 |issue=2 |pages=195–209 |doi=10.1080/10848770220119659 |issn=1084-8770 |s2cid=144988319}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Bar-On |first=Tamir |title=Where Have All The Fascists Gone? |date=2016 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9781351873130}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Bastian |first=Till |title=Auschwitz und die «Auschwitz-Lüge». Massenmord und Geschichtsfälschung |publisher=Beck'sche Reihe |year=1994 |location=München}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Bauer |first=Yehuda |title=The Holocaust and History: The Known, the Unknown, the Disputed, and the Reexamined |publisher=Indiana University Press in association with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum |year=1998 |editor-last=Berenbaum |editor-first=Michael |location=Bloomington |pages=12–22 |chapter=A Past that Will Not Go Away |editor-last2=Peck |editor-first2=Abraham J.}} | |||
* {{Cite journal |last=Bensoussan |first=Georges |date=May–August 1999 |title=Négationnisme et antisionnisme: récurrences et convergences des discours du rejet |journal=Revue d'histoire de la Shoah |publisher=Centre de documentation juive contemporaine |volume=166}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Berger |first=Alan L. |title=Peace, in Deed: Essays in Honor of Harry James Cargas |publisher=Scholars Press |year=1998 |editor-last=Garber |editor-first=Zev |location=Atlanta |pages=31–45 |chapter=Holocaust Denial: Tempest in a Teapot, or Storm on the Horizon? |editor-last2=Libowitz |editor-first2=Richard}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Bridonneau |first=Pierre |title=Oui, il faut parler des négationnistes |publisher=Éditions du Cerf |year=1997}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Dan |first=Joseph |title=Bruch und Kontinuität: Jüdisches Denken in der europäischen Geistesgeschichte |publisher=Akademie Verlag |year=1995 |editor-last=Goodman-Thau |editor-first=Eveline |location=Berlin |pages=39–46 |chapter=Four Ways of Holocaust Denial |editor-last2=Daxner |editor-first2=Michael}} | |||
* {{Cite web |last1=Drobnicki |first1=John A. |last2=Goldman |first2=Carol R. |last3=Knight |first3=Trina R. |last4=Thomas |first4=Johanna V. |title=Holocaust Denial Literature: A Bibliography |url=http://york.cuny.edu/~drobnick/holbib1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081220115330/http://york.cuny.edu/~drobnick/holbib1.html |archive-date=December 20, 2008 |access-date=December 8, 2008}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Evans |first=Richard J. |title=In Defense of History |publisher=Norton |year=1999 |location=New York}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Evans |first=Richard J. |title=Lying About Hitler: History, Holocaust, and the David Irving Trial |publisher=Basic Books |year=2002 |isbn=0-465-02153-0}}) {{emdash}} As well as the story of the Irving case, this is an excellent case study on historical research. | |||
* {{cite book |editor-first1=Martin |editor-last1=Finkenberger |editor-first2=Horst |editor-last2=Junginger |title=Im Dienste der Lügen. Herbert Grabert (1901–1978) und seine Verlage |location=Aschaffenburg |publisher=Alibri |year=2004 |isbn=3-932710-76-2}} | |||
* {{Cite journal |last=Finney |first=Patrick |date=1998 |title=Ethics, Historical Relativism and Holocaust Denial |journal=Rethinking History |volume=2 |issue=3 |pages=359–369|doi=10.1080/13642529809408972 }} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Flores |first=M. |title=Storia, Verità e Giustizia |publisher=Mondadori |year=2001 |location=Milano}} | |||
* {{Cite journal |last=Fresco |first=Nadine |date=June 1980 |title=Les redresseurs de morts. Chambres à gaz: la bonne nouvelle. Comment on révise l'histoire |journal=Les Temps Modernes |volume=407}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Fresco |first=Nadine |title=The Denial of the Dead On the Faurisson Affair |year=1981}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Germinario |first=Francesco |title=Estranei alla democrazia. Negazionismo e antisemitismo nella destra radicale italiana |publisher=BFS Editore |year=2001 |location=Pisa}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Gottfried |first=Ted |title=Deniers of the Holocaust: Who They Are, What They Do, Why They Do It |publisher=Twenty-First Century Books |year=2001 |location=Brookfield, CT}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Gray |first=Charles |title=The Irving Judgment |publisher=] |year=2000 |isbn=0-14-029899-1}} {{emdash}} Actual text of the judgment in the Irving case. | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Guttenplan |first=D. D. |title=The Holocaust on Trial |publisher=Norton |year=2002}} | |||
* {{Cite news |last=Igounet |first=Valérie |date=May 1998 |title=Un négationnisme stratégique |url=https://www.monde-diplomatique.fr/1998/05/IGOUNET/3703 |work=Le Monde diplomatique |department=Les terroirs de l'extrême-droite |access-date=March 16, 2024 |archive-date=March 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240316124832/https://www.monde-diplomatique.fr/1998/05/IGOUNET/3703 |url-status=live}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Igounet |first=Valérie |title=Histoire du négationnisme en France |trans-title=History of negationism in France |date=2000 |publisher=Le Seuil |isbn=9782021009538 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w7eGKZxEKNsC |no-pp=y |language=fr |quote= |author-link=Valérie Igounet |access-date=May 27, 2020 |archive-date=July 5, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240705095216/https://books.google.com/books?id=w7eGKZxEKNsC |url-status=live}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Klein |first=Wayne |title=Postmodernism and the Holocaust |date=1998 |publisher=Editions Rodopi |editor-last=Milchman |editor-first=Alan |location=Amsterdam |pages=53–83 |chapter=Truth's Turning: History and the Holocaust |editor-last2=Rosenberg |editor-first2=Alan}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Lipstadt |first=Deborah |title=Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory |publisher=Plume |year=1993}} {{emdash}} Debunking Holocaust revisionism. | |||
* {{Cite journal |last1=Markiewicz |first1=Jan |last2=Gubala |first2=Wojciech |last3=Labedz |first3=Jerzy |year=1994 |title=A Study of the Cyanide Compounds Content in the Walls of the Gas Chambers in the Former Auschwitz & Birkenau Concentration Camps |journal=Z Zagadnien Sądowych |volume=XXX}} | |||
* {{Cite AV media |title=] |year=1999 |id={{IMDb title|qid=Q3327151}} |people=Morris, Errol (director)}} | |||
* {{Cite book |title=The Holocaust: Problems and Perspectives of Interpretation |publisher=] |year=1992 |editor-last=Niewyk |editor-first=Donald L.}} | |||
* {{cite book |first=Jonathan |last=Petropoulos |chapter=Holocaust Denial: A Generational Typology |title=Lessons and Legacies |volume=III: Memory, Memorialization, and Denial |editor-first=Peter |editor-last=Hayes |location=Evanston, IL |publisher=Northwestern University Press |year=1999}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Pisanty |first=Valentina |title=L'irritante questione delle camere a gas. Logica del negazionismo |publisher=Bompiani |year=1998 |location=Milano}} | |||
* {{Cite news |last=Pressac |first=Jean Claude |author-link=Jean Claude Pressac |date=December 12, 1988 |title=Les carences et incohérences du Rapport Leuchter |work=Jour J., la lettre télégraphique juive |lang=fr}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Pressac |first=Jean Claude |title=Les Crématoires d'Auschwitz: La machinerie du meurtre de masse |publisher=CNRS editions |year=1993 |location=Paris |lang=fr}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Rotondi |first=Francesco |title=Luna di miele ad Auschwitz. Riflessioni sul negazionismo della Shoah |publisher=Edizioni Scientifiche Italiane |year=2005 |location=Napoli}} | |||
* {{Cite report |url=https://www.vie-publique.fr/files/rapport/pdf/044000492.pdf |title=Commission sur le racisme et le négationnisme à l'université Jean-Moulin Lyon III : Rapport à Monsieur le Ministre de l'Education nationale |last=Rousso |first=Henry |date=2004-09-01 |location=Paris |access-date=March 16, 2024 |archive-date=March 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240316124830/https://www.vie-publique.fr/files/rapport/pdf/044000492.pdf |url-status=live}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Shermer |first=Michael |title=] |publisher=Freeman |year=1997 |isbn=0-8050-7089-3 |location=New York}} | |||
*{{Cite journal |last=Shermer |first=Michael |year=1998 |title=Holocaust Revisionism Update: David Cole Recants/David Irving Says Churchill Knew About Pearl Harbor |journal=Skeptic |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=23–25}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last1=Shermer |first1=Michael |title=] |last2=Grobman |first2=Alex |publisher=] |year=2002 |isbn=0-520-23469-3}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Van Pelt |first=Robert Jan |author-link=Robert Jan van Pelt |title=The Case for Auschwitz: Evidence from the Irving Trial |date=February 4, 2002 |publisher=Indiana University Press |isbn=0-253-34016-0}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Vidal-Naquet |first=Pierre |title=Réflexions sur le génocide. Les juifs, la mémoire et le présent |publisher=La Découverte |year=1995 |volume=III |chapter=Qui sont les assassins de la mémoire?}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Vidal-Naquet |first=Pierre |title=Un Eichman de papier |publisher=La Découverte |others=Afterword by Gisèle Sapiro |year=2005 |isbn=2-7071-4545-9 |edition=Nouvelle revue et augmentée |location=Paris |chapter=Les assassins de la mémoire}} | |||
* {{cite book |first=Thomas |last=Wandres |title=Die Strafbarkeit des Auschwitz-Leugnens |location=Berlin |year=2000 |isbn=3-428-10055-7}} | |||
* {{cite book |first=Werner |last=Wegner |chapter=Keine Massenvergasungen in Auschwitz? Zur Kritik des Leuchter-Gutachtens |title=Die Schatten der Vergangenheit. Impulse zur Historisierung der Vergangenheit |editor-first1=Uwe |editor-last1=Backes |editor-first2=Eckhard |editor-last2=Jesse |editor-first3=Rainer |editor-last3=Zitelmann |publisher=Propyläen |location=Berlin |year=1990 |pages=450–476 |isbn=3-549-07407-7}} | |||
*{{Cite journal |last=Wellers |first=George |year=1989 |title=A propos du "Rapport Leuchter" et les chambres à gaz d'Auschwitz |journal=Le Monde Juif |volume=134}} | |||
* {{Cite journal |last=Wicken |first=Stephen |year=2006 |title=Views of the Holocaust in Arab Media and Public Discourse |url=http://yalejournal.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/061209wicken.pdf |url-status=dead |journal=] |pages=103–15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921073926/http://yalejournal.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/061209wicken.pdf |archive-date=September 21, 2013 |access-date=February 2, 2014 }} | |||
* {{cite report |first=Jürgen |last=Zarusky |title=Leugnung des Holocaust. Die antisemitische Strategie nach Auschwitz. Bundesprüfstelle für jugendgefährdende Schriften Aktuell – Amtliches Mitteilungsblatt |date=9-10 November 1999 |location=Marburg}} | |||
* {{Cite news |last=Zimmerman |first=John C. |date=January 16, 2000 |title=Holocaust Denial |work=] |page=M4}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Zimmerman |first=John C. |title=Holocaust denial: demographics, testimonies, and ideologies |date=2000 |publisher=] |location=Lanham, MD}} | |||
{{refend}} | |||
;By Holocaust deniers | |||
{{refbegin}} | |||
* {{cite news |url=http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=countries&Area=iran&ID=SP85505 |title=Anti-Semitism and Holocaust Denial in the Iranian Media |series=Special Dispatch Series |volume=855 |date=January 28, 2005 |access-date=November 8, 2005 |publisher=] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060802010555/http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=countries&Area=iran&ID=SP85505 |archive-date=August 2, 2006}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Butz |first=Arthur R. |author-link=Arthur R. Butz |title=] |location=Newport Beach |publisher=Institute for Historical Review |year=1994 |isbn=0-9679856-9-2}} | |||
* {{cite news |url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/syrdenial.html |title=Syrian Holocaust Denial |first=Mohammad |last=Daoud |newspaper=Syria Times |date=September 6, 2000 |access-date=November 8, 2005 |via=] |archive-date=December 17, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161217011440/http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/syrdenial.html |url-status=live}} | |||
* {{cite journal |author-link=Robert Faurisson |last=Faurisson |first=Robert |title=My Life As a Revisionist |journal=The Journal of Historical Review |volume=9 |issue=1 |date=Spring 1989 |page=5}} | |||
* {{cite book |editor-first=Ernst |editor-last=Gauss |title=Dissecting the Holocaust: The Growing Critique of 'Truth' and 'Memory |location=Alabama |publisher=Theses & Dissertations Press |year=2000 |isbn=0-9679856-0-9}} {{emdash}} "Gauss" is a pseudonym for ], the founder of "Theses & Dissertations Press." | |||
* {{cite book |last=Graf |first=Jürgen |author-link=Jürgen Graf |title=Der Holocaust auf dem Prüfstand |year=1992}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Harwood |first=Richard E. |author-link=Richard E. Harwood |title=] |publisher=Noontide Press}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Hoffman, II |first=Michael |author-link=Michael Hoffman II |title=The Great Holocaust Trial |date=June 1985 |edition=2nd |isbn=0-939484-22-6}} | |||
* {{cite book |last1=Leuchter |first1=Fred A. |author1-link=Fred A. Leuchter |last2=Faurisson |first2=Robert |last3=Rudolf |first3=Germar |title=The Leuchter Reports: Critical Edition |location=Chicago |publisher=Theses & Dissertations Press |year=2005 |isbn=1-59148-015-9}} | |||
* {{cite news |last=Paz |first=Reuven |url=http://www.ict.org.il/articles/articledet.cfm?articleid=108 |title=Palestinian Holocaust Denial |work=Peacewatch |date=April 21, 2000 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061023044146/http://www.ict.org.il/articles/articledet.cfm?articleid=108 |access-date=November 8, 2005 |archive-date=October 23, 2006}} | |||
* {{cite book |first=Germar |last=Rudolf |title=The Rudolf Report: Expert Report on Chemical and Technical Aspects of the 'Gas Chambers' of Auschwitz |location=Chicago |publisher=Theses & Dissertations Press |year=2001}} | |||
{{refend}} | {{refend}} | ||
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
{{commons category}} | |||
* an online lecture by Ephraim Kaye of ] | |||
* | |||
*—The World's Oldest Holocaust Memorial Institution | |||
*, By Robert Rozett of ] | |||
* – responses to Holocaust denial | |||
* – The World's Oldest Holocaust Memorial Institution | |||
*—the ] | |||
* – |
* – responses to Holocaust denial | ||
*—the ] | |||
* | |||
* |
* – documents and essays on the Holocaust and its denial | ||
* | |||
*, Documents and resources relating to the David Irving vs. Penguin Books and ] trial | |||
* Published by the ] | |||
* – ] | |||
*, Documents and resources relating to the David Irving vs. Penguin Books and ] trial | |||
* | |||
* | |||
* | |||
* by Prof. Michael J. Bazyler | |||
{{Navboxes | |||
{{Antisemitism topics|state=collapsed}} | |||
|title=Articles and topics related to Holocaust denial | |||
|state=collapsed | |||
|list1={{Antisemitism topics|state=collapsed}} | |||
{{Conspiracy theories}} | {{Conspiracy theories}} | ||
{{Pseudoscience}} | |||
{{Historical revisionism}} | {{Historical revisionism}} | ||
{{Genocide topics}} | {{Genocide topics}} | ||
{{Alt-right footer}} | |||
{{ |
{{White nationalism}} | ||
}} | |||
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2012}} | |||
{{Authority control}} | {{Authority control}} | ||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holocaust Denial}} | |||
] | ] | ||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | ] | ||
] | ] | ||
] | ] |
Latest revision as of 07:31, 3 January 2025
Denial of the genocide of Jews in World War II
Part of a series on | ||||||||||
The Holocaust | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jews on selection ramp at Auschwitz, May 1944 | ||||||||||
Responsibility
|
||||||||||
Early policies | ||||||||||
Victims | ||||||||||
Ghettos
Jewish ghettos in German-occupied Poland |
||||||||||
Camps
|
||||||||||
Atrocities
|
||||||||||
Resistance
|
||||||||||
International responseJoint Declaration by Members of the United Nations |
||||||||||
Aftermath
Reparations Agreement between Israel and the Federal Republic of Germany |
||||||||||
Lists
Deportations of French Jews to death camps |
||||||||||
Resources
The Destruction of the European Jews Functionalism versus intentionalism |
||||||||||
Remembrance | ||||||||||
Denial of the Holocaust is an antisemitic conspiracy theory that asserts that the genocide of Jews by the Nazis is a fabrication or exaggeration. It includes making one or more of the following false claims:
- Nazi Germany's "Final Solution" was aimed only at deporting Jews from the territory of the Third Reich and did not include their extermination.
- Nazi authorities did not use extermination camps and gas chambers for the mass murder of Jews.
- The actual number of Jews murdered is significantly lower than the accepted figure of approximately six million.
- The Holocaust is a hoax perpetrated by the Allies, Jews, or the Soviet Union.
The methodologies of Holocaust deniers are based on a predetermined conclusion that ignores overwhelming historical evidence to the contrary. Scholars use the term denial to describe the views and methodology of Holocaust deniers in order to distinguish them from legitimate historical revisionists, who challenge orthodox interpretations of history using established historical methodologies. Holocaust deniers generally do not accept denial as an appropriate description of their activities and use the euphemism revisionism instead. In some former Eastern Bloc countries, Holocaust deniers do not deny the mass murder of Jews but deny the participation of their own nationals in the Holocaust.
Holocaust denial is considered a serious societal problem in many places where it occurs, and it is illegal in Canada, Israel, and many European countries.
Terminology and etymology
Holocaust deniers prefer to refer to their work as historical revisionism, and object to being referred to as "deniers". Emory University professor Deborah Lipstadt has written that: "The deniers' selection of the name revisionist to describe themselves is indicative of their basic strategy of deceit and distortion and of their attempt to portray themselves as legitimate historians engaged in the traditional practice of illuminating the past." Scholars consider this misleading since the methods of Holocaust denial differ from those of legitimate historical revision. Legitimate historical revisionism is explained in a resolution adopted by the Duke University History Department, November 8, 1991, and reprinted in Duke Chronicle, November 13, 1991, in response to an advertisement produced by Bradley R Smith's Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust:
That historians are constantly engaged in historical revision is certainly correct; however, what historians do is very different from this advertisement. Historical revision of major events ... is not concerned with the actuality of these events; rather, it concerns their historical interpretation – their causes and consequences generally.
Lipstadt writes that modern Holocaust denial draws its inspiration from various sources, including a school of thought which used an established method to question government policies.
In 1992, Donald L. Niewyk gave some examples of how legitimate historical revisionism—the re-examination of accepted history and its updating with newly discovered, more accurate, or less-biased information—may be applied to the study of the Holocaust as new facts emerge to change the historical understanding of it:
With the main features of the Holocaust clearly visible to all but the willfully blind, historians have turned their attention to aspects of the story for which the evidence is incomplete or ambiguous. These are not minor matters by any means, but turn on such issues as Hitler's role in the event, Jewish responses to persecution, and reactions by onlookers both inside and outside Nazi-controlled Europe.
In contrast, the Holocaust denial movement bases its approach on the predetermined idea that the Holocaust, as understood by mainstream historiography, did not occur. Sometimes referred to as "negationism", from the French term négationnisme introduced by Henry Rousso, Holocaust deniers attempt to rewrite history by minimizing, denying, or simply ignoring essential facts. Koenraad Elst writes:
Negationism means the denial of historical crimes against humanity. It is not a reinterpretation of known facts, but the denial of known facts. The term negationism has gained currency as the name of a movement to deny a specific crime against humanity, the Nazi genocide on the Jews in 1941–45, also known as the Holocaust (Greek: complete burning) or the Shoah (Hebrew: disaster). Negationism is mostly identified with the effort at re-writing history in such a way that the fact of the Holocaust is omitted.
In "Secondary Anti-Semitism: From Hard-Core to Soft-Core Denial of the Shoah", Clemens Heni [de] writes:
Contrary to the hard-core version, soft-core denial is often not easily identifiable. Often it is tolerated, or even encouraged and reproduced in the mainstream, not only in Germany. Scholars have only recently begun to unravel this disturbing phenomenon. Manfred Gerstenfeld discusses Holocaust trivialization in an article published in 2008. In Germany in 2007 two scholars, Thorsten Eitz and Georg Stötzel, published a voluminous dictionary of German language and discourse regarding National Socialism and the Holocaust. It includes chapters on Holocaust trivialization and contrived comparisons, such as the infamous "atomic Holocaust", "Babycaust", "Holocaust of abortion", "red Holocaust" or "biological Holocaust".
Background
Denial as a means of genocide
Lawrence Douglas argues that denial was invented by the perpetrators and employed as a means of genocide. For example, trucks of Zyklon B were labeled with Red Cross symbols and victims were told that they would be "resettled". Douglas also cites the Posen speeches as an example of denial while genocide was ongoing, with Himmler referring to the Holocaust as "an unnamed and never to be named page of glory". According to Douglas, the denial of mass murder using gas chambers recalls the Nazi efforts to persuade the victims that they were actually harmless showers.
Efforts to conceal the historical record
German efforts
See also: Sonderaktion 1005While the Second World War was still underway, the Nazis had already formed a contingency plan that if defeat was imminent they would carry out the total destruction of German records. Historians have documented evidence that as Germany's defeat became imminent and Nazi leaders realized they would most likely be captured and brought to trial, great effort was made to destroy all evidence of mass extermination. Heinrich Himmler instructed his camp commandants to destroy records, crematoria, and other signs of mass extermination. As one of many examples, the bodies of the 25,000 mostly Latvian Jews whom Friedrich Jeckeln and the soldiers under his command had shot at Rumbula (near Riga) in late 1941 were dug up and burned in 1943. Similar operations were undertaken at Belzec, Treblinka and other death camps.
French collaboration in archive destruction
In occupied France, the situation with respect to preserving war records was not much better, partly as a result of French state secrecy rules dating back to well before the war aimed at protecting the French government and the state from embarrassing revelations, and partly to avoid culpability. For example, at Liberation, the Prefecture of Police destroyed nearly all of the massive archive of Jewish arrest and deportation.
Efforts to preserve the historical record
During the war
One of the earliest efforts to save historical record of the Holocaust occurred during the war, in France, where Drancy internment camp records were carefully preserved and turned over to the new National Office for Veterans and Victims of War; however, the bureau then held them in secret, refusing to release copies later, even to the Center of Contemporary Jewish Documentation (CDJC).
In 1943, Isaac Schneersohn, anticipating the need for a center to document and preserve the memory of the persecution for historical reasons and also support claims post-war, gathered together 40 representatives from Jewish organizations in Grenoble which was under Italian occupation at the time in order to form a center de documentation. Exposure meant the death penalty, and as a result little actually happened before liberation. Serious work began after the center moved to Paris in late 1944 and was renamed the CDJC.
Immediate post-war period
In 1945, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Allied Commander, anticipated that someday an attempt would be made to recharacterize the documentation of Nazi crimes as propaganda and took steps against it. Eisenhower, upon finding the victims of Nazi concentration camps, ordered all possible photographs to be taken, and for the German people from surrounding villages to be ushered through the camps and made to bury the dead.
Nuremberg trials
The Nuremberg trials took place in Germany after the war in 1945–1946. The stated aim was to dispense justice in retribution for atrocities of the German government. This Allied intention to administer justice post-war was first announced in 1943 in the Declaration on German Atrocities in Occupied Europe and reiterated at the Yalta Conference and at Berlin in 1945. While the intention was not specifically to preserve the historical record of the Holocaust, some of the core documents required to prosecute the cases were provided to them by the CDJC, and much of the huge trove of archives were then transferred to the CDJC after the trials and became the core of future Holocaust historiography.
The Nuremberg trials were important historically, but the events were still very recent, television was in its infancy and not present, and there was little public impact. There were isolated moments of limited public awareness from Hollywood films such as The Diary of Anne Frank (1959) or the 1961 Judgment at Nuremberg which had some newsreel footage of actual scenes from liberated Nazi concentration camps including scenes of piles of naked corpses laid out in rows and bulldozed into large pits, which was considered exceptionally graphic for the time.
Public awareness changed when the Eichmann trial riveted the world's attention fifteen years after Nuremberg.
Trial of Adolf Eichmann
Main article: Eichmann trialIn 1961, the Israeli government captured Adolf Eichmann in Argentina and brought him to Israel to stand trial for war crimes. Chief prosecutor Gideon Hausner's intentions were not only to demonstrate Eichmann's guilt personally but to present material about the entire Holocaust, thus producing a comprehensive record.
The Israeli government arranged for the trial to have prominent media coverage. Many major newspapers from all over the globe sent reporters and published front-page coverage of the story. Israelis had the opportunity to watch live television broadcasts of the proceedings, and videotape was flown daily to the United States for broadcast the following day.
Significant individuals and organizations
See also: Category:Holocaust deniersIn the immediate aftermath of the war, prior to the extensive documentation efforts by the Allied forces, a sense of disbelief caused many to deny the initial reports of the Holocaust. Compounding this disbelief was the memory of forged newspaper accounts of the German Corpse Factory, an anti-German atrocity propaganda campaign during WWI, which was widely known to be false by 1945.
During the 1930s, the Nazi government used this propaganda against the British, claiming allegations of concentration camps were malicious lies put forward by the British government, and historians Joachim Neander and Randal Marlin note that this story "encouraged later disbelief when early reports circulated about the Holocaust under Hitler". Victor Cavendish-Bentinck, chairman of the British Joint Intelligence Committee, noted that these reports were similar to "stories of employment of human corpses during the last war for the manufacture of fat which was a grotesque lie"; likewise, The Christian Century commented that "The parallel between this story and the 'corpse factory' atrocity tale of the First World War is too striking to be overlooked." Neander notes that "There can be no doubt that the reported commercial use of the corpses of the murdered Jews undermined the credibility of the news coming from Poland and delayed action that might have rescued many Jewish lives."
The Neo-Nazi movement has been revitalized by Holocaust denial. Small but vocal numbers of neo-Nazis realized that recreation of a Hitlerite-style regime may be impossible, but a replica might be produced in the future; the rehabilitation of Nazism, they concluded, required the discrediting of the Holocaust. Neo-fascism has likewise relied upon Holocaust denial as a means of rehabilitation.
As a movement, modern Holocaust denial is associated with historical revisionism based on pseudoscientific evidence and fringe academic networks including intradiegetic pseudoscientific journals, conferences, and professional organizations (e.g. Journal of Historical Review, International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust, Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust).
Maurice Bardèche
The first person to openly write after the end of World War II that he doubted the reality of the Holocaust was French journalist Maurice Bardèche in his 1948 book Nuremberg ou la Terre promise ("Nuremberg or the Promised Land"). Viewed as "the father-figure of Holocaust denial", Bardèche introduced in his works many aspects of neo-fascist and Holocaust denial propaganda techniques and ideological structures; his work is deemed influential in regenerating post-war European far-right ideas at a time of identity crisis in the 1950–1960s. His arguments formed the basis of numerous works of Holocaust denial that followed: "testimonies are not reliable, essentially coming from the mouth of Jews and communists", "atrocities committed in camps were the work of deportees ", "disorganization occurred in Nazi camps following the first German defeats", "the high mortality is due to the 'weakening' of prisoners and epidemics", "only lice were gassed in Auschwitz", etc.
Harry Elmer Barnes
Harry Elmer Barnes, at one time a mainstream American historian, assumed a Holocaust-denial stance in his later years. Between World War I and World War II, Barnes was an anti-war writer and a leader of the historical revisionism movement. Starting in 1924, Barnes worked closely with the Centre for the Study of the Causes of the War, a German government-funded think tank whose sole purpose was to disseminate the official government position that Germany was the victim of Allied aggression in 1914 and that the Versailles Treaty was morally invalid. Headed by Major Alfred von Wegerer, a völkisch activist, the organization portrayed itself as a scholarly society, but historians later described it as "a clearinghouse for officially desirable views on the outbreak of the war."
Following World War II, Barnes became convinced that allegations made against Germany and Japan, including the Holocaust, were wartime propaganda that had been used to justify the United States' involvement in World War II. Barnes claimed that there were two false claims made about World War II, namely that Germany started the war in 1939, and the Holocaust, which Barnes claimed did not happen.
In his 1962 pamphlet, Revisionism and Brainwashing, Barnes claimed that there was a "lack of any serious opposition or concerted challenge to the atrocity stories and other modes of defamation of German national character and conduct". Barnes argued that there was "a failure to point out the atrocities of the Allies were more brutal, painful, mortal and numerous than the most extreme allegations made against the Germans". He claimed that in order to justify the "horrors and evils of the Second World War", the Allies made the Nazis the "scapegoat" for their own misdeeds.
Barnes cited the French Holocaust denier Paul Rassinier, whom Barnes called a "distinguished French historian" who had exposed the "exaggerations of the atrocity stories". In a 1964 article, "Zionist Fraud", published in the American Mercury, Barnes wrote: "The courageous author lays the chief blame for misrepresentation on those whom we must call the swindlers of the crematoria, the Israeli politicians who derive billions of marks from nonexistent, mythical and imaginary cadavers, whose numbers have been reckoned in an unusually distorted and dishonest manner." Using Rassinier as his source, Barnes claimed that Germany was the victim of aggression in both 1914 and 1939 and that reports of the Holocaust were propaganda to justify a war of aggression against Germany.
Beginnings of modern denialism
In 1961, a protégé of Barnes, David Hoggan, published Der erzwungene Krieg (The Forced War) in West Germany, which claimed that Germany had been the victim of an Anglo-Polish conspiracy in 1939. Though Der erzwungene Krieg was primarily concerned with the origins of World War II, it also down-played or justified the effects of Nazi antisemitic measures in the pre-1939 period. For example, Hoggan justified the huge one billion Reichsmark fine imposed on the entire Jewish community in Germany after the 1938 Kristallnacht as a reasonable measure to prevent what he called "Jewish profiteering" at the expense of German insurance companies and alleged that no Jews were killed in the Kristallnacht (in fact, 91 German Jews were murdered in the Kristallnacht). Subsequently, Hoggan explicitly denied the Holocaust in 1969 in a book entitled The Myth of the Six Million, which was published by the Noontide Press, a small Los Angeles publisher specializing in antisemitic literature.
In 1964, Paul Rassinier published The Drama of the European Jews. Rassinier was himself a concentration camp survivor (he was held in Buchenwald for having helped French Jews escape the Nazis), and modern-day deniers continue to cite his works as scholarly research that questions the accepted facts of the Holocaust. Critics argued that Rassinier did not cite evidence for his claims and ignored information that contradicted his assertions; he nevertheless remains influential in Holocaust denial circles for being one of the first deniers to propose that a vast Zionist/Allied/Soviet conspiracy faked the Holocaust, a theme that would be picked up in later years by other authors.
Austin App, a La Salle University medieval English literature professor, is considered the first major mainstream American holocaust denier. App defended the Germans and Nazi Germany during World War II. He published numerous articles, letters, and books on Holocaust denial, quickly building a loyal following. App's work inspired the Institute for Historical Review, a California center founded in 1978 whose sole task is the denial of the Holocaust.
The publication of Arthur Butz's The Hoax of the Twentieth Century: The case against the presumed extermination of European Jewry in 1976; and David Irving's Hitler's War in 1977 brought other similarly inclined individuals into the fold. Butz was a tenured associate professor of electrical engineering at Northwestern University. In December 1978 and January 1979, Robert Faurisson, a French professor of literature at the University of Lyon, wrote two letters to Le Monde claiming that the gas chambers used by the Nazis to exterminate the Jews did not exist. A colleague of Faurisson, Jean-Claude Pressac, who initially shared Faurisson's views, later became convinced of the Holocaust's evidence while investigating documents at Auschwitz in 1979. He published his conclusions along with much of the underlying evidence in his 1989 book, Auschwitz: Technique and operation of the gas chambers.
Henry Bienen, the former president of Northwestern University, has described Arthur Butz's view of the Holocaust as an "embarrassment to Northwestern". In 2006, sixty of Butz's colleagues from the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science faculty signed a censure describing Butz's Holocaust denial as "an affront to our humanity and our standards as scholars". The letter also called for Butz to "leave our Department and our University and stop trading on our reputation for academic excellence".
Institute for Historical Review
In 1978 the American far-right activist Willis Carto founded the Institute for Historical Review (IHR), an organization dedicated to publicly challenging the commonly accepted history of the Holocaust. The IHR's founding was inspired by Austin App, a La Salle professor of medieval English literature and considered the first major American holocaust denier. The IHR sought from the beginning to establish itself within the broad tradition of historical revisionism, by soliciting token supporters who were not from a neo-Nazi background such as James J. Martin and Samuel Edward Konkin III, and by promoting the writings of French socialist Paul Rassinier and American anti-war historian Harry Elmer Barnes, in an attempt to show that Holocaust denial had a base of support beyond neo-Nazis. The IHR republished most of Barnes's writings, which had been out of print since his death. While it included articles on other topics and sold books by mainstream historians, the majority of material published and distributed by IHR was devoted to questioning the facts surrounding the Holocaust.
In 1980, the IHR promised a $50,000 reward to anyone who could prove that Jews were gassed at Auschwitz. Mel Mermelstein wrote a letter to the editors of the Los Angeles Times and others including The Jerusalem Post. The IHR wrote back, offering him $50,000 for proof that Jews were, in fact, gassed in the gas chambers at Auschwitz. Mermelstein, in turn, submitted a notarized account of his internment at Auschwitz and how he witnessed Nazi guards ushering his mother and two sisters and others towards (as he learned later) gas chamber number five. Despite this, the IHR refused to pay the reward. Represented by public interest attorney William John Cox, Mermelstein subsequently sued the IHR in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County for breach of contract, anticipatory repudiation, libel, injurious denial of established fact, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and declaratory relief. On October 9, 1981, both parties in the Mermelstein case filed motions for summary judgment in consideration of which Judge Thomas T. Johnson of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County took "judicial notice of the fact that Jews were gassed to death at the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland during the summer of 1944," judicial notice meaning that the court treated the gas chambers as common knowledge, and therefore did not require evidence that the gas chambers existed. On August 5, 1985, Judge Robert A. Wenke entered a judgment based upon the Stipulation for Entry of Judgment agreed upon by the parties on July 22, 1985. The judgment required IHR and other defendants to pay $90,000 to Mermelstein and to issue a letter of apology to "Mr. Mel Mermelstein, a survivor of Auschwitz-Birkenau and Buchenwald, and all other survivors of Auschwitz" for "pain, anguish and suffering" caused to them.
In the "About the IHR" statement on their website, the IHR states, "The IHR does not 'deny' the Holocaust. Indeed, the IHR as such has no 'position' on any specific event...." British historian Richard J. Evans wrote that the Institute's acknowledgment "that a relatively small number of Jews were killed" was a means to draw attention away from its primary beliefs, i.e. that the number of victims was not in the millions and that Jews were not systematically murdered in gas chambers.
James Keegstra
Further information: R. v. KeegstraIn 1984, James Keegstra, a Canadian high-school teacher, was charged under the Canadian Criminal Code for "promoting hatred against an identifiable group by communicating anti-Semitic statements to his students". During class, he would describe Jews as a people of profound evil who had "created the Holocaust to gain sympathy." He also tested his students in exams on his theories and opinion of Jews.
Keegstra was charged under s 281.2(2) of the Criminal Code (now s 319(2)), which provides that "Every one who, by communicating statements, other than in private conversation, wilfully promotes hatred against any identifiable group" commits a criminal offense. He was convicted at trial before the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench. The court rejected the argument, advanced by Keegstra and his lawyer, Doug Christie, that promoting hatred is a constitutionally protected freedom of expression as per s 2(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Keegstra appealed to the Alberta Court of Appeal. That court agreed with Keegstra, and he was acquitted. The Crown then appealed the case to the Supreme Court of Canada, which ruled by a 4–3 majority that promoting hatred could be justifiably restricted under s 1 of the Charter. The Supreme Court restored Keegstra's conviction. He was fired from his teaching position shortly afterward.
Zündel trials
See also: Leuchter reportThe Toronto-based photo retoucher Ernst Zündel operated a small-press called Samisdat Publishers, which published and distributed Holocaust-denial material such as Did Six Million Really Die? by Richard Harwood (a pseudonym of Richard Verrall – a British neo-Nazi). In 1985, he was tried in R. v. Zundel and convicted under a "false news" law and sentenced to 15 months imprisonment by an Ontario court for "disseminating and publishing material denying the Holocaust". The Holocaust historian Raul Hilberg was a witness for the prosecution at the 1985 trial. Zündel's conviction was overturned in an appeal on a legal technicality, leading to a second trial in 1988, in which he was again convicted. The 1988 trial included, as witnesses for the defense, Fred A. Leuchter, David Irving and Robert Faurisson. The pseudo-scientific Leuchter report was presented as a defense document and was published in Canada in 1988 by Zundel's Samisdat Publishers, and in Britain in 1989 by Irving's Focal Point Publishing. In both of his trials, Zündel was defended by Douglas Christie and Barbara Kulaszka. His conviction was overturned in 1992 when the Supreme Court of Canada declared the "false news" law unconstitutional.
Zündel had a website, web-mastered by his wife Ingrid, which publicized his viewpoints. In January 2002, the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal delivered a ruling in a complaint involving his website, in which it was found to be contravening the Canadian Human Rights Act. The court ordered Zündel to cease communicating hate messages. In February 2003, the American INS arrested him in Tennessee, US, on an immigration violations matter, and few days later, Zündel was sent back to Canada, where he tried to gain refugee status. Zündel remained in prison until March 1, 2005, when he was deported to Germany and prosecuted for disseminating hate propaganda. On February 15, 2007, Zündel was convicted on 14 counts of incitement under Germany's Volksverhetzung law, which bans the incitement of hatred against a portion of the population and given the maximum sentence of five years in prison.
Bradley Smith and the CODOH
In 1987, Bradley R. Smith, a former media director of the Institute for Historical Review, founded the Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust (CODOH). In the United States, CODOH has repeatedly attempted to place advertisements questioning whether the Holocaust happened, especially in college campus newspapers.
Bradley Smith took his message to college students—with little success. Smith referred to his tactics as the CODOH campus project. He said, "I don't want to spend time with adults anymore, I want to go to students. They are superficial. They are empty vessels to be filled." "What I wanted to do was I wanted to set forth three or four ideas that students might be interested in, that might cause them to think about things or to have questions about things. And I wanted to make it as simple as possible, and to set it up in a way that could not really be debated." Holocaust deniers have placed "Full page advertisements in college and university newspapers, including those of Brandeis University, Boston College, Pennsylvania State University, and Queens College. Some of these ads arguing that the Holocaust never happened ran without comment; others generated op-ed pieces by professors and students". On September 8, 2009, student newspaper The Harvard Crimson ran a paid ad from Bradley R Smith. It was quickly criticized, and the editor issued an apology, saying publishing the ad was a mistake.
Ernst Nolte
The German philosopher and historian Ernst Nolte, starting in the 1980s, advanced a set of theories, which though not denying the Holocaust appeared to flirt with an Italian Holocaust denier, Carlo Mattogno, as a serious historian. In a letter to the Israeli historian Otto Dov Kulka of December 8, 1986, Nolte criticized the work of the French Holocaust denier Robert Faurisson on the ground that the Holocaust did occur, but went on to argue that Faurisson's work was motivated by what Nolte claimed were the admirable motives of sympathy towards the Palestinians and opposition to Israel. In his 1987 book Der europäische Bürgerkrieg (The European Civil War), Nolte claimed that the intentions of Holocaust deniers are "often honourable", and that some of their claims are "not obviously without foundation". Nolte himself, though he has never denied the occurrence of the Holocaust, has claimed that the Wannsee Conference of 1942 never happened and that the minutes of the conference were post-war forgeries done by "biased" Jewish historians designed to discredit Germany.
The British historian Ian Kershaw has argued that Nolte was operating on the borderlines of Holocaust denial with his implied claim that the "negative myth" of Nazi Germany was created by Jewish historians, his allegations of the domination of Holocaust scholarship by "biased" Jewish historians, and his statements that one should withhold judgment on Holocaust deniers, whom Nolte takes considerable pains to stress are not exclusively Germans or fascists. In Kershaw's opinion, Nolte is attempting to imply that perhaps Holocaust deniers are on to something.
In a 1990 interview, Nolte implied that there was something to the Leuchter report: "If the revisionists and Leuchter among them have made it clear to the public that even 'Auschwitz' must be an object of scientific inquiry and controversy then they should be given credit for this. Even if it finally turned out that the number of victims was even greater and the procedures were even more horrific than has been assumed until now." In his 1993 book Streitpunkte (Points of Contention), Nolte praised the work of Holocaust deniers as superior to "mainstream scholars". Nolte wrote that "radical revisionists have presented research which, if one is familiar with the source material and the critique of the sources, is probably superior to that of the established historians of Germany". In a 1994 interview with Der Spiegel magazine, Nolte stated "I cannot rule out the importance of the investigation of the gas chambers in which they looked for remnants of the ", and that "'Of course, I am against revisionists, but Fred Leuchter's 'study' of the Nazi gas ovens has to be given attention because one has to stay open to 'other' ideas."
The British historian Richard J. Evans in his 1989 book In Hitler's Shadow expressed the view that Nolte's reputation as a scholar was in ruins as a result of these and other controversial statements on his part. The American historian Deborah Lipstadt in a 2003 interview stated:
Historians such as the German Ernst Nolte are, in some ways, even more dangerous than the deniers. Nolte is an anti-Semite of the first order, who attempts to rehabilitate Hitler by saying that he was no worse than Stalin; but he is careful not to deny the Holocaust. Holocaust-deniers make Nolte's life more comfortable. They have, with their radical argumentation, pulled the center a little more to their side. Consequently, a less radical extremist, such as Nolte, finds himself closer to the middle ground, which makes him more dangerous.
Mayer controversy
In 1988, the American historian Arno J. Mayer published a book entitled Why Did the Heavens Not Darken?, which did not explicitly deny the Holocaust, but according to Lucy Dawidowicz lent support to Holocaust denial by stating that most people who died at Auschwitz were the victims of "natural causes" such as disease, not gassing. Dawidowicz argued that Mayer's statements about Auschwitz were "a breathtaking assertion". Holocaust historian Robert Jan van Pelt has written that Mayer's book is as close as a mainstream historian has ever come to supporting Holocaust denial. Holocaust deniers such as David Irving have often cited Mayer's book as one reason for embracing Holocaust denial. Though Mayer has been often condemned for his statement about the reasons for the Auschwitz death toll, his book does not deny the use of gas chambers at Auschwitz, as Holocaust deniers often claim.
Some mainstream Holocaust historians have labeled Mayer a denier. The Israeli historian Yehuda Bauer wrote that Mayer "popularizes the nonsense that the Nazis saw in Marxism and Bolshevism their main enemy, and the Jews unfortunately got caught up in this; when he links the destruction of the Jews to the ups and downs of German warfare in the Soviet Union, in a book that is so cocksure of itself that it does not need a proper scientific apparatus, he is really engaging in a much more subtle form of Holocaust denial".
Defenders of Mayer argue that his statement that "Sources for the study of the gas chambers are at once rare and unreliable" has been taken out of context, particularly by Holocaust deniers. Michael Shermer and Alex Grobman observe that the paragraph from which the statement is taken asserts that the SS destroyed the majority of the documentation relating to the operation of the gas chambers in the death camps, which is why Mayer feels that sources for the operation of the gas chambers are "rare" and "unreliable".
False equivalence and effect
Denialist focus on Allied war crimes
The focus on so-called Allied atrocities during the war has been a theme in Holocaust denial literature, particularly in countries where outright denial of the Holocaust is illegal. According to historian Deborah Lipstadt, the concept of "comparable Allied wrongs", such as the expulsion of Germans after World War II and the bombing of Dresden, is at the center of, and a continuously repeated theme of, contemporary Holocaust denial; she calls the phenomenon "immoral equivalencies". In 1977, historian Martin Broszat, in a review of David Irving's book Hitler's War, maintained that the picture of World War II drawn by Irving was done in a such way to imply moral equivalence between the actions of the Axis and Allied states with both sides equally guilty of terrible crimes, leading to Hitler's "fanatical, destructive will to annihilate" being downgraded to being "no longer an exceptional phenomenon".
Propaganda
According to James Najarian, Holocaust deniers working for the Institute for Historical Review are not trained in history and "put out sham scholarly articles in the mock-academic publication, the Journal of Historical Review". They appeal to "our objectivity, our sense of fair play, and our distrust of figurative language". Thus, they rely on facts to grab the readers' attention. These facts, however, are strung by what Najarian calls "fabricated decorum" and are re-interpreted for their use. For example, they pay particular attention to inconsistencies in numbers.
Holocaust denial propaganda in all forms has been shown to influence the audiences that it reaches. In fact, even the well-educated—that is, college graduates and current university students alike—are susceptible to such propaganda when it is presented before them. This stems from the growing disbelief that audiences feel after being exposed to such information, especially since Holocaust witnesses themselves are decreasing in number. Studies centered on the psychological effects of Holocaust denial propaganda confirm this assertion. Linda M. Yelland and William F. Stone, in particular, show that Denial essays decrease readers' belief in the Holocaust, regardless of their prior Holocaust awareness.
Middle East
General
Gamal Abdel Nasser, the President of Egypt, told a German newspaper in 1964 that "no person, not even the most simple one, takes seriously the lie of the six million Jews that were murdered ."
Denials of the Holocaust have been promoted by various Middle Eastern figures and media. Holocaust denial is sponsored by some Middle Eastern governments, including Iran and Syria. In 2006 Robert Satloff writing in The Washington Post, reported that "A respected Holocaust research institution recently reported that Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia all promote Holocaust denial and protect Holocaust deniers."
Prominent figures from the Middle East have rarely made publicized visits to Auschwitz—Israel's Arab community being the exception. In 2010, Hadash MK Mohammed Barakeh visited, following a previous visit of two other Arab-Israeli lawmakers, and a group of about 100 Arab-Israeli writers and clerics in 2003.
Palestine
See also: Racism in the Palestinian territoriesIndividuals from the Palestinian Authority, Hamas, and a number of Palestinian groups have engaged in various aspects of Holocaust denial.
Hamas have promoted Holocaust denial; Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi held that the Holocaust never occurred, that Zionists were behind the action of Nazis, and that Zionists funded Nazism. A press release by Hamas in April 2000 decried "the so-called Holocaust, which is an alleged and invented story with no basis". In August 2009, Hamas' told UNRWA that it would "refuse" to allow Palestinian children to study the Holocaust, which it called "a lie invented by the Zionists" and referred to Holocaust education as a "war crime". Hamas continued to hold this position in 2011, when the organization's Ministry for Refugee Affairs said that Holocaust education was "intended to poison the minds of our children."
The thesis of the 1982 doctoral dissertation of Mahmoud Abbas, a co-founder of Fatah and president of the Palestinian National Authority, was "The Secret Connection between the Nazis and the Leaders of the Zionist Movement". In his 1983 book The Other Side: the Secret Relationship Between Nazism and Zionism based on the dissertation, Abbas denied that six million Jews had died in the Holocaust; dismissing it as a "myth" and a "fantastic lie". At most, he wrote, 890,000 Jews were murdered by the Germans. Abbas claimed that the number of deaths has been exaggerated for political purposes. "It seems that the interest of the Zionist movement, however, is to inflate this figure so that their gains will be greater. This led them to emphasize this figure in order to gain the solidarity of international public opinion with Zionism. Many scholars have debated the figure of six million and reached stunning conclusions—fixing the number of Jewish victims at only a few hundred thousand."
In his March 2006 interview with Haaretz, Abbas stated, "I wrote in detail about the Holocaust and said I did not want to discuss numbers. I quoted an argument between historians in which various numbers of casualties were mentioned. One wrote there were 12 million victims and another wrote there were 800,000. I have no desire to argue with the figures. The Holocaust was a terrible, unforgivable crime against the Jewish nation, a crime against humanity that cannot be accepted by humankind. The Holocaust was a terrible thing and nobody can claim I denied it." While acknowledging the existence of the Holocaust in 2006 and 2014, Abbas has defended the position that Zionists collaborated with the Nazis to perpetrate it. In 2012, Abbas told Al Mayadeen, a Beirut TV station affiliated with Iran and Hezbollah, that he "challenges anyone who can deny that the Zionist movement had ties with the Nazis before World War II".
Surveys conducted by Sammy Smooha of the University of Haifa found that the fraction of Israeli Arabs denying that millions of Jews were murdered by the Nazis increased from 28% in 2006 to 40% in 2008. Smooha commented:
In Arab eyes disbelief in the very happening of the Shoah is not hate of Jews (embedded in the denial of the Shoah in the West) but rather a form of protest. Arabs not believing in the event of Shoah intend to express strong objection to the portrayal of the Jews as the ultimate victim and to the underrating of the Palestinians as a victim. They deny Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state that the Shoah gives legitimacy to. Arab disbelief in the Shoah is a component of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, unlike the ideological and anti-Semitic denial of the Holocaust and the desire to escape guilt in the West.
Mohammed Dajani, a Palestinian professor of the Al-Quds University took his students to visit the Auschwitz concentration camps in Poland, but was later forced to resign over accusations of "promoting Zionist narrative to gain international support for Israel" from antisemitic administrators. Still, he defended Holocaust education as necessary for peace,
Holocaust denial and distortion are historically incorrect, and factually wrong, and constitute a significant threat to morality and human dignity...
Syria
In a speech delivered at the Arab Socialist Ba'ath party's central committee meeting in December 2023, the Ba'ath party secretary-general Bashar al-Assad claimed that there was "no evidence" of the killings of six million Jews during the Holocaust. Assad alleged that the Holocaust was "politicized" by Allied powers to facilitate the mass-deportation of European Jews to Palestine. Assad also accused the U.S. government of financially and militarily sponsoring the rise of Nazism during the inter-war period. Higlighting the deaths of 26 million Soviet citizens during the Second World War, Assad said: "there was no specific method of torture or killing specific to the Jews. The Nazis used the same methods everywhere."
Iran
Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad frequently denied the Holocaust, formally 'questioning' the reliability of the historical evidence, although he on occasion confirmed belief in it. In a December 2005 speech, Ahmadinejad said that a legend was fabricated and had been promoted to protect Israel. He said:
They have fabricated a legend, under the name of the Massacre of the Jews, and they hold it higher than God himself, religion itself and the prophets themselves.... If somebody in their country questions God, nobody says anything, but if somebody denies the myth of the massacre of Jews, the Zionist loudspeakers and the governments in the pay of Zionism will start to scream.
The remarks immediately provoked international controversy as well as swift condemnation from government officials in Israel, Europe, and the United States. All six political parties in the German parliament signed a joint resolution condemning Ahmadinejad's Holocaust denial. In contrast, Hamas political leader Khaled Mashal described Ahmadinejad's comments as "courageous" and stated, "Muslim people will defend Iran because it voices what they have in their hearts, in particular the Palestinian people." In the United States, the Muslim Public Affairs Council condemned Ahmadinejad's remarks. In 2005, the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood leader, Mohammed Mahdi Akef, denounced what he called "the myth of the Holocaust" in defending Ahmadinejad's denial of the Holocaust.
On December 11, 2006, the Iranian state-sponsored "International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust" began to widespread condemnation. The conference, called for and held at the behest of Ahmadinejad, was widely described as a "Holocaust denial conference" or a "meeting of Holocaust deniers", though Iran denied it was a Holocaust denial conference. A few months before it opened, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi stated: "The Holocaust is not a sacred issue that one can't touch. I have visited the Nazi camps in Eastern Europe. I think it is exaggerated."
In 2013, in an interview with CNN, newly elected Iranian President Hassan Rouhani condemned the Holocaust, stating: "I can tell you that any crime that happens in history against humanity, including the crime the Nazis created towards the Jews as well as non-Jews is reprehensible and condemnable. Whatever criminality they committed against the Jews, we condemn." Iranian media later accused CNN of fabricating Rouhani's comments.
In his official 2013 Nowruz address, Supreme Leader of Iran Grand Ayatollah Ali Khamenei questioned the veracity of the Holocaust, remarking that "The Holocaust is an event whose reality is uncertain and if it has happened, it's uncertain how it has happened." This was consistent with Khamenei's previous comments regarding the Holocaust.
In 2015, the House of Cartoon and the Sarcheshmeh Cultural Complex in Iran organized the Second International Holocaust Cartoon Competition, a competition in which artists were encouraged to submit cartoons on the theme of Holocaust denial. The winner of the contest will receive $12,000. Hamshahri, a popular Iranian newspaper, held a similar contest in 2006.
Turkey
In Turkey, in 1996, the Islamic preacher Adnan Oktar under the pen name of Harun Yahya, distributed thousands of copies of a book which was originally published the previous year, entitled Soykırım Yalanı ("The Genocide Lie", referring to the Holocaust) and mailed unsolicited texts to American and European schools and colleges. The publication of Soykırım Yalanı sparked much public debate. This book claims, "what is presented as Holocaust is the death of some Jews due to the typhus plague during the war and the famine towards the end of the war caused by the defeat of the Germans." In March 1996, a Turkish painter and intellectual, Bedri Baykam, published a strongly worded critique of the book in the Ankara daily newspaper Siyah-Beyaz ("Black and White"). A legal suit for slander was brought against him. During the trial in September, Baykam exposed the real author of the book as Adnan Oktar. The suit was withdrawn in March 1997.
Eastern Europe
General
In some Eastern European countries, such as Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia, and Romania, Holocaust deniers do not deny the very fact of mass murder of Jews but deny some national or regional elements of the Holocaust.
Soviet Union and Russia
According to Zvi Gitelman, Soviet writers tended either to ignore or downplay the Holocaust, treating it as one small part of a larger phenomenon of 20 million dead Soviet citizens during the Great Patriotic War. According to Gitelman, Soviet authorities were concerned about raising the consciousness of Soviet Jews and retarding their assimilation to the greater Soviet population. The Holocaust also raised the issue of collaboration with the Nazi occupiers, an uncomfortable topic for Soviet historiography. According to historian Yuri Pivovarov in modern Russia this trend has returned with the Russian invasion on Ukraine, culminating with July 19, 2023, article of Maria Zakharova who argued that it were the Soviet citizens who were the victims of Holocaust in the first place. In a number of popular history project sponsored by Russian state Jews were mentioned as one of many victim groups, or not mentioned at all. Holocaust denial literature is freely published in Russia, and one of the most prominent authors, Jürgen Graf, lives there since his escape from prosecution in Switzerland in the 2000s.
Ukraine
The post-Soviet radical right activists in Ukraine do not question the existence of Nazi death camps or Jewish ghettos. However, they deny the participation of local population in anti-Jewish pogroms or the contribution of national paramilitary organizations in capture and execution of Jews. Thus, denial of the antisemitic nature and participation in the Holocaust of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army has become a central component of the intellectual history of the Ukrainian diaspora and nationalists.
Croatia
In 2018, the United States Department of State warned about "the glorification of the Ustasha regime and denial of the Holocaust" in Croatia, citing the placement of a plaque with the Ustasha-era salute 'Za dom spremni' on the grounds of a concentration camp memorial site, far-right rallies and the concert of the controversial band Thompson among other events. Efraim Zuroff of the Simon Wiesenthal Center describes Croatia as a "cradle of Holocaust distortion". Holocaust denial in Croatia typically involves the downplaying or denial of the Holocaust carried out by the Ustasha regime, particularly against Serbs and Jews at the Jasenovac concentration camp and it is done by public figures, though the regime's victims also included Roma and anti-fascist Croats. The Society for Research of the Threefold Jasenovac Camp in Croatia, an NGO with authors and academics among its members, claims that Jasenovac was a labor camp during World War II and that it was later used by Yugoslav Communists to imprison Ustasha members and regular Croatian Home Guard army troops until 1948, then alleged Stalinists until 1951. Following a series of book publications denying the Ustashe regime's crimes, the Simon Wiesenthal Center urged Croatian authorities in 2019 to ban such works, noting that they "would immediately be banned in Germany and Austria and rightfully so".
Hungary
In Hungary, Holocaust distortion and denial take place in the form of downplaying the country's role in the killing and deportation of Jews. The Arrow Cross Party committed numerous crimes and killed or deported Jews. A total of 437,000 Jews were deported by Miklós Horthy's government in the Kingdom of Hungary, an Axis collaborator.
Serbia
In Serbia, Holocaust distortion and denial is manifested in the downplaying of Milan Nedić and Dimitrije Ljotić's roles in the extermination of Serbia's Jews in concentration camps in Nedić's Serbia, by a number of Serbian historians. Serb collaborationist armed forces, including the Chetniks, were involved, either directly or indirectly, in the mass killings of mainly Jews and Roma as well as Croats, Muslims and those Serbs who sided with any anti-German resistance. Since the end of the war, Serbian collaboration in the Holocaust has been the subject of historical revisionism by Serbian leaders.
Slovakia
In Slovakia, some anti-communist writers claim that Jozef Tiso was a savior of Jews or that the Slovak State was not responsible for the Holocaust in Slovakia.
Western Europe
France
In France, Holocaust denial became more prominent in the 1990s as négationnisme, though the movement has existed in ultra-left French politics since at least the 1960s, led by figures such as Pierre Guillaume (who was involved in the bookshop La Vieille Taupe during the 1960s). Elements of the extreme far-right in France have begun to build on each other's negationist arguments, which often span beyond the Holocaust to cover a range of antisemitic views, incorporating attempts to tie the Holocaust to the Biblical massacre of the Canaanites, critiques of Zionism, and other material fanning what has been called a "conspiratorial Judeo-phobia" designed to legitimize and "banalize" antisemitism.
Belgium
In Belgium in 2001, Roeland Raes, the ideologue and vice-president of one of the country's largest political parties, the Vlaams Blok, gave an interview on Dutch TV where he cast doubt over the number of Jews murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust. In the same interview, he questioned the scale of the Nazis' use of gas chambers and the authenticity of Anne Frank's diary. In response to the media assault following the interview, Raes was forced to resign his position but vowed to remain active within the party. Three years later, the Vlaams Blok was convicted of racism and chose to disband. Immediately afterwards, it legally reformed under the new name Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) with the same leaders and the same membership.
In September 2024, the Belgian far-right Vlaams Belang party sparked controversy by putting a convicted Holocaust denier as one of its candidates in the upcoming municipal elections.
Germany
The trial of a Canadian woman, Monika Schaefer, and her German-Canadian brother, Alfred Schaefer started in Germany in early July 2018. They were charged with Volksverhetzung (literally 'incitement of the people', often phrased as 'incitement to hatred' in English-language media). The pair had published video clips on YouTube of their denial of the genocide of Jews. In the clips, Alfred Schaefer said that Jews wanted to destroy Germans, blamed them for starting both World Wars, and referred to the Holocaust as a "Jewish fantasy". Monika Schaefer was arrested in January 2018 in Germany while attending a court hearing of Sylvia Stolz. Schaefer had been the Green Party candidate in the Alberta riding of Yellowhead during the federal elections in 2006, 2008, and 2011, but was expelled from the party after news reports surfaced of a July 2016 video where she describes the Holocaust as "the most persistent lie in all of history" and insisted that those in concentration camps had been kept as healthy and as well-fed as possible. In late October 2018, Monika Schaefer was convicted of the charge of 'incitement of hatred'. She was sentenced to ten months while Alfred Schaefer, also convicted, received a sentence of three years and two months.
United Kingdom
In January 2019, a survey conducted by Opinion Matters, on behalf of the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust found that 5% of UK adults did not believe the Holocaust took place and one in 12 (8%) believed its scale has been exaggerated. One in five respondents incorrectly answered that less than 2 million Jews were murdered, and 45% couldn't say how many people were murdered in the Holocaust. Speaking in light of the survey's findings, Karen Pollock, chief executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, said: "One person questioning the truth of the Holocaust is one too many, and so it is up to us to redouble our efforts to ensure future generations know that it did happen and become witnesses to one of the darkest episodes in our history." The BBC Radio 4 programme More or Less, specializing on statistics, investigated the survey finding it was unlikely to be accurate. Participants were incentivized to complete the online survey by shopping vouchers encouraging speedy answering, and the principal question was a "reverse question" with most participants having to give the reverse answer to surrounding questions requiring careful answering. Another question asked how many Jewish people had been murdered in the holocaust with only 0.2% of participants giving the answer zero, which was considered to be a closer estimate of the number of UK adults that did not believe the Holocaust took place.
Other
Japan
Japanese Holocaust denial first appeared in 1989 and reached its peak in 1995 with the publication in February 1995 by the Japanese magazine Marco Polo [ja], a 250,000-circulation monthly published by Bungei Shunju, of a Holocaust denial article by physician Masanori Nishioka which stated: "The 'Holocaust' is a fabrication. There were no execution gas chambers in Auschwitz or in any other concentration camp. Today, what is displayed as 'gas chambers' at the remains of the Auschwitz camp in Poland are a post-war fabrication by the Polish communist regime or by the Soviet Union, which controlled the country. Not once, neither at Auschwitz nor in any territory controlled by the Germans during the Second World War, was there 'mass murder of Jews' in 'gas chambers." The Los Angeles-based Simon Wiesenthal Center instigated a boycott of Bungei Shunju advertisers, including Volkswagen, Mitsubishi, and Cartier. Within days, Bungei Shunju shut down Marco Polo and its editor, Kazuyoshi Hanada, quit, as did the president of Bungei Shunju, Kengo Tanaka.
Finland
Holocaust denial started in Finland almost immediately after the war, with many Finns who had been involved in the far-right and Nazi movements publishing articles questioning the Holocaust. Prominent early Finnish Holocaust deniers include professor C. A. J. Gadolin, CEO Carl-Gustaf Herlitz, architech Carl O. Nordling and ambassador Teo Snellman. Pekka Siitoin's Nazi group started distributing a Finnish translation of Richard Harwood’s Did Six Million Really Die? in 1976.
In 2013, the Simon Wiesenthal Centre asked President Niinistö to condemn a neo-Nazi newspaper circulated to some 660,000 households. The newspaper published articles denying the Holocaust and articles such as "Zionist terrorism" and "CNN, Goldman Sachs and Zionist Control" translated from David Duke. Popular Finnish alternative media sites MV-media, Verkkomedia and Magneettimedia are known for publishing articles denying the Holocaust. Prominent modern Finnish Holocaust deniers include the owner of KauppaSuomi newspaper and department store tycoon Juha Kärkkäinen. Members of the Nordic Resistance Movement have also distributed material denying the Holocaust.
American youth
According to a 2020 survey of American adult Millennials and Generation Z members, 24% said the Holocaust might be a myth or had been exaggerated.
Reactions to Holocaust denial
In 2022, the United Nations adopted a resolution aimed at combating Holocaust denial and antisemitism. The resolution was proposed by Germany and Israel.
Scholars
See also: Irving v Penguin Books and LipstadtScholarly response to Holocaust denial can be roughly divided into three categories. Some academics refuse to engage Holocaust deniers or their arguments at all, on grounds that doing so lends them unwarranted legitimacy. The second group of scholars, typified by the American historian Deborah Lipstadt, have tried to raise awareness of the methods and motivations of Holocaust denial without legitimizing the deniers themselves. "We need not waste time or effort answering the deniers' contentions," Lipstadt wrote. "It would be never-ending.... Their commitment is to an ideology and their 'findings' are shaped to support it." A third group, typified by the Nizkor Project, responds to arguments and claims made by Holocaust denial groups by pointing out inaccuracies and errors in their evidence.
In December 1991 the American Historical Association, the oldest and largest society of historians and teachers of history in the United States, issued the following statement: "The American Historical Association Council strongly deplores the publicly reported attempts to deny the fact of the Holocaust. No serious historian questions that the Holocaust took place." This followed a strong reaction by many of its members and commentary in the press against a near-unanimous decision that the AHA had made in May 1991 that studying the significance of the Holocaust should be encouraged. The association's May 1991 statement was in response to an incident where certain of its members had questioned the reality of the Holocaust. The December 1991 declaration is a reversal of the AHA's earlier stance that the association should not set a precedent by certifying historical facts. The AHA has also stated that Holocaust denial is "at best, a form of academic fraud".
Literary theorist Jean Baudrillard described Holocaust denial as "part of the extermination itself". Holocaust survivor and Nobel Prize winner Elie Wiesel, during a 1999 discussion at the White House in Washington, D.C., called the Holocaust "the most documented tragedy in recorded history. Never before has a tragedy elicited so much witness from the killers, from the victims and even from the bystanders—millions of pieces here in the museum what you have, all other museums, archives in the thousands, in the millions."
Deborah Lipstadt's 1993 book, Denying the Holocaust, sharply criticized various Holocaust deniers, including British author David Irving, for deliberately misrepresenting evidence to justify their preconceived conclusions. In the book, Lipstadt named Irving as "one of the more dangerous" Holocaust deniers, because he was a published author, and was viewed by some as a legitimate military historian. He was "familiar with historical evidence", she wrote, and "bends it until it conforms with his ideological leanings and political agenda". In 1996, Irving filed a libel suit against Lipstadt and her publisher, Penguin Books. Irving, who appeared as a defense witness in Ernst Zündel's trial in Canada, and once declared at a rally of Holocaust deniers that "more women died in the back seat of Edward Kennedy's car than ever died in a gas chamber at Auschwitz", claimed that Lipstadt's allegation damaged his reputation. American historian Christopher Browning, an expert witness for the defense, wrote a comprehensive essay for the court summarizing the voluminous evidence for the reality of the Holocaust, and under cross-examination, effectively countered all of Irving's principal arguments to the contrary. Cambridge historian Richard J. Evans, another defense expert witness, spent two years examining Irving's writings and confirmed his misrepresentations, including evidence that he had knowingly used forged documents as source material. After a two-month trial in London the trial judge, Justice Charles Gray, issued a 333-page ruling against Irving, which referred to him as a "Holocaust denier" and "right-wing pro-Nazi polemicist".
Ken McVay, an American resident in Canada, was disturbed by the efforts of organizations like the Simon Wiesenthal Center to suppress the speech of the Holocaust deniers, feeling that it was better to confront them openly than to try to censor them. On the Usenet newsgroup alt.revisionism he began a campaign of "truth, fact, and evidence", working with other participants on the newsgroup to uncover factual information about the Holocaust and counter the arguments of the deniers by proving them to be based upon misleading evidence, false statements, and outright lies. He founded the Nizkor Project to expose the activities of the Holocaust deniers, who responded to McVay with personal attacks, slander, and death threats.
Public figures
A number of public figures have spoken out against Holocaust denial. In 2006, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said: "Remembering is a necessary rebuke to those who say the Holocaust never happened or has been exaggerated. Holocaust denial is the work of bigots; we must reject their false claims whenever, wherever and by whomever they are made." In January 2007, the United Nations General Assembly condemned "without reservation any denial of the Holocaust", though Iran disassociated itself from the resolution.
In July 2013, Iran's then president-elect Hassan Rohani described Ahmadinejad's remarks about the Holocaust and Israel as "hate rhetoric" and in September 2013 Rohani stated that "The Nazis carried out a massacre that cannot be denied, especially against the Jewish people" and "The massacre by the Nazis was condemnable. We never want to sit by side with the Nazis...They committed a crime against Jews — which is a crime against ... all of humanity." While declining to give a specific number of Jewish victims, Iranian analysts suggested that "Rouhani pushed the envelope as far as it could go ... without infuriating the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and other conservatives back home."
Former Auschwitz SS personnel
Critics of Holocaust denial also include members of the Auschwitz SS. Camp physician and SS-Untersturmführer Hans Münch considered the facts of Auschwitz "so firmly determined that one cannot have any doubt at all", and described those who negate what happened at the camp as "malevolent" people who have "personal interest to want to bury in silence things that cannot be buried in silence". Zyklon B handler and SS-Oberscharführer Josef Klehr said that anyone who maintains that nobody was gassed at Auschwitz must be "crazy or in the wrong". SS-Unterscharführer Oswald Kaduk stated that he did not consider those who maintain such a thing as normal people. Hearing about Holocaust denial compelled former SS-Rottenführer Oskar Gröning to publicly speak about what he witnessed at Auschwitz, and denounce Holocaust deniers, stating:
I would like you to believe me. I saw the gas chambers. I saw the crematoria. I saw the open fires. I was on the ramp when the selections took place. I would like you to believe that these atrocities happened because I was there.
Holocaust denial and antisemitism
Holocaust denial is given as an example of antisemitism in the Working Definition of Antisemitism, adopted by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance as well as the United Kingdom, Israel, Austria, Scotland, Romania, Germany and Bulgaria. The European Parliament voted in favor of a resolution calling for member states to adopt the definition on June 1, 2017.
The Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity defines Holocaust denial as "a new form of anti-Semitism, but one that hinges on age-old motifs". The Anti-Defamation League has stated that "Holocaust denial is a contemporary form of the classic anti-Semitic doctrine of the evil, manipulative and threatening world Jewish conspiracy" and French historian Valérie Igounet has written that "Holocaust denial is a convenient polemical substitute for anti-semitism."
According to Walter Reich, psychiatrist and then a senior scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, one-time director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and now professor of international affairs at George Washington University:
The primary motivation for most deniers is anti-Semitism, and for them the Holocaust is an infuriatingly inconvenient fact of history. After all, the Holocaust has generally been recognized as one of the most terrible crimes that ever took place, and surely the very emblem of evil in the modern age. If that crime was a direct result of anti-Semitism taken to its logical end, then anti-Semitism itself, even when expressed in private conversation, is inevitably discredited among most people. What better way to rehabilitate anti-Semitism, make anti-Semitic arguments seem once again respectable in civilized discourse and even make it acceptable for governments to pursue anti-Semitic policies than by convincing the world that the great crime for which anti-Semitism was blamed simply never happened—indeed, that it was nothing more than a frame-up invented by the Jews, and propagated by them through their control of the media? What better way, in short, to make the world safe again for anti-Semitism than by denying the Holocaust?
The French historian Pierre Vidal-Naquet described the motivation of deniers more succinctly, explaining, "One revives the dead in order the better to strike the living." German political scientist Matthias Küntzel has argued, "Every denial of the Holocaust... contains an appeal to repeat it."
Examination of claims
Main article: Evidence and documentation for the HolocaustThe key claims which cause Holocaust denial to differ from established fact are:
- The Nazis had no official policy or intention of exterminating Jews.
- The Nazis did not use gas chambers to mass murder Jews.
- The figure of 5 to 6 million Jewish deaths is a gross exaggeration, and the actual number is an order of magnitude lower.
Other claims include the following:
- Stories of the Holocaust were a myth initially created by the Allies of World War II to demonize Germans, Jews having spread this myth as part of a grander plot intended to enable the creation of a Jewish homeland in Palestine, and now to garner continuing support for the state of Israel.
- Documentary evidence of the Holocaust, from photographs to The Diary of Anne Frank, is fabricated.
- Survivor testimonies are filled with errors and inconsistencies and are thus unreliable.
- Interrogators obtained Nazi prisoners' confessions of war crimes through the use of torture.
- The Nazi treatment of Jews was no different from what the Allies did to their enemies in World War II.
Holocaust denial is widely viewed as failing to adhere to principles for the treatment of evidence that mainstream historians (as well as scholars in other fields) regard as basic to rational inquiry.
The Holocaust was well documented by the bureaucracy of the Nazi government itself. It was further witnessed by the Allied forces who entered Germany and its associated Axis states towards the end of World War II. It was also witnessed from the inside by non-Jewish captives such as Catholic French Resistance member André Rogerie who wrote extensively and testified about his experiences in seven camps including Auschwitz-Birkenau and also produced the oldest contemporary sketch of a camp crematorium.
According to researchers Michael Shermer and Alex Grobman, there is a "convergence of evidence" that proves that the Holocaust happened. This evidence includes:
- Written documents—hundreds of thousands of letters, memos, blueprints, orders, bills, speeches, articles, memoirs, and confessions.
- Eyewitness testimony—accounts from survivors, Jewish Sonderkommandos (who helped load bodies from the gas chambers into the crematoria in exchange for a chance of survival), SS guards, commandants, local townspeople, and even high-ranking Nazis who spoke openly about the mass murder of the Jews.
- Photographs—including official military and press photographs, civilian photographs, secret photographs taken by survivors, aerial photographs, German and Allied film footage, and unofficial photographs taken by the German military.
- The camps themselves—concentration camps, work camps, and extermination camps that still exist in varying degrees of originality and reconstruction.
- Inferential evidence or argument from silence—population demographics, reconstructed from the pre–World War II era; if six million Jews were not murdered, what happened to them?
Much of the controversy surrounding the claims of Holocaust deniers' centers on the methods used to present arguments that the Holocaust allegedly never happened as commonly accepted. Numerous accounts have been given by Holocaust deniers (including evidence presented in court cases) of claimed facts and evidence; however, independent research has shown these claims to be based upon flawed research, biassed statements, or even deliberately falsified evidence. Opponents of Holocaust denial have documented numerous instances in which such evidence was altered or manufactured (see Nizkor Project and David Irving). According to Pierre Vidal-Naquet, "in our society of image and spectacle, extermination on paper leads to extermination in reality."
Laws against Holocaust denial
Main article: Legality of Holocaust denialHolocaust denial is explicitly or implicitly illegal in 18 countries: Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, and Switzerland. Romania officially denied the Holocaust occurred on its territory up until the Wiesel Commission in 2004. The European Union's Framework decision on Racism and Xenophobia states that denying or grossly trivializing "crimes of genocide" should be made "punishable in all EU Member States".
Such legislation remains controversial. In October 2007, a tribunal declared Spain's genocide denial law unconstitutional. In 2007 Italy rejected a denial law proposing a prison sentence of up to four years. In 2006 the Netherlands rejected a draft law proposing a maximum sentence of one year on denial of genocidal acts in general, although specifically denying the Holocaust remains a criminal offense there. The United Kingdom has twice rejected Holocaust denial laws. Denmark and Sweden have also rejected such legislation.
A number of deniers have been prosecuted under various countries' denial laws. French literature professor Robert Faurisson, for example, was convicted and punished under the Gayssot Act in 1990. Some historians oppose such laws, among them Pierre Vidal-Naquet, an outspoken critic of Faurisson, on the grounds that denial legislation imposes "historical truth as legal truth". Other academics favor criminalization. Holocaust denial, they contend, is "the worst form of racism and its most respectable version because it pretends to be a research". Holocaust historian Deborah E. Lipstadt expressed her opposition to laws against expressing Holocaust denial, saying, "I don't think they work. I think they turn whatever is being outlawed into forbidden fruit." She also said that politicians should not be able to decide what can and cannot be said.
David Irving conviction
In February 2006, Irving was convicted in Austria, where Holocaust denial is illegal, for a speech he had made in 1989 in which he denied the existence of gas chambers at Auschwitz. Irving was aware of the outstanding arrest warrant but chose to go to Austria anyway "to give a lecture to a far-right student fraternity". Although he pleaded guilty to the charge, Irving said he had been "mistaken", and had changed his opinions on the Holocaust. "I said that then, based on my knowledge at the time, but by 1991 when I came across the Eichmann papers, I wasn't saying that anymore and I wouldn't say that now. The Nazis did murder millions of Jews." Irving served 13 months of a 3-year sentence in an Austrian prison, including the period between his arrest and conviction, and was deported in early 2007. The episode sparked intense international debate over the limits of freedom of speech. Upon hearing of Irving's sentence, Lipstadt said:
I am not happy when censorship wins, and I don't believe in winning battles via censorship.... The way of fighting Holocaust deniers is with history and with truth.
According to CNN, upon Irving's return to the UK, he "vow to repeat views denying the Holocaust that led to his conviction" stating he felt "no need any longer to show remorse" for his Holocaust views.
Genocide denials
Main article: Genocide denialPart of a series on |
Denial of mass killings |
---|
Instances of denial |
|
Scholarly controversy over mass killings |
Related topics |
Other acts of genocide have met similar attempts to deny and minimize them. Gregory H. Stanton, formerly of the US State Department and the founder of Genocide Watch, lists denial as the final stage of a genocide development: "Denial is the eighth stage that always follows a genocide. It is among the surest indicators of further genocidal massacres. The perpetrators of genocide dig up the mass graves, burn the bodies, try to cover up the evidence and intimidate the witnesses. They deny that they committed any crimes, and often blame what happened on the victims."
Holocaust denial is often compared to Armenian genocide denial because of similar tactics of misrepresenting evidence, false equivalence, claiming that atrocities were invented by war propaganda and that powerful lobbies manufacture genocide allegations for their own profit, subsuming one-sided systematic extermination into war deaths, and shifting blame from the perpetrators to the victims of genocide. Both forms of negationism share the goal of rehabilitating the ideologies which brought genocide about.
See also
Holocaust:
Other sources:
References
Citations
- Antisemitic:
- "Contemporary examples of antisemitism in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere could, taking into account the overall context, include ... denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust)." "Working Definition of Antisemitism" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on January 25, 2011. (33.8 KB), European Fundamental Rights Agency
- "It would elevate their antisemitic ideology – which is what Holocaust denial is – to the level of responsible historiography – which it is not." Deborah Lipstadt, Denying the Holocaust, ISBN 0-14-024157-4, p. 11.
- "The denial of the Holocaust is among the most insidious forms of anti-Semitism...." Roth, Stephen J. "Denial of the Holocaust as an Issue of Law" in the Israel Yearbook on Human Rights, Volume 23, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1993, ISBN 0-7923-2581-8, p. 215.
- "Holocaust denial can be a particularly insidious form of antisemitism precisely because it often tries to disguise itself as something quite different: as genuine scholarly debate (in the pages, for example, of the innocuous-sounding Journal for Historical Review)." "The nature of Holocaust denial: What is Holocaust denial? Archived July 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine", JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007.
- "This books treats several of the myths that have made antisemitism so lethal.... In addition to these historic myths, we also treat the new, maliciously manufactured myth of Holocaust denial, another groundless belief that is used to stir up Jew-hatred." Schweitzer, Frederick M. & Perry, Marvin. Anti-Semitism: myth and hate from antiquity to the present, Palgrave Macmillan, 2002, ISBN 0-312-16561-7, p. 3.
- "One predictable strand of Arab Islamic antisemitism is Holocaust denial...." Schweitzer, Frederick M. & Perry, Marvin. Anti-Semitism: myth and hate from antiquity to the present, Palgrave Macmillan, 2002, ISBN 0-312-16561-7, p. 10.
- "Anti-Semitism, in the form of Holocaust denial, had been experienced by just one teacher when working in a Catholic school with large numbers of Polish and Croatian students." Geoffrey Short, Carole Ann Reed. Issues in Holocaust Education, Ashgate Publishing, 2004, ISBN 0-7546-4211-9, p. 71.
- "Indeed, the task of organized antisemitism in the last decade of the century has been the establishment of Holocaust Revisionism – the denial that the Holocaust occurred." Stephen Trombley, "antisemitism", The Norton Dictionary of Modern Thought, W. W. Norton & Company, 1999, ISBN 0-393-04696-6, p. 40.
- "After the Yom Kippur War an apparent reappearance of antisemitism in France troubled the tranquility of the community; there were several notorious terrorist attacks on synagogues, Holocaust revisionism appeared, and a new antisemitic political right tried to achieve respectability." Howard K. Wettstein, Diasporas and Exiles: Varieties of Jewish Identity, University of California Press, 2002, ISBN 0-520-22864-2, p. 169.
- "Holocaust denial is a convenient polemical substitute for anti-semitism." Igounet, Valérie. "Holocaust denial is part of a strategy" Archived June 13, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, Le Monde diplomatique, May 1998.
- "Holocaust denial is a contemporary form of the classic anti-Semitic doctrine of the evil, manipulative and threatening world Jewish conspiracy." Introduction: Denial as Anti-Semitism Archived June 4, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", Anti-Defamation League, 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007.
- "In a number of countries, in Europe as well as in the United States, the negation or gross minimization of the Nazi genocide of Jews has been the subject of books, essay and articles. Should their authors be protected by freedom of speech? The European answer has been in the negative: such writings are not only a perverse form of anti-semitism but also an aggression against the dead, their families, the survivors and society at large." Roger Errera, "Freedom of speech in Europe", in Georg Nolte, European and US Constitutionalism, Cambridge University Press, 2005, ISBN 0-521-85401-6, pp. 39–40.
- "Particularly popular in Syria is Holocaust denial, another staple of Arab anti-Semitism that is sometimes coupled with overt sympathy for Nazi Germany." Efraim Karsh, Rethinking the Middle East, Routledge, 2003, ISBN 0-7146-5418-3, p. 104.
- "Holocaust denial is a new form of anti-Semitism, but one that hinges on age-old motifs." Dinah Shelton, Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity, Macmillan Reference, 2005, p. 45.
- "The stress on Holocaust revisionism underscored the new anti-Semitic agenda gaining ground within the Klan movement. Holocaust denial refurbished conspiratorial anti-Semitism. Who else but the Jews had the media power to hoodwink unsuspecting masses with one of the greatest hoaxes in history? And for what motive? To promote the claims of the illegitimate state of Israel by making non-Jews feel guilty, of course." Lawrence N. Powell, Troubled Memory: Anne Levy, the Holocaust, and David Duke's Louisiana, University of North Carolina Press, 2000, ISBN 0-8078-5374-7, p. 445.
- "Since its inception ... the Institute for Historical Review (IHR), a California-based Holocaust denial organization founded by Willis Carto of Liberty Lobby, has promoted the antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews fabricated tales of their own genocide to manipulate the sympathies of the non-Jewish world." Antisemitism and Racism Country Reports: United States Archived June 28, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Stephen Roth Institute, 2000. Retrieved May 17, 2007.
- "The primary motivation for most deniers is anti-Semitism, and for them the Holocaust is an infuriatingly inconvenient fact of history. After all, the Holocaust has generally been recognized as one of the most terrible crimes that ever took place, and surely the very emblem of evil in the modern age. If that crime was a direct result of anti-Semitism taken to its logical end, then anti-Semitism itself, even when expressed in private conversation, is inevitably discredited among most people. What better way to rehabilitate anti-Semitism, make anti-Semitic arguments seem once again respectable in civilized discourse and even make it acceptable for governments to pursue anti-Semitic policies than by convincing the world that the great crime for which anti-Semitism was blamed simply never happened – indeed, that it was nothing more than a frame-up invented by the Jews, and propagated by them through their control of the media? What better way, in short, to make the world safe again for anti-Semitism than by denying the Holocaust?" Reich, Walter. "Erasing the Holocaust" Archived June 28, 2023, at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times, July 11, 1993.
- "There is now a creeping, nasty wave of anti-Semitism ... insinuating itself into our political thought and rhetoric.... The history of the Arab world ... is disfigured ... by a whole series of outmoded and discredited ideas, of which the notion that the Jews never suffered and that the Holocaust is an obfuscatory confection created by the elders of Zion is one that is acquiring too much, far too much, currency." Edward Said, "A Desolation, and They Called it Peace" in Those who forget the past, Ron Rosenbaum (ed), Random House 2004, p. 518.
- Conspiracy theory:
- "While appearing on the surface as a rather arcane pseudo-scholarly challenge to the well-established record of Nazi genocide during the Second World War, Holocaust denial serves as a powerful conspiracy theory uniting otherwise disparate fringe groups...." Introduction: Denial as Anti-Semitism Archived June 4, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", Anti-Defamation League, 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007.
- "Before discussing how Holocaust denial constitutes a conspiracy theory, and how the theory is distinctly American, it is important to understand what is meant by the term 'Holocaust denial.'" Mathis, Andrew E. Holocaust Denial, a Definition Archived February 13, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, The Holocaust History Project, July 2, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2006.
- "Since its inception ... the Institute for Historical Review (IHR), a California-based Holocaust denial organization founded by Willis Carto of Liberty Lobby, has promoted the antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews fabricated tales of their own genocide to manipulate the sympathies of the non-Jewish world." Antisemitism and Racism Country Reports: United States Archived June 28, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Stephen Roth Institute, 2000. Retrieved May 17, 2007.
- Coady, David (2019). "Conspiracy Theories and Official Stories *". Conspiracy Theories: The Philosophical Debate. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-315-25957-4.
Holocaust denial is one, unfortunately widespread, example of a conspiracy theory.
- ^ "Holocaust Deniers and Public Misinformation". encyclopedia.ushmm.org. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Archived from the original on May 19, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
- "Holocaust Denial and Distortion". United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Archived from the original on September 29, 2023. Retrieved September 28, 2017.
Holocaust denial is an attempt to negate the established facts of the Nazi genocide of European Jewry. Holocaust denial and distortion are forms of antisemitism. They are generally motivated by hatred of Jews and build on the claim that the Holocaust was invented or exaggerated by Jews as part of a plot to advance Jewish interests.
- "How many Jews were murdered in the Holocaust? How do we know? Do we have their names? The Holocaust Resource Center Faqs". Yad Vashem. Archived from the original on July 31, 2020. See also appropriate section of the Holocaust article for the death toll.
- ^ Key elements of Holocaust denial:
- "Before discussing how Holocaust denial constitutes a conspiracy theory, and how the theory is distinctly American, it is important to understand what is meant by the term 'Holocaust denial'. Holocaust deniers, or 'revisionists', as they call themselves, question all three major points of definition of the Nazi Holocaust. First, they contend that, while mass murders of Jews did occur (although they dispute both the intentionality of such murders as well as the supposed deservedness of these killings), there was no official Nazi policy to murder Jews. Second, and perhaps most prominently, they contend that there were no homicidal gas chambers, particularly at Auschwitz-Birkenau, where mainstream historians believe over 1 million Jews were murdered, primarily in gas chambers. And third, Holocaust deniers contend that the death toll of European Jews during World War II was well below 6 million. Deniers float numbers anywhere between 300,000 and 1.5 million, as a general rule." Mathis, Andrew E. Holocaust Denial, a Definition Archived February 13, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, The Holocaust History Project, July 2, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2006.
- "In part III we directly address the three major foundations upon which Holocaust denial rests, including ... the claim that gas chambers and crematoria were used not for mass extermination but rather for delousing clothing and disposing of people who died of disease and overwork; ... the claim that the six million figure is an exaggeration by an order of magnitude—that about six hundred thousand, not six million, died at the hands of the Nazis; ... the claim that there was no intention on the part of the Nazis to exterminate European Jewry and that the Holocaust was nothing more than the unfortunate by-product of the vicissitudes of war." Michael Shermer and Alex Grobman. Denying History: who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and why Do They Say It?, University of California Press, 2000, ISBN 0-520-23469-3, p. 3.
- "Holocaust Denial: Claims that the mass extermination of the Jews by the Nazis never happened; that the number of Jewish losses has been greatly exaggerated; that the Holocaust was not systematic nor a result of an official policy; or simply that the Holocaust never took place." What is Holocaust Denial Archived February 16, 2005, at archive.today, Yad Vashem website, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2006.
- "Among the untruths routinely promoted are the claims that no gas chambers existed at Auschwitz, that only 600,000 Jews were killed rather than six million, and that Hitler had no murderous intentions toward Jews or other groups persecuted by his government." Holocaust Denial Archived April 4, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Anti-Defamation League, 2001. Retrieved June 28, 2007.
- "In general, Holocaust denial consists of four central points: minimization of numbers killed, denial of use of gassing, denial of the systematic nature of the genocide, and claims that the evidence was fabricated, above all after the war." Mark M. Hull, Vera Moynes. Masquerade: Treason, the Holocaust, and an Irish Impostor, University of Oklahoma Press, 2017, p. 181. ISBN 978-0-80615836-5
- "According to the deniers, the Nazis did not murder six million Jews, the notion of homicidal gas chambers is a myth, and any deaths of Jews that did occur under the Nazis were the result of wartime privations, not of systematic persecution and state-organised mass murder." Deborah Lipstadt. "Denying the Holocaust", History, BBC Online. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
- ^ "The kinds of assertions made in Holocaust-denial material include the following:
- Several hundred thousand rather than approximately six million Jews died during the war.
- Scientific evidence proves that gas chambers could not have been used to kill large numbers of people.
- The Nazi command had a policy of deporting Jews, not exterminating them.
- Some deliberate killings of Jews did occur, but were carried out by the peoples of Eastern Europe rather than the Nazis.
- Jews died in camps of various kinds, but did so as the result of hunger and disease (most died to the unavailability of food due to allied bombings). The Holocaust is a myth created by the Allies for propaganda purposes, and subsequently nurtured by the Jews for their own ends.
- Errors and inconsistencies in survivors' testimonies point to their essential unreliability.
- Alleged documentary evidence of the Holocaust, from photographs of concentration camp victims to Anne Frank's diary, is fabricated.
- The confessions of former Nazis to war crimes were extracted through torture." The nature of Holocaust denial: What is Holocaust denial? Archived July 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved December 18, 2006.
- A hoax designed to advance the interests of Jews:
- "The title of App's major work on the Holocaust, The Six Million Swindle, is informative because it implies on its very own the existence of a conspiracy of Jews to perpetrate a hoax against non-Jews for monetary gain." Mathis, Andrew E. Holocaust Denial, a Definition Archived February 13, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, The Holocaust History Project, July 2, 2004. Retrieved May 16, 2007.
- Another belief of deniers is the death of the millions of Jews was caused by sickness and disease."Holocaust Denial and Distortion". United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Archived from the original on December 10, 2019. Retrieved November 6, 2013.
- "Jews are thus depicted as manipulative and powerful conspirators who have fabricated myths of their own suffering for their own ends. According to the Holocaust deniers, by forging evidence and mounting a massive propaganda effort, the Jews have established their lies as 'truth' and reaped enormous rewards from doing so: for example, in making financial claims on Germany and acquiring international support for Israel." The nature of Holocaust denial: What is Holocaust denial? Archived July 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007.
- "Why, we might ask the deniers, if the Holocaust did not happen would any group concoct such a horrific story? Because, some deniers claim, there was a conspiracy by Zionists to exaggerate the plight of Jews during the war in order to finance the state of Israel through war reparations." Michael Shermer & Alex Grobman. Denying History: who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and why Do They Say It?, University of California Press, 2000, ISBN 0-520-23469-3, p. 106.
- "Since its inception ... the Institute for Historical Review (IHR), a California-based Holocaust denial organization founded by Willis Carto of Liberty Lobby, has promoted the antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews fabricated tales of their own genocide to manipulate the sympathies of the non-Jewish world." Antisemitism and Racism Country Reports: United States Archived June 28, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Stephen Roth Institute, 2000. Retrieved May 17, 2007.
- "The central assertion for the deniers is that Jews are not victims but victimizers. They 'stole' billions in reparations, destroyed Germany's good name by spreading the 'myth' of the Holocaust, and won international sympathy because of what they claimed had been done to them. In the paramount miscarriage of injustice, they used the world's sympathy to 'displace' another people so that the state of Israel could be established. This contention relating to the establishment of Israel is a linchpin of their argument." Deborah Lipstadt. Denying the Holocaust – The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory, Penguin, 1993, ISBN 0-452-27274-2, p. 27.
- "They picture a vast shadowy conspiracy that controls and manipulates the institutions of education, culture, the media and government in order to disseminate a pernicious mythology. The purpose of this Holocaust mythology, they assert, is the inculcation of a sense of guilt in the white, Western Christian world. Those who can make others feel guilty have power over them and can make them do their bidding. This power is used to advance an international Jewish agenda centered in the Zionist enterprise of the State of Israel." Introduction: Denial as Anti-Semitism Archived June 4, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", Anti-Defamation League, 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007.
- "Deniers argue that the manufactured guilt and shame over a mythological Holocaust led to Western, specifically United States, support for the establishment and sustenance of the Israeli state – a sustenance that costs the American taxpayer over three billion dollars per year. They assert that American taxpayers have been and continue to be swindled...." Introduction: Denial as Anti-Semitism, "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", Anti-Defamation League, 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007.
- "The stress on Holocaust revisionism underscored the new anti-Semitic agenda gaining ground within the Klan movement. Holocaust denial refurbished conspiratorial anti-Semitism. Who else but the Jews had the media power to hoodwink unsuspecting masses with one of the greatest hoaxes in history? And for what motive? To promote the claims of the illegitimate state of Israel by making non-Jews feel guilty, of course." Lawrence N. Powell, Troubled Memory: Anne Levy, the Holocaust, and David Duke's Louisiana, University of North Carolina Press, 2000, ISBN 0-8078-5374-7, p. 445
- ^ Predetermined conclusion:
- "'Revisionism' is obliged to deviate from the standard methodology of historical pursuit because it seeks to mold facts to fit a preconceived result, it denies events that have been objectively and empirically proved to have occurred, and because it works backward from the conclusion to the facts, thus necessitating the distortion and manipulation of those facts where they differ from the preordained conclusion (which they almost always do). In short, 'revisionism' denies something that demonstrably happened, through methodological dishonesty." McFee, Gordon. "Why 'Revisionism' Isn't" Archived June 29, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, The Holocaust History Project, May 15, 1999. Retrieved December 22, 2006.
- Alan L. Berger, "Holocaust Denial: Tempest in a Teapot, or Storm on the Horizon?", in Zev Garber and Richard Libowitz (eds), Peace, in Deed: Essays in Honor of Harry James Cargas, Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1998, p. 154.
- Denial vs. "revisionism":
- "This is the phenomenon of what has come to be known as 'revisionism', 'negationism', or 'Holocaust denial,' whose main characteristic is either an outright rejection of the very veracity of the Nazi genocide of the Jews, or at least a concerted attempt to minimize both its scale and importance.... It is just as crucial, however, to distinguish between the wholly objectionable politics of denial and the fully legitimate scholarly revision of previously accepted conventional interpretations of any historical event, including the Holocaust." Bartov, Omer. The Holocaust: Origins, Implementation and Aftermath, Routledge, pp.11–12. Bartov is John P. Birkelund Distinguished Professor of European History at the Watson Institute, and is regarded as one of the world's leading authorities on genocide ("Omer Bartov" Archived December 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, The Watson Institute for International Studies).
- "The two leading critical exposés of Holocaust denial in the United States were written by historians Deborah Lipstadt (1993) and Michael Shermer and Alex Grobman (2000). These scholars make a distinction between historical revisionism and denial. Revisionism, in their view, entails a refinement of existing knowledge about an historical event, not a denial of the event itself, that comes through the examination of new empirical evidence or a reexamination or reinterpretation of existing evidence. Legitimate historical revisionism acknowledges a 'certain body of irrefutable evidence' or a 'convergence of evidence' that suggest that an event—like the black plague, American slavery, or the Holocaust—did in fact occur (Lipstadt 1993:21; Shermer & Grobman 200:34). Denial, on the other hand, rejects the entire foundation of historical evidence...." Ronald J. Berger. Fathoming the Holocaust: A Social Problems Approach, Aldine Transaction, 2002, ISBN 0-202-30670-4, p. 154.
- "At this time, in the mid-1970s, the specter of Holocaust Denial (masked as 'revisionism') had begun to raise its head in Australia...." Bartrop, Paul R. "A Little More Understanding: The Experience of a Holocaust Educator in Australia" in Samuel Totten, Steven Leonard Jacobs, Paul R Bartrop. Teaching about the Holocaust, Praeger/Greenwood, 2004, p. xix. ISBN 0-275-98232-7
- "Pierre Vidal-Naquet urges that denial of the Holocaust should not be called 'revisionism' because 'to deny history is not to revise it'. Les Assassins de la Memoire. Un Eichmann de papier et autres essays sur le revisionisme (The Assassins of Memory—A Paper-Eichmann and Other Essays on Revisionism) 15 (1987)." Cited in Roth, Stephen J. "Denial of the Holocaust as an Issue of Law" in the Israel Yearbook on Human Rights, Volume 23, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1993, ISBN 0-7923-2581-8, p. 215.
- "This essay describes, from a methodological perspective, some of the inherent flaws in the 'revisionist' approach to the history of the Holocaust. It is not intended as a polemic, nor does it attempt to ascribe motives. Rather, it seeks to explain the fundamental error in the 'revisionist' approach, as well as why that approach of necessity leaves no other choice. It concludes that 'revisionism' is a misnomer because the facts do not accord with the position it puts forward and, more importantly, its methodology reverses the appropriate approach to historical investigation.... 'Revisionism' is obliged to deviate from the standard methodology of historical pursuit, because it seeks to mold facts to fit a preconceived result; it denies events that have been objectively and empirically proved to have occurred; and because it works backward from the conclusion to the facts, thus necessitating the distortion and manipulation of those facts where they differ from the preordained conclusion (which they almost always do). In short, 'revisionism' denies something that demonstrably happened, through methodological dishonesty." McFee, Gordon. "Why 'Revisionism' Isn't" Archived June 29, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, The Holocaust History Project, May 15, 1999. Retrieved December 22, 2006.
- "Holocaust denial can be a particularly insidious form of antisemitism precisely because it often tries to disguise itself as something quite different: as genuine scholarly debate (in the pages, for example, of the innocuous-sounding Journal for Historical Review). Holocaust deniers often refer to themselves as 'revisionists', in an attempt to claim legitimacy for their activities. There are, of course, a great many scholars engaged in historical debates about the Holocaust whose work should not be confused with the output of the Holocaust deniers. Debate continues about such subjects as, for example, the extent and nature of ordinary Germans' involvement in and knowledge of the policy of genocide, and the timing of orders given for the extermination of the Jews. However, the valid endeavour of historical revisionism, which involves the re-interpretation of historical knowledge in the light of newly emerging evidence, is a very different task from that of claiming that the essential facts of the Holocaust, and the evidence for those facts, are fabrications." The nature of Holocaust denial: What is Holocaust denial? Archived July 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007.
- "The deniers' selection of the name revisionist to describe themselves is indicative of their basic strategy of deceit and distortion and of their attempt to portray themselves as legitimate historians engaged in the traditional practice of illuminating the past. For historians, in fact, the name revisionism has a resonance that is perfectly legitimate – it recalls the controversial historical school known as World War I 'revisionists', who argued that the Germans were unjustly held responsible for the war and that consequently the Versailles treaty was a politically misguided document based on a false premise. Thus the deniers link themselves to a specific historiographic tradition of reevaluating the past. Claiming the mantle of the World War I revisionists and denying they have any objective other than the dissemination of the truth constitute a tactical attempt to acquire an intellectual credibility that would otherwise elude them." Deborah Lipstadt. Denying the Holocaust – The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory, Penguin, 1993, ISBN 0-452-27274-2, p. 25.
- ^ Refer to themselves as revisionists:
- "The deniers' selection of the name revisionist to describe themselves is indicative of their basic strategy of deceit and distortion and of their attempt to portray themselves as legitimate historians engaged in the traditional practice of illuminating the past." Deborah Lipstadt. Denying the Holocaust—The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory, Penguin, 1993, ISBN 0-452-27274-2, p. 25.
- "Dressing themselves in pseudo-academic garb, they have adopted the term 'revisionism' in order to mask and legitimate their enterprise." Introduction: Denial as Anti-Semitism Archived June 4, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", Anti-Defamation League, 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007.
- "Holocaust deniers often refer to themselves as 'revisionists', in an attempt to claim legitimacy for their activities. There are, of course, a great many scholars engaged in historical debates about the Holocaust whose work should not be confused with the output of the Holocaust deniers. Debate continues about such subjects as, for example, the extent and nature of ordinary Germans' involvement in and knowledge of the policy of genocide, and the timing of orders given for the extermination of the Jews. However, the valid endeavour of historical revisionism, which involves the re-interpretation of historical knowledge in the light of newly emerging evidence, is a very different task from that of claiming that the essential facts of the Holocaust, and the evidence for those facts, are fabrications." "The nature of Holocaust denial: What is Holocaust denial? Archived July 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine", JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007.
- ^ Rossoliński-Liebe, Grzegorz (2012). "Debating, obfuscating and disciplining the Holocaust: Post-Soviet historical discourses on the OUN–UPA and other nationalist movements". East European Jewish Affairs. 42 (3): 199–241. doi:10.1080/13501674.2012.730732. S2CID 154067506.
In general, post-Soviet Holocaust denial has differed from Holocaust denial in the style of David Irving or Ernst Zündel. In post-Soviet space, the Holocaust has not usually been denied as such and post-Soviet radical right activists did not question the existence of gas chambers in Auschwitz, or the anti-Jewish politics of Nazi Germany. Instead, nationalist post-Soviet discourses denied some of the national or regional elements of the Holocaust, like, for example, the contribution of different nationalist organizations or armies to it, or very frequently the participation of local populations in pogroms and other forms of anti-Jewish violence.
- Lipstadt 1993, p. 25.
- "The two leading critical exposés of Holocaust denial in the United States were written by historians Deborah Lipstadt (1993) and Michael Shermer and Alex Grobman (2000). These scholars make a distinction between historical revisionism and denial. Revisionism, in their view, entails a refinement of existing knowledge about a historical event, not a denial of the event itself, that comes through the examination of new empirical evidence or a reexamination or reinterpretation of existing evidence. Legitimate historical revisionism acknowledges a 'certain body of irrefutable evidence' or a 'convergence of evidence' that suggest that an event—like the black plague, American slavery, or the Holocaust—did, in fact, occur (Lipstadt 1993:21; Shermer & Grobman 200:34). Denial, on the other hand, rejects the entire foundation of historical evidence...."
- Lipstadt, Deborah E. (1994). Denying the Holocaust: the growing assault on truth and memory (reprint ed.). Plume. ISBN 978-0-452-27274-3.
- Lipstadt, Deborah E. (December 18, 2012). Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4767-2748-6.
Modern Holocaust denial draws inspiration from a variety of sources. Among them is a legitimate historical tradition that was highly critical of government policies and believed that history was being used to justify these policies. The deniers consider themselves heirs of a group of influential American historians who were deeply disturbed by American involvement in World War I. These respected scholars, who called themselves revisionists, would have been appalled to learn of the purposes to which their arguments were put.
- Niewyk, Donald L., ed. (1992). "1: Introduction". The Holocaust: Problems and Perspectives of Interpretation. D. C. Heath and Company. p. 7. ISBN 9780618214624.
- See Alain Finkielkraut, Mary Byrd Kelly, Richard J. Golsan. The Future of a Negation: Reflections on the Question of Genocide. University of Nebraska Press, 1998.
- Koenraad Elst. Chapter One – Negationism in General Archived October 25, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Negationism in India: Concealing the Record of Islam, The Voice of India, 2002.
- Heni, Clemens (Fall 2008). "Secondary Anti-Semitism: From Hard-Core to Soft-Core Denial of the Shoah". Jewish Political Studies Review. 20 (3/4). Jerusalem: 73–92. JSTOR 25834800.
- Douglas, Lawrence (2011). "From Trying the Perpetrator to Trying the Denier and Back Again". In Hennebel, Ludovic; Hochmann, Thomas (eds.). Genocide Denials and the Law. Oxford University Press. pp. 55–56. ISBN 978-0-19-987639-6.
- ^ Klarsfeld, Serge (1996). French Children of the Holocaust: A Memorial. New York: New York University Press. p. xiii. ISBN 9780814726624. LCCN 96031206. OCLC 35029709.
- ^ Arad, Yitzhak (1984). "Yad Vashem Studies XVI Operation Reinhard: Extermination Camps of Belzec, Sobibor, and Treblinka" (PDF). Yad Vashem. pp. 205–239. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 18, 2009. Retrieved February 2, 2009.
- Ezergailis, Andrew (1996). The Holocaust in Latvia 1941–1944 – The Missing Center. Riga: Historical Institute of Latvia (in association with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum). pp. 4–7, 239–270. ISBN 9984-9054-3-8.
- "The History of the Center of Contemporary Jewish Documentation (CDJC)". Archived from the original on March 16, 2015.
- ^ Jockusch, Laura (October 11, 2012). "Collect and Record! Jewish Holocaust Documentation in Early Postwar Europe". Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199764556.001.0001. ISBN 9780199764556. as quoted in Jockusch, Laura. "Khurbn Forshung (destruction research)– Jewish Historical Commissions in Europe, 1943–1949". academia.edu. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
- ^ Mazor, Michel; Weinberg, David (2007), "Centre de Documentation Juive Contemporaine (CDJC)", in Berenbaum, Michael; Skolnik, Fred (eds.), Encyclopedia Judaica, Gale Virtual Reference Library, vol. 4 (2 ed.), Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, p. 547, archived from the original on June 29, 2018, retrieved April 3, 2015
- Hobbs, Joseph Patrick; Eisenhower, Dwight D.; Marshall, George Catlett (May 12, 1999). Dear General: Eisenhower's Wartime Letters to Marshall. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0801862191.
- Hobbs, Joseph Patrick; Eisenhower, Dwight D.; Marshall, George Catlett (May 12, 1999). Dear General: Eisenhower's Wartime Letters to Marshall. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 223. ISBN 0801862191.
- "World War II Liberation Photography". United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved August 30, 2020.
- Wright, Quincy (1946). "The Nuremberg Trial". Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. 246 (1): 72–80. doi:10.1177/000271624624600113. ISSN 0002-7162. JSTOR 1025134. S2CID 143138559.
- Bensoussan, Georges (2008). Bankier, David; Mikhman, Dan (eds.). Holocaust Historiography in Context: Emergence, Challenges, Polemics and Achievements. Berghahn Books. pp. 245–254. ISBN 9789653083264. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
- "Shaping an Awareness of the Holocaust in Israeli and World Public Opinion". Yad Vashem. 2015. Archived from the original on October 23, 2014. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
In the annals of public awareness of the Holocaust period, nothing rivals the Eichmann trial as a milestone and turning point, whose impact is evident to this day. The trial introduced the Holocaust into the historical, educational, legal and cultural discourse, not merely in Israel and the Jewish world, but on the consciousness of all peoples of the world. Sixteen years after the end of the Holocaust, it focused attention upon the account of the suffering and torment of the Jewish people, as recounted to the judges. Its powerful, and one could claim, revolutionary, consequences continue right up to the present day.
- Shandler, Jeffrey (February 4, 1999). "4. The Man in the Glass Box". While America Watches : Televising the Holocaust. New York: Oxford University Press, USA. p. 127. ISBN 978-0-19-518258-3. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
The Eichmann case is widely cited as a marking a threshold in American awareness of the Holocaust, generating a 'renewed engagement' and 'heightened historical consciousness' as well as serving as a catalyst for a spate of American Holocaust literature, television programs, and feature films.
- ^ Cesarani, David (2005) . Eichmann: His Life and Crimes. London: Vintage. pp. 252, 254–5, 325–7. ISBN 978-0-09-944844-0.
- Birn, Ruth Bettina (2011). "Fifty Years After: A Critical Look at the Eichmann Trial" (PDF). Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law. 44: 443–473. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 3, 2013. Retrieved April 2, 2015.
- Shandler, Jeffrey (1999). While America Watches: Televising the Holocaust. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. p. 93. ISBN 0-19-511935-5.
The trial and the surrounding media coverage sparked renewed interest in wartime events, and the resulting increase in publication of memoirs and scholarly works helped raise public awareness of the Holocaust.
- Fogu, Claudio; Kansteiner, Wulf; Presner, Todd (October 17, 2016). Probing the Ethics of Holocaust Culture. Harvard University Press. p. 68. ISBN 978-0-674-97051-9.
- ^ "The corpse factory and the birth of fake news". BBC News. February 17, 2017. Archived from the original on February 28, 2017. Retrieved March 5, 2017.
- ^ Neander, Joachim (2013). The German Corpse Factory. The Master Hoax of British Propaganda in the First World War. Saarland University Press. p. 8–9.
- Atkins, Stephen E. (2009). Holocaust Denial as an International Movement. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-313-34538-8.
Holocaust denial has played an important role in the revitalization of the Neo-Nazi movement. There was a smaller but nonetheless vocal number of supporters in other Western European countries and the United States. These neo-Nazis realized that a Hitlerite regime was impossible, but a reasonable facsimile was possible in the future. These neo-Nazis and their allies realized that any rehabilitation of Nazism could be accomplished only by discrediting the Holocaust.
- Bland, Benjamin (2019). "Holocaust inversion, anti-Zionism and British neo-fascism: the Israel–Palestine conflict and the extreme right in post-war Britain". Patterns of Prejudice. 53 (1): 86–97. doi:10.1080/0031322X.2018.1536347. ISSN 0031-322X. Archived from the original on May 11, 2024. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ Rosenfeld, Alvin H. (2015). Deciphering the new antisemitism. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press. pp. 250, 350. ISBN 9780253018694. Archived from the original on July 5, 2024. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
In the 1970s, Holocaust denial took up more sophisticated pseudoscientijfic methods and began to portray itself as a movement of historal revisionists...
- ^ Pigliucci, Massimo; Boudry, Maarten (2013). Philosophy of pseudoscience : reconsidering the demarcation problem. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 206. ISBN 9780226051826. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
- Brittingham, Matthew H. (September 2020). ""The Jews love numbers": Steven L. Anderson, Christian Conspiracists, and the Spiritual Dimensions of Holocaust Denial". Genocide Studies and Prevention. 14 (2): 44–64. doi:10.5038/1911-9933.14.2.1721. eISSN 1911-9933. ISSN 1911-0359. S2CID 225256338.
The preacher produced a nearly 40-minute video, "Did the Holocaust Really Happen?," in which he espoused what Deborah Lipstadt has called "hardcore" Holocaust denial, "den the facts of the Holocaust" in an "outright and forceful fashion." Though his "scientific" evidence for the "Holocaust hoax" or "Holocaust myth," as he often refers to the Holocaust, is mostly a regurgitation of the pseudoscientific arguments made by a more established group of Holocaust deniers, Anderson adds a spiritual dimension to Holocaust denial to make it attractive to Christian viewers.
- Hirvonen, Ilmari; Karisto, Janne (February 13, 2022). "Demarcation without Dogmas". Theoria. 88 (3): 701–720. doi:10.1111/theo.12395. eISSN 1755-2567. hdl:10138/345499. ISSN 0040-5825. S2CID 246834442.
On the one hand, there is science denialism, such as climate change scepticism, the anti-vaccination movement, and holocaust denial, which attacks well-established scientific theories and practices. On the other hand, there is the promotion of pseudotheory, the attempt to get doctrines like homoeopathy and intelligent design accepted as sciences even though they have no warrant for such merit (Hansson, 2017). Both types of pseudoscience have harmful effects on health, environment, education, and society...Paradigmatic pseudosciences can also be very different from one another. Think of, say, intelligent design, Holocaust denial, ancient astronaut hypothesis, homoeopathy, the anti-vaccine movement, astrology, or climate change scepticism. Because there are different forms of pseudoscience, one cannot rule out the possibility that different criteria are needed to distinguish them from science.
- "Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust (CODOH) | Center on Extremism". extremismterms.adl.org. Anti-Defamation League. 2022. Archived from the original on February 13, 2023. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
- Laqueur, Walter; Baumel-Schwartz, Judith Tydor (2001). The Holocaust encyclopedia. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 300. ISBN 9780300084320.
Holocaust revisionism enlists a wide variety of strategies and assumes many different forms adapted to the history and political cultures in which it operates. It has nonetheless developed into an international movement with its own networks, gatherings, public forums, propaganda, and pseudo-scientific journal
- Novella, Steven (July 17, 2009). "Holocaust Denial". New England Skeptical Society. Archived from the original on February 12, 2023. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
Those who deny that there ever was a Nazi genocide of Jews during World War II have used a similar style of arguing. Deniers have subjugated science, in this case historical science, to a political agenda, creating a pseudoscience called Holocaust Denial.... Inventing and promoting pseudoscience : Leuchter claims that the gas chamber was not really used against human beings.... Error #1: Leuchter estimates that a certain crematorium at Auschwitz could process only 156 bodies. He was apparently unaware of an SS report which confirms that the same building (which he describes) destroyed 4756 bodies in the course of a single 24 hour period. Error #2: He notes that the cyanide residue from one gas chamber wall is less than the residue from a wall inside a known delousing chamber. Leuchter claims that this is the most conclusive evidence that a "gas chamber" could not have been used for killing humans. His argument is based on the assumption that humans require much more cyanide than lice to die – an assumption that, as it happens, is wrong. In fact, lice require about a 50 times higher dose of cyanide gas than humans in order to die.
- Whine, Michael (2008). "Expanding Holocaust Denial and Legislation Against It". Jewish Political Studies Review. 20 (1/2): 57–77. ISSN 0792-335X. JSTOR 25834777. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
Holocaust deniers, and the media they use, are changing as a consequence of international political developments... New forms of this propaganda encompassed pseudoscientific books and papers; crude denial material, usually published in leaflet form by small neo-Nazi groups; and what can be called political denial, which includes the most recent and increasingly potent source, namely, Islamists as well as Internet and television transmissions within some Muslim states. Many of the pseudoscientific publications available internationally were published under cover of fictitious academic publishing houses. These works included, for example, The Hoax of the Twentieth Century by Arthur Butz, Did Six Million Really Die? by Richard Harwood, and The Leuchter Report. Historians challenged these and rebutted their false theses.
- Igounet 2000, p. 31: "Pour la première fois, depuis la fin de la guerre, un homme écrit qu'il doute ouvertement de l'existence des camps de la mort"
- Algazy 1984, pp. 208–209.
- Barnes 2002.
- Bar-On 2016.
- Igounet 2000.
- Herwig 1987, pp. 22–23 & 26.
- Herwig 1987, pp. 21–23 & 26.
- ^ Lipstadt 1993, p. 75.
- Lipstadt 1993, pp. 73–74.
- ^ Lipstadt 1993, p. 74.
- ^ Lipstadt 1993, p. 71.
- Gottfired, Ted (2001). Deniers Of The Holocaust: Who They Are, What They Do, Why They Do It. Twenty-First Century Books. p. 29.
- Lipstadt, Deborah E. (2005). History on Trial. Harcourt. ISBN 0-06-059376-8.
- Knight, Peter (2003). Conspiracy Theories in American History: An Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. ABC-CLIO. p. 322. ISBN 978-1576078129. Archived from the original on July 5, 2024. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
- ^ Atkins, Stephen E. (2009). Austin J. App and Holocaust Denial. Holocaust denial as an international movement. Westport, CT: Praeger. pp. 153–155. ISBN 978-0-313-34539-5.
- Huerta, Carlos C.; Shiffman-Huerta, Dafna (1996). "Holocaust Denial Literature: Its Place in Teaching the Holocaust". In Millen, Rochelle L. (ed.). New Perspectives on the Holocaust: A Guide for Teachers and Scholars. NYU Press. p. 189. ISBN 0-8147-5540-2.
- Lipstadt 1993.
- Pressac, Jean-Claude (1989). Auschwitz: Technique and operation of the gas chambers. New York: The Beate Klarsfeld Foundation. Archived from the original on January 28, 2017. Retrieved January 31, 2006 – via Pratique de l'Histoire et Dévoiements Négationnistes.
- Bienen, Henry S. (February 6, 2006). "Message from President Bienen, Northwestern University". Northwestern University. Archived from the original on May 1, 2007. Retrieved September 20, 2009.
- ^ Elizabeth, Campbell (February 16, 2006). "Students, faculty oppose Butz with petitions". The Daily Northwestern. Archived from the original on January 16, 2014. Retrieved May 17, 2012.
- Berlet, Chip; Lyons, Matthew J. (2000). Right-Wing Populism in America: Too Close for Comfort. New York: Guilford Press. p. 189.
- Evans, Richard J. (2002). Lying About Hitler: History, Holocaust, and the David Irving Trial. Basic Books. ISBN 0-465-02153-0.
- "California Judge Rules Holocaust Did Happen". The New York Times. Associated Press. October 10, 1981. p. A26. Archived from the original on October 19, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2010.
- ^ "Mel Mermelstein v. Institute for Historical Review Judgment and Statement of Record". Archived from the original on July 17, 2011. Retrieved November 20, 2010.
- "About the IHR: Our Mission and Record". Institute for Historical Review. May 2018. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved July 9, 2011.
- Richard J. Evans. Telling Lies About Hitler: The Holocaust, History and the David Irving Trial, Verso Books, 2002, ISBN 1-85984-417-0, p. 151. Quote: Like many individual Holocaust deniers, the Institute as a body denied that it was involved in Holocaust denial. It called this a 'smear' which was 'completely at variance with the facts' because 'revisionist scholars' such as Faurisson, Butz 'and bestselling British historian David Irving acknowledge that hundreds of thousands of Jews were killed and otherwise perished during the Second World War as a direct and indirect result of the harsh anti-Jewish policies of Germany and its allies'. But the concession that a relatively small number of Jews were killed was routinely used by Holocaust deniers to distract attention from the far more important fact of their refusal to admit that the figure ran into the millions, and that a large proportion of these victims were systematically murdered by gassing as well as by shooting.
- Elman, Bruce P. (2000). "The Belzberg Lecture: Honouring Memory, Doing Justice: Holocaust Denial, Hate Propaganda and Canadian Law". In DeCoste, F. C.; Schwartz, Bernard (eds.). The Holocaust's Ghost: Writings on Art, Politics, Law and Education. University of Alberta Press. p. 316. ISBN 978-0-88864-337-7. Archived from the original on July 5, 2024. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
- Criminal Code, RSC 1970, c C-34, s 281.2(2); now Criminal Code, RSC 1985, c C-46, s 319(2).
- "R. v. Keegstra – SCC Cases (Lexum)". scc-csc.lexum.com. January 2001. Archived from the original on July 10, 2019. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
- *"The trouble erupted when the teacher's anti-Jewish (and, incidentally, anti-Catholic) views attracted complaints from certain Eckville parents, thereby inviting intervention from the district school superintendent, Robert David, in 1981. A train of events was launched that finally led to Keegstra's dismissal and subsequent indictment." Alan Davies, "The Keegstra Affair", in Alan T. Davies, Antisemitism in Canada: History and Interpretation, Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 1992, ISBN 0-88920-216-8, p. 228.
- "Far from arguing that Keegstra had a civil right to continue spreading his dreck at Eckville High, civil libertarians wonder (along with the rest of Canada, we hope) why it took twelve years for the local school board to exercise its appropriate authority and fire him. But at least Keegstra was finally fired, and was finally removed from his position as Mayor of Eckville." John Dixon, The Keegstra case: Freedom of speech and the prosecution of harmful ideas Archived September 26, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, British Columbia Civil Liberties Association Position Paper, 1986. Retrieved June 27, 2007.
- ^ R. v. Zundel (August 27, 1992), Text, archived from the original.
- "Zundelsite". www.zundelsite.org. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2007.
- "German court sentences Ernst Zundel to 5 years in prison for Holocaust denial". canada.com. The Canadian Press. February 15, 2007. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved February 15, 2007.
- "United States of America". axt.org.uk. 1998. Archived from the original on June 20, 2008.
- "Poisoning the Web – Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust." Archived January 15, 2013, at the Wayback Machine ADL. 2001. April 24, 2008.
- "Bradley Smith and the Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust: The New College Try". Archived January 15, 2013, at the Wayback Machine ADL. 2001. April 24, 2008.
- "Bradley Smith, Holocaust Denial, Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust – Extremism in America". Anti-Defamation League. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved March 26, 2013.
- Shermar, Michael; Alex Grobman (2000). Denying History: Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and Why Do They Say It?. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-21612-9.
- Buxbaum, Evan (September 10, 2009). "Harvard Crimson says Holocaust denial ad published by accident". CNN. Archived from the original on May 12, 2019. Retrieved September 10, 2009.
- ^ Evans, Richard J. (1989). In Hitler's Shadow. New York: Pantheon Books. p. 83.
- Maier, Charles The Unmasterable Past, Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1988 page 190.
- ^ Lipstadt, Deborah Denying the Holocaust, New York: Free Press, 1993 page 214
- ^ Kershaw, Ian The Nazi Dictatorship: Problems and Perspectives of Interpretations, London: Arnold, 1989 page 176
- Brinks, Jan Hermann (2000). Children of a New Fatherland. London: I. B. Tauris. p. 108.
- ^ Wistrich, Robert S. "Holocaust Denial" pages 293–301 from The Holocaust Encyclopedia edited by Walter Laqueur, New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001 page 299
- Lukacs, John The Hitler of History New York: Vintage Books, 1997, 1998 page 233.
- Charny, Israel (July 17, 2001). "The Psychological Satisfaction of Denials of the Holocaust or Other Genocides by Non-Extremists or Bigots, and Even by Known Scholars". Idea Journal. Archived from the original on December 24, 2007. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
- Evans, Richard In Hitler's Shadow, New York, NY: Pantheon, 1989 page 123
- Gerstenfeld, Manfred (August 1, 2003). "Denial of the Holocaust and Immoral Equivalence An Interview with Deborah Lipstadt". Jerusalem Centre for Public Affairs. Archived from the original on August 16, 2007. Retrieved June 21, 2007.
- Dawidowicz, Lucy What Is The Use of Jewish History?, New York: Schocken Books, 1992 pages 129–130
- Dawidowicz, Lucy What Is The Use of Jewish History?, New York: Schocken Books, 1992 page 130
- ^ Pelt, Robert Jan van The Case for Auschwitz, Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2002 pages 47–48
- Stein, Michael (October 2, 2008). "The Mayer Gambit". Nizkor Project. Archived from the original on May 2, 2009. Retrieved June 4, 2009.
- Bauer, Yehuda "A Past That Will Not Away" pages 12–22 from The Holocaust and History edited by Michael Berenbaum and Abrahm Peck, Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1998 page 15.
- Shermer, Michael & Grobman, Alex Denying History: Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and Why Do They Say It?, Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002 page 126.
- Shermer, Michael & Grobman, Alex Denying History: Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and Why Do They Say It?, Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002 pages 126–127.
- Stephen E. Atkins, Holocaust denial as an international movement, ABC-CLIO, 2009, pg. 105
- Evans, Richard (1996). "Dresden and Holocaust Denial". David Irving, Hitler and Holocaust Denial: Electronic Edition. Archived from the original on December 20, 2013. Retrieved December 23, 2013.
- Lipstadt, Deborah. Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory, Bt Bound, 1999, pg. 41
- Broszat, Martin. "Hitler and the Genesis of the 'Final Solution': An Assessment of David Irving's Theses" pages 390–429 from Aspects of the Third Reich edited by H.W. Koch page 395.
- Najarian, James (1997). "Gnawing at History: The Rhetoric of Holocaust Denial". Midwest Quarterly. 39 (1): 74. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
- Najarian, James (1997). "Gnawing at History: The Rhetoric of Holocaust Denial". Midwest Quarterly. 39 (1): 76. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
- Najarian, James (1997). "Gnawing at History: The Rhetoric of Holocaust Denial". Midwest Quarterly. 39 (1): 80. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
- Lasson, Kenneth (2007). "Defending Truth: Legal and Psychological Aspects of Holocaust Denial" (PDF). Current Psychology. 26 (3–4): 256. doi:10.1007/s12144-007-9013-7. ISSN 0737-8262. S2CID 143382566. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 5, 2017. Retrieved February 7, 2011.
- Yelland, Linda M.; Stone, William F. (1996). "Belief in the Holocaust: Effects of Personality and Propaganda". Political Psychology. 17 (3): 559. doi:10.2307/3791968. JSTOR 3791968.
- Satloff, Robert (2007). Among the Righteous: Lost Stories from the Holocaust's Long Reach Into Arab lands. PublicAffairs. p. 163. ISBN 9781586485108.
- Laqueur, Walter (2006). The Changing Face of Antisemitism: From Ancient Times to the Present Day. Oxford University Press. p. 141. ISBN 9780195304299.
- Robert S. Wistrich (October 17, 1985). Hitler's apocalypse: Jews and the Nazi legacy. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p. 188. ISBN 978-0-297-78719-8.
President Nasser of Egypt in a notorious interview with the editor of the neo-Nazi Deutsche Soldaten und National Zeitung, published on 1 May 1964, insisted that No one, not even the simplest man in our country, takes seriously the lie about six million Jews who were murdered
- "Iran Further Isolates Itself with 'Holocaust Denial'". NPR.org. December 17, 2006. Archived from the original on September 1, 2018. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
- "Syrian Holocaust Denial". jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Jewish Virtual Library. Archived from the original on December 17, 2016. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
- Robert Satloff (October 8, 2006). "The Holocaust's Arab Heroes". The Washington Post. p. B01. Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2010.
- "Arab MK's Auschwitz visit draws fire from Jewish, Arab critics". Haaretz. Associated Press. January 26, 2010. Archived from the original on October 19, 2015. Retrieved March 23, 2014.
- Karsh, Efraim. Arafat's War: The Man and His Battle for Israeli Conquest. New York: Grove Press, 2003. p. 98–99.
- Defending Truth: Legal and Psychological Aspects of Holocaust Denial Archived April 28, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, Kenneth Lasson, University of Baltimore School of Law, 2007
- ^ Dr. Harold Brackman, Aaron Breitbart (2007). "Holocaust Denial's Assault on Memory: Precursor to twenty first century genocide?" (PDF). Simon Wiesenthal Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 6, 2012. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
- Washington Institute for Near East Policy Archived January 10, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, 2000
- Hadid, Diaa (September 1, 2009) "Hamas leader denies Holocaust" Archived May 23, 2019, at the Wayback Machine Associated Press via Boston Globe
- Oster, Marcy (March 1, 2011) "Hamas to U.N.: Don’t teach Holocaust" Archived June 18, 2018, at the Wayback Machine Jewish Telegraphic Agency
- Was Abu Mazen a Holocaust Denier? Archived March 31, 2019, at the Wayback Machine By Brynn Malone (History News Network)
- Abu Mazen: A Political Profile. Zionism and Holocaust Denial Archived March 10, 2007, at the Wayback Machine by Yael Yehoshua (MEMRI) April 29, 2003
- Jeremy Havardi (August 14, 2012). "Holocaust denial undermines the Palestinian cause". The Commentator. Archived from the original on January 30, 2019. Retrieved May 18, 2015.
- A Holocaust-Denier as Prime Minister of "Palestine"? Archived September 8, 2011, at the Wayback Machine by Dr. Rafael Medoff (The David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies)
- Abu Mazen and the Holocaust Archived February 5, 2019, at the Wayback Machine by Tom Gross
- Akiva Eldar (May 28, 2003). "U.S. told us to ignore Israeli map reservations". Haaretz. Archived from the original on January 20, 2013. Retrieved March 23, 2014.
- "Palestinian leader Abbas admits the Holocaust was 'heinous'". New York Post. April 27, 2014. Archived from the original on June 22, 2018. Retrieved May 18, 2015.
- Myers, David N. (January 23, 2013). "Abbas Alleges Link Between Zionists And Nazis". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on May 17, 2015. Retrieved May 18, 2015.
- ^ Sammy Smooha (2009). "The 2008 Index of Arab-Jewish Relations in Israel: Main Findings and Trends of Change" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 6, 2014. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
- "Palestinian professor who took students to Auschwitz: Holocaust denial imperils peace". The Times of Israel. September 17, 2023.
- ^ Silkoff, Shira (December 20, 2023). "Syria's Assad claims Holocaust was a lie fabricated to justify creation of Israel". The Times of Israel. Archived from the original on December 20, 2023.
- ^ "Syrian President Assad denies Holocaust and accuses U.S. of funding Nazis in controversial speech". i24news. December 20, 2023. Archived from the original on December 20, 2023.
- Variously:
- "Holocaust comments spark outrage" Archived November 12, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, BBC News, Accessed December 14, 2005.
- Esfandiari, Golnaz. "Iran: President's Latest Comments About Israel Spark Further Condemnation" Archived August 20, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. Radio Free Europe. Accessed January 28, 2008.
- "NCC Condemns Ahmadinejad's Holocaust Statement" Archived April 17, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. National Council of Churches. Accessed December 16, 2007.
- "Annan: 'Dismay' over Iranian comments on Israel" Archived December 7, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. CNN. Accessed September 27, 2007.
- "Iranian leader: Holocaust a 'myth'" Archived December 16, 2005, at the Wayback Machine. CNN. December 14, 2006.
- "Spiegel Interview with Iran's President Ahmadinejad: 'We Are Determined'" Archived May 12, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, Der Spiegel (May 30, 2006). Retrieved 07sep2013.
- Transcript of his speech on September 24, 2007. "However, I believe the Holocaust, from what we read, happened during World War II after 1930 in the 1940s."
- "Video of his speech on September 24, 2007. Timecode 22:28 to 22:37". Archived from the original on June 29, 2011.
- "Ahmadinejad: Holocaust a myth". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on September 23, 2009. Retrieved July 9, 2008.
- German parliament slams Ahmadinejad remarks, Expatica, December 16, 2005.
- Al Jazeera,"Hamas springs to Iran's defense". Archived from the original on December 6, 2007. Retrieved August 14, 2007.
- "MPAC Rebukes Iranian President's Comments". December 8, 2005. Archived from the original on June 17, 2008. Retrieved January 31, 2012.
- Egyptian Islamists deny Holocaust Archived September 6, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, December 23, 2005.
- "Iran hosts Holocaust conference". CNN. December 11, 2006. Archived from the original on February 1, 2019. Retrieved December 27, 2006.
- "Iran: Holocaust Conference Soon in Tehran". Adnkronos International (AKI). January 5, 2006. Archived from the original on March 10, 2006. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
- *"Holocaust denial outrages Europe" Archived December 25, 2006, at the Wayback Machine, The Washington Times, December 13, 2006.
- "Holocaust deniers gather in Iran" Archived October 11, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Edmonton Journal, December 13, 2006.
- "Holocaust deniers rebuked". Los Angeles Times, December 13, 2006.
- "Canadian prof attends Tehran's gathering of Holocaust deniers" Archived January 21, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, The Globe and Mail, December 13, 2006.
- "The conference for Holocaust deniers hosted by Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is a transparent polemical stunt." "Iran's great pretender" Archived March 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, The Boston Globe, December 13, 2006.
- "What's the perfect way to top off a Holocaust denial conference featuring input from the likes of such scholars as former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke?" "Holocaust denial can be dangerous" Archived January 11, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Los Angeles Times, December 13, 2006.
- "Across Europe, outrage over meeting of holocaust deniers" Archived December 23, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Zee News, December 13, 2006.
- "World reacts with outrage over meeting of Holocaust deniers in Iran", Calgary Sun, December 13, 2006.
- "Holocaust deniers' meeting spurs outrage" Archived December 19, 2006, at the Wayback Machine, Houston Chronicle, December 12, 2006.
- "Across Europe, outrage over meeting of Holocaust deniers in Iran" Archived December 14, 2006, at the Wayback Machine, International Herald Tribune, December 12, 2006.
- "Holocaust deniers gather in Iran for 'scientific' conference" Archived February 20, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, The Guardian, December 12, 2006.
- "Revisionist fringe gathers for Iran's Holocaust denial jamboree" Archived January 8, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, The Independent, December 12, 2006.
- "Holocaust Denied at Iran Forum to 'Research' Nazis" Archived June 13, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, Bloomberg Television, December 11, 2006.
- "Holocaust Deniers and Skeptics Gather in Iran" Archived December 10, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times, December 11, 2006.
- "Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, speaking at a Tehran conference denying the existence of the Holocaust, said Israel will disappear like the Soviet Union." "Iran students rebel over Holocaust denial" Archived October 16, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, United Press International, December 12, 2006.
- "Berlin Counters Holocaust Conference". Der Spiegel. December 11, 2006. Archived from the original on April 6, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2006.
- "Iran to Host Autumn Conference on Holocaust". Fox News. Associated Press. September 3, 2006. Archived from the original on September 30, 2006. Retrieved September 11, 2006.
- ^ Saeed Kamali Dehghan (September 25, 2013). "Iranian president Hassan Rouhani recognises 'reprehensible' Holocaust". The Guardian. Archived from the original on May 28, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2016.
- "Iranian press accuses CNN of 'fabricating' Rouhani Holocaust remarks". The Jerusalem Post - JPost.com. September 26, 2013. Archived from the original on March 2, 2021. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- "Khamenei.ir". Twitter. Archived from the original on June 11, 2019. Retrieved March 23, 2014.
- "In Iran new year's address, Khamenei questions Holocaust". al-monitor.com. Archived from the original on March 24, 2014. Retrieved March 23, 2014.
- "What does Iran's Supreme Leader really think about the Holocaust?". News – Telegraph Blogs. Archived from the original on October 2, 2013.
- "Timeline: Holocaust Denial and Distortion from Iranian Government and Official Media Resources (1998–2016)" (PDF). United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. September 12, 2016. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 15, 2017. Retrieved June 9, 2019.
- "Iran to host Holocaust denial cartoon competition." Archived June 29, 2018, at the Wayback Machine Ynetnews. February 1, 2015. February 1, 2015.
- Michael Hopkins, "Harun Yahya and Holocaust Revisionism" Archived January 24, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, The TalkOrigins Archive .
- ^ "Turkey". axt.org.uk. 1996. Archived from the original on May 19, 2012.
- "The Holocaust Deception". December 8, 2008. Archived from the original on December 8, 2008.
- "Turkey". axt.org.uk. Archived from the original on May 19, 2012.
- Udesky, Laurie (March 27, 1997). "American Jewish organization sees emergence of 'Holocaust denial' in Turkey". Turkish Daily News. Archived from the original on November 3, 2007. Alt URL
- Dobroszycki, Lucjan; Gurock, Jeffrey S. (1993). The Holocaust in the Soviet Union: Studies and Sources on the Destruction of the Jews in the Nazi-Occupied Territories of the Ussr, 1941–1945. M.E. Sharpe. pp. 3–29. ISBN 1563241730.
- Болтянская, Нателла (July 31, 2023). "Как и почему Россия стала отрицателем Холокоста. Часть 1: "Без срока давности"". Детали (in Russian). Archived from the original on July 5, 2024. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
- Atkins, Stephen E. (April 30, 2009). Holocaust Denial as an International Movement. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-313-34538-8. Archived from the original on July 5, 2024. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- Rudling, Per Anders (2011). "The OUN, the UPA and the Holocaust: A Study in the Manufacturing of Historical Myths". The Carl Beck Papers in Russian and East European Studies (2107). doi:10.5195/CBP.2011.164. ISSN 2163-839X. Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
- "US Warns about Ustasha Glorification and Holocaust Denial". Croatian News Agency (HINA). May 30, 2018. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
- ^ Opačić, Tamara (November 24, 2017). "Selective Amnesia: Croatia's Holocaust Deniers". BalkanInsight. BIRN. Archived from the original on January 22, 2021. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
- "Croatia Must Not Whitewash the Horrors of Jasenovac". Balkan Insight. August 27, 2018. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- Rosensaft, Menachem Z. (October 9, 2017). "Croatia Is Brazenly Attempting to Rewrite its Holocaust Crimes Out of History". Tablet Magazine. Archived from the original on March 19, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
- Vladisavljevic, Anja (January 7, 2019). "Book Event Questioning WWII Crimes Planned for Zagreb Church". Balkan Insight. BIRN. Archived from the original on October 4, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- "Simon Wiesenthal Centre urges Croatia to ban Jasenovac revisionist works". hr.n1info.com. N1 Zagreb. January 9, 2019. Archived from the original on October 9, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- "Jewish rights group urges Croatia to ban pro-Nazi book". Associated Press. January 9, 2019. Archived from the original on November 7, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- Mansky, Jackie. "Why It Matters That Hungary's Prime Minister Denounced His Country's Role in the Holocaust". Smithsonian Magazine. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
- "Hungary: Holocaust Denial, Incitement and Intimidation". Israel National News. January 14, 2014. Archived from the original on October 6, 2020. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
- Perica 2002, p. 151.
- Ramet, Sabrina (2007). "The denial syndrome and its consequences: Serbian political culture since 2000". Communist and Post-Communist Studies. 40: 41–58. doi:10.1016/j.postcomstud.2006.12.004. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- Ridgeway, James; Udovickii, Jasminka (2000). Burn This House: The Making and Unmaking of Yugoslavia. Duke University Press. p. 133. ISBN 978-0-82232-590-1. Archived from the original on July 5, 2024. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
- Cohen 1996, pp. 76–81.
- Cohen 1996, p. 113.
- Sniegon, Tomas (2014). Vanished History: The Holocaust in Czech and Slovak Historical Culture. New York: Berghahn Books. pp. 77–78). ISBN 978-1-78238-294-2.
As far back as during the Cold War, the SWC had adapted its ideological history usage to fit its main goal – to fight for a 'Slovak Slovakia'.8 The Holocaust was used in the narrative, but to a small degree and without much attention from the surrounding world. The use of history was focused, above all, on defending the memory of Jozef Tiso. What was most important, it seemed, was not to question the Holocaust as such, but rather to present it as a German crime which in Slovakia was supported solely by a few German-friendly radicals whom Tiso, against his will, was forced to keep in the government so as not to enrage the Germans too much.
- Paulovičová, Nina (2013). "The "Unmasterable Past"? The Reception of the Holocaust in Postcommunist Slovakia". In Himka, John-Paul; Michlic, Joanna Beata (eds.). Bringing the Dark Past to Light. The Reception of the Holocaust in Postcommunist Europe. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. pp. 549–590. ISBN 978-0-8032-2544-2.
Because of émigrés' attempts to whitewash history and degrade historical scholarship in order to sustain the reservoir of national mythologization, liberal historians denounce the émigrés as "misinformers" and "misinterpreters." The claims that fascism never occurred in Slovakia (František Vnuk), that the deportation of Jews was an "evacuation" (Milan S. Durica), that Tiso (whose anti-Semitic invectives fueled the radicalism against the Jewish minority) was a "martyr" and a "savior" of the Jews, and that the Holocaust should be omitted from the context of the Slovak national identity discourse are the key markers of the émigré historians' views. (p. 564)
- Richard Joseph Golsan, Vichy's Afterlife, University of Nevada Press, 2003, p. 130.
- Belgium's far right party in Holocaust controversy Archived April 11, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, The Guardian, Friday, March 9, 2001.
- Court rules Vlaams Blok is racist Archived March 3, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, BBC News, November 9, 2004.
- Starcevic, Seb (September 18, 2024). "Belgian far-right party puts convicted Holocaust denier up for local elections". Politico. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
- Cohen, Reut (May 8, 2018) "Canadian Alfred Schaefer Convicted of Holocaust Denial in Germany" Archived July 7, 2018, at the Wayback Machine B'Nal Brith Canada
- Roberta (July 6, 2018) "Canadian Holocaust denier on trial in Germany for 'incitement to hatred'" Archived February 23, 2020, at the Wayback Machine CBC News
- Staff (January 4, 2018) "Canadian Holocaust denier arrested in Germany: Report" Archived February 6, 2019, at the Wayback Machine Edmonton Sun
- JTA (January 9, 2018) "Canadian Holocaust denier arrested in Germany" Archived July 7, 2018, at the Wayback MachineThe Times of Israel
- Alfred S. "Sorry Mom, I was wrong about the Holocaust" (video) Archived August 8, 2019, at the Wayback Machine YouTube
- Staff (January 5, 2018) "Alberta Holocaust denier reportedly arrested in Germany" Archived August 7, 2019, at the Wayback Machine CBC News
- Fishman, Aidan (January 4, 2018) "Canadian Holocaust Denier Arrested in Germany Following B’nai Brith Complaint" Archived July 7, 2018, at the Wayback Machine B'Nal Brith Canada
- "Alberta Holocaust denier guilty of inciting hatred in German court". National Post. October 26, 2018. Archived from the original on June 23, 2023. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
- Sherwood, Harriet (January 27, 2019). "One in 20 Britons does not believe Holocaust took place, poll finds". The Guardian. Archived from the original on July 30, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
- Tim Harford, Peter Lynn (Professor of Survey Methodology) (February 1, 2019). Holocaust deniers, Venezuelan hyperinflation, Tinder likes. More or Less. BBC Radio 4. Event occurs at 0m27s. Archived from the original on August 16, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
- Falk, Avner (2008). Anti-Semitism: a History and Psychoanalysis of Contemporary Hatred. Westport, CT: Praeger. p. 106. ISBN 978-0-313-35384-0.
- "The IHR Denounces Campaign Against Japanese Publishing Company". Institute for Historical Review. Archived from the original on October 23, 2018. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
- "Kääntäkää aseenne ihmiskunnan suurinta vihollista, kommunismia vastaan!" (Äärioikeiston pikkupommit ja isänmaallinen paatos) Yle Areena. Yleisradio.
- Tommi Kotonen: Politiikan juoksuhaudat – Äärioikeistoliikkeet Suomessa kylmän sodan aikana, s. 64–67. Atena, Jyväskylä 2018.
- Häkkinen, Perttu; Iitti, Vesa (2022). Lightbringers of the North: Secrets of the Occult Tradition of Finland. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-64411-464-3. p. 146
- Oosi, Riikka: Kärkkäisen tuomio ei yllätä asiantuntijaa Yle. October 21, 2013. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
- Hirvonen, Tuomas: Juutalaiskirjoittelusta tuomittu Magneettimedia lopetetaan - uusi lehti tilalle Yle. November 4, 2013. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
- "Wiesenthal Centre to President of Finland: "Condemn Kärkkäinen Department Stores Tycoon Publisher of Antisemitic Free Newspapers as a National Danger."". www.wiesenthal.com.
- "Holokausti on myytti ja muita väitteitä – näin toimii suomalainen vastamedia". Yleisradio. July 11, 2024.
- Hyttinen, Kati (October 24, 2021). "Tavarataloyrittäjä Kärkkäiseltä hurja syytös presidentti Sauli Niinistöstä: "Nwo-kätyri" – kiisti päivityksessään myös holokaustin". MTV Uutiset (in Finnish).
- "Suomen Vastarintaliike jakoi holokaustin kieltäviä lappuja ympäri kouluja: "Opettajat sanoivat, että ulos täältä"". Iltalehti. November 23, 2024.
- Conference, Claims (August 13, 2020). "FIRST-EVER 50-STATE SURVEY ON HOLOCAUST KNOWLEDGE OF AMERICAN MILLENNIALS AND GEN Z REVEALS SHOCKING RESULTS". Claims Conference. Archived from the original on February 4, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
- "Nearly two-thirds of US young adults unaware 6m Jews killed in the Holocaust". The Guardian. September 16, 2020. Archived from the original on February 13, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
- "UN defines Holocaust denial in new resolution". BBC News. January 20, 2022. Archived from the original on March 24, 2022. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
- Heitmeyer, Wilhelm; Hagan, John (2003). International Handbook of Violence Research. Springer.
- Deborah Lipstadt, 1992 interview with Ken Stern of the American Jewish Committee
- "Holocaust denial – The IHR's Questions & Answers, and Nizkor's Responses". Nizkor Project. Archived from the original on December 2, 2013. Retrieved September 28, 2013.
- Hilliard, Robert L.; Keith, Michael C. (1999). Waves of Rancor: tuning in the radical right. M.E. Sharpe. p. 250. ISBN 0-7656-0131-1.
- Wolfish, Daniel; Smith, Gordon S. (2001). Who Is Afraid of the State?: Canada in a World of Multiple Centres of Power. University of Toronto Press. p. 108. ISBN 0-8020-8388-9.
- ^ "AHA Statement on Holocaust Denial". American Historical Association. Archived from the original on February 1, 2010. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
- Gerstenfeld, Phyllis B.; Grant, Diana Ruth (2004). Crimes of hate: selected readings. SAGE Publications. p. 190. ISBN 0-7619-2943-6.
- Golsan, 130
- "Millennium Evening with Elie Wiesel". PBS. April 12, 1999. Archived from the original on April 5, 2023.
- "Irving v. Lipstadt". Holocaust Denial on Trial. Archived from the original on September 27, 2010. Retrieved September 29, 2010.
- Bazyler, Michael J. "Holocaust Denial Laws and Other Legislation Criminalizing Promotion of Nazism" (PDF). International Institute for Holocaust Studies. Yad Vashem. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 5, 2011. Retrieved September 29, 2010.
- "Biography: Kenneth McVay". Order of British Columbia. Archived from the original on May 16, 2008. Retrieved June 30, 2008.
- "Annan condemns Holocaust denial". BBC News. January 2006. Archived from the original on September 6, 2017. Retrieved February 14, 2006.
- "UN Assembly condemns Holocaust denial by consensus; Iran disassociates itself". U.N. News Centre. United Nations. January 26, 2007. Archived from the original on November 26, 2017. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
- "Ahmadinejad touts Holocaust denial as great success of his tenure". Haaretz. DPA. July 7, 2013. Archived from the original on July 17, 2015. Retrieved March 23, 2014.
- Mitchell, Andrea; Connor, Tracy. "Iran's Rouhani on Holocaust: 'A massacre that cannot be denied'". NBC News. Archived from the original on September 27, 2013.
- Frankfurter, Bernhard. Die Begegnung. Auschwitz-Ein Opfer und ein Täter im Gespräch. Vienna, Verlag für Gesellschaftskritik, 1995, p. 102. cited in Jan van Pelt, Robert. The Case for Auschwitz: Evidence from the Irving Trial. Indiana University Press, 2002, p. 291.
- Demant, Ebbo, ed. (1979). Auschwitz – "Direkt von der Rampe weg...." Kaduk, Erber, Klehr: Drei Täter geben zu Protokoll [Auschwitz - "Straight from the ramp..." Kaduk, Erber, Klehr: Three perpetrators testify] (in German). Hamburg: Rowohlt. p. 114. ISBN 3-499-14438-7.
- Drei Deutsche Mörder. Aufzeichnungen über die Banalität des Bösen, Germany 1998 (filmed in 1978). Directed by Ebbo Demant, produced by Südwestrundfunk.
- Rees 2005, p. 300.
- Rees 2005, p. 301.
- "An SS Officer Remembers: The Bookkeeper from Auschwitz". Der Spiegel. May 9, 2005. Archived from the original on March 2, 2007. Retrieved April 22, 2016.
- "Holocaust Remembrance Press Release" (PDF). Romanian Chairmanship. May 26, 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 24, 2017. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
- "EU Parliament votes in favor of adopting antisemitism definition". The Jerusalem Post. June 2017. Archived from the original on July 18, 2018. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
- "Fact Sheet: Working Definition of Antisemitism" (PDF). International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. October 24, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 13, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
- "Defining Anti-Semitism: A Conversation With the EU Coordinator on Combating Anti-Semitism". June 28, 2017. Archived from the original on June 18, 2018. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
- Shelton, Dinah (2005). Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity. Macmillan Reference. p. 45.
Holocaust denial is a new form of anti-Semitism, but one that hinges on age-old motifs.
- "Introduction: Denial as Anti-Semitism". Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda. Anti-Defamation League. Archived from the original on June 4, 2011. Retrieved August 27, 2009.
- Igounet, Valérie (May 8, 1998). "Holocaust denial is part of a strategy". Le Monde diplomatique. Archived from the original on June 13, 2019.
- Reich, Walter (July 11, 1993). "Erasing the Holocaust". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 28, 2023.
- Vidal-Naquet, Pierre (1992). "A Paper Eichmann (1980) – Anatomy of a Lie: On the Revisionist Method". Assassins of Memory. Columbia University Press. Archived from the original on September 5, 2018. Retrieved August 27, 2009.
- Küntzel, Matthias (2012). "Judeophobia and the Denial of the Holocaust in Iran". Holocaust Denial: The Politics of Perfidy. De Gruyter. ISBN 978-3-11-028821-6.
- "Response to Holocaust denial on the existence of Gas Chambers and Crematoria". Nizkor Project. Archived from the original on November 20, 2013. Retrieved November 16, 2013.
- A plot designed to garner support of Israel:
- "The central assertion for the deniers is that Jews are not victims but victimizers. They 'stole' billions in reparations, destroyed Germany's good name by spreading the 'myth' of the Holocaust, and won international sympathy because of what they claimed had been done to them. In the paramount miscarriage of injustice, they used the world's sympathy to 'displace' another people so that the state of Israel could be established. This contention relating to the establishment of Israel is a linchpin of their argument." Deborah Lipstadt. Denying the Holocaust – The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory, Penguin Books, 1993, p. 27. ISBN 0-452-27274-2.
- "Jews are thus depicted as manipulative and powerful conspirators who have fabricated myths of their own suffering for their own ends. According to the Holocaust deniers, by forging evidence and mounting a massive propaganda effort, the Jews have established their lies as 'truth' and reaped enormous rewards from doing so: for example, in making financial claims on Germany and acquiring international support for Israel." The nature of Holocaust denial: What is Holocaust denial? Archived July 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, JPR report No. 3, 2000. Retrieved May 16, 2007.
- "Why, we might ask the deniers, if the Holocaust did not happen would any group concoct such a horrific story? Because, some deniers claim, there was a conspiracy by Zionists to exaggerate the plight of Jews during the war in order to finance the state of Israel through war reparations." Michael Shermer & Alex Grobman. Denying History: who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and why Do They Say It?, University of California Press, 2000, ISBN 0-520-23469-3, p. 106.
- "They picture a vast shadowy conspiracy that controls and manipulates the institutions of education, culture, the media and government in order to disseminate a pernicious mythology. The purpose of this Holocaust mythology, they assert, is the inculcation of a sense of guilt in the white, Western Christian world. Those who can make others feel guilty have power over them and can make them do their bidding. This power is used to advance an international Jewish agenda centered in the Zionist enterprise of the State of Israel." Introduction: Denial as Anti-Semitism Archived June 4, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, "Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda", Anti-Defamation League, 2001. Retrieved June 12, 2007.
- "The stress on Holocaust revisionism underscored the new anti-Semitic agenda gaining ground within the Klan movement. Holocaust denial refurbished conspiratorial anti-Semitism. Who else but the Jews had the media power to hoodwink unsuspecting masses with one of the greatest hoaxes in history? And for what motive? To promote the claims of the illegitimate state of Israel by making non-Jews feel guilty, of course." Lawrence N. Powell, Troubled Memory: Anne Levy, the Holocaust, and David Duke's Louisiana, University of North Carolina Press, 2000, ISBN 0-8078-5374-7, p. 445.
- Shermer & Grobman, 2002, pp. 103–14.
- "(H)istory is the attempt to describe events of the past and move from description to analysis, in accordance with certain agreed rules of evidence, of analysis of language, and of logic." "Yehuda Bauer, Historian of the Holocaust – Portrait of an Historian" – Online Dimensions, a Journal of Holocaust Studies, Fall, 2004
- "... the German bureaucrats' collective actions are relatively well-documented for the historian...." Christopher R. Browning, The Path to Genocide: essays on launching the final solution, Cambridge University Press, 1992, ISBN 0-521-55878-6, p. 125.
- "According to the historian Raul Hilberg, the United States alone captured forty thousand linear feet of documents on the murder of European Jews ... we can say that the Holocaust is a uniquely well-documented historical event." Deák, István. Essays on Hitler's Europe, University of Nebraska Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8032-1716-1, p. 67
- Holocaust: The events and their impact on real people, DK Publishing in conjunction with the USC Shoah Foundation Institute for Visual History and Education, p. 146. "There our troops found sights, sounds, and stenches horrible beyond belief, cruelties so enormous as to be incomprehensible to the normal mind."
- Kelly Oliver. Witnessing: beyond recognition, University of Minnesota Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8166-3627-3, p. 90.
- Shelley Hornstein and Florence Jacobowitz. Image and remembrance: representation and the Holocaust, 2003, Indiana University Press, ISBN 0-253-34188-4, pp. 205–206.
- INA, Major Interviews, General André Rogerie Archived June 29, 2017, at the Wayback Machine; audio recording
- Annette Wieviorka, Déportation et génocide. Entre la mémoire et l'oubli, Plon, 1992, p. 249.
- Shermer & Grobman, 2002, p. 33.
- Pierre Vidal-Naquet, French "une tentative d'extermination sur le papier qui relaie l'extermination réelle" in Les assassins de la mémoire, Un Eichmann de papier, Postface de Gisèle Sapiro, Nouvelle édition revue et augmentée, La Découverte, Paris, 2005, ISBN 2-7071-4545-9.
- Lechtholz-Zey, Jacqueline: Laws Banning Holocaust Denial. Genocide Prevention Now.. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
- "Russia makes Holocaust denial illegal". May 5, 2014. Archived from the original on February 25, 2019. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
- "Romania holds first Holocaust Day". BBC News. October 12, 2004. Archived from the original on October 29, 2018. Retrieved September 24, 2013.
- "Romania sparks Holocaust row". BBC News. June 17, 2003. Archived from the original on September 28, 2013. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
- "See Luxembourg, April 19, 2007, 8665/07 (Presse 84)" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved January 8, 2010.
- By way of judgment of November 7, 2007 Archived February 15, 2008, at the Wayback Machine of the Constitutional Court of Spain, which ruled the criminalization to be unconstitutional and void.
- Bilefsky, Dan (April 19, 2007). "EU adopts measure outlawing Holocaust denial". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved February 8, 2017.
- "Pierre Vidal-Naquet: A Paper Eichmann (1980) – Anatomy of a Lie (10)". Archived from the original on January 19, 2019.
To live with Faurisson? Any other attitude would imply that we were imposing historical truth as legal truth, which is a dangerous attitude available to other fields of application.
- François de Smet, Philosopher of the ULB: Le négationnisme est l'une des pires formes de racisme. Elle en est aussi sa version la plus « respectable », se parant des oripeaux de la science. C'est pour cela qu'il faut continuer à le sanctionner, in La Libre Belgique, on April 28, 2006
- Chotiner, Isaac (January 24, 2019). "Looking at Anti-Semitism on the Left and the Right: An Interview with Deborah E. Lipstadt". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on July 15, 2019. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
- ^ "Holocaust denier to be released". BBC News. December 20, 2006. Archived from the original on July 25, 2018. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
- ^ "Holocaust Denier is Jailed". BBC News. February 20, 2006. Archived from the original on August 5, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2006.
- "Holocaust denier: 'No need to show remorse'". CNN. Archived from the original on January 16, 2007. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
- Stanton, Gregory. "Eight Stages of Genocide Denial". Genocide Watch. Archived from the original on March 2, 2008. Retrieved June 19, 2013.
- Bloxham, Donald (2005). The Great Game of Genocide: Imperialism, Nationalism, and the Destruction of the Ottoman Armenians. Oxford University Press. p. 208. ISBN 978-0-19-922688-7.
- MacDonald, David B. (2008). Identity Politics in the Age of Genocide: The Holocaust and Historical Representation. Routledge. p. 133. ISBN 978-1-134-08572-9.
Sources
- Cohen, Philip J. (1996). Serbia's Secret War: Propaganda and the Deceit of History. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press. ISBN 0-89096-760-1.
- Herwig, Holger (Fall 1987). "Clio Deceived". International Security. 12 (2): 5–44. doi:10.2307/2538811. JSTOR 2538811.
- Perica, Vjekoslav (2002). Balkan Idols: Religion and Nationalism in Yugoslav States. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195174298.
- Rees, Laurence (2005). Auschwitz: The Nazis & The 'Final Solution'. London: BBC Books. ISBN 0-563-52117-1.
Bibliography
- About Holocaust denial
- Abbot, A. (1994). "Holocaust Denial Research Disclaimed". Nature. 368 (6471): 483. Bibcode:1994Natur.368..483A. doi:10.1038/368483a0.
- Algazy, Joseph (1984). La tentation néo-fasciste en France: de 1944 à 1965. Fayard. ISBN 978-2213014265.
- Amarasingam, Amarnath (July 2007). "Who Denies the Holocaust And Why Do They Deny It?". The Jewish Magazine. Archived from the original on February 22, 2009. Retrieved February 9, 2009.
- Bailer-Galanda, Brigitte; Lasek, Wilhelm (1992). Amoklauf gegen die Wirklichkeit. NS-Verbrechen und revisionistische Geschichtsschreibung. Wien.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Barnes, Ian R. (2002). "I am a Fascist Writer: Maurice Bardèche–Ideologist and Defender of French Fascism". The European Legacy. 7 (2): 195–209. doi:10.1080/10848770220119659. ISSN 1084-8770. S2CID 144988319.
- Bar-On, Tamir (2016). Where Have All The Fascists Gone?. Routledge. ISBN 9781351873130.
- Bastian, Till (1994). Auschwitz und die «Auschwitz-Lüge». Massenmord und Geschichtsfälschung. München: Beck'sche Reihe.
- Bauer, Yehuda (1998). "A Past that Will Not Go Away". In Berenbaum, Michael; Peck, Abraham J. (eds.). The Holocaust and History: The Known, the Unknown, the Disputed, and the Reexamined. Bloomington: Indiana University Press in association with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. pp. 12–22.
- Bensoussan, Georges (May–August 1999). "Négationnisme et antisionnisme: récurrences et convergences des discours du rejet". Revue d'histoire de la Shoah. 166. Centre de documentation juive contemporaine.
- Berger, Alan L. (1998). "Holocaust Denial: Tempest in a Teapot, or Storm on the Horizon?". In Garber, Zev; Libowitz, Richard (eds.). Peace, in Deed: Essays in Honor of Harry James Cargas. Atlanta: Scholars Press. pp. 31–45.
- Bridonneau, Pierre (1997). Oui, il faut parler des négationnistes. Éditions du Cerf.
- Dan, Joseph (1995). "Four Ways of Holocaust Denial". In Goodman-Thau, Eveline; Daxner, Michael (eds.). Bruch und Kontinuität: Jüdisches Denken in der europäischen Geistesgeschichte. Berlin: Akademie Verlag. pp. 39–46.
- Drobnicki, John A.; Goldman, Carol R.; Knight, Trina R.; Thomas, Johanna V. "Holocaust Denial Literature: A Bibliography". Archived from the original on December 20, 2008. Retrieved December 8, 2008.
- Evans, Richard J. (1999). In Defense of History. New York: Norton.
- Evans, Richard J. (2002). Lying About Hitler: History, Holocaust, and the David Irving Trial. Basic Books. ISBN 0-465-02153-0.) — As well as the story of the Irving case, this is an excellent case study on historical research.
- Finkenberger, Martin; Junginger, Horst, eds. (2004). Im Dienste der Lügen. Herbert Grabert (1901–1978) und seine Verlage. Aschaffenburg: Alibri. ISBN 3-932710-76-2.
- Finney, Patrick (1998). "Ethics, Historical Relativism and Holocaust Denial". Rethinking History. 2 (3): 359–369. doi:10.1080/13642529809408972.
- Flores, M. (2001). Storia, Verità e Giustizia. Milano: Mondadori.
- Fresco, Nadine (June 1980). "Les redresseurs de morts. Chambres à gaz: la bonne nouvelle. Comment on révise l'histoire". Les Temps Modernes. 407.
- Fresco, Nadine (1981). The Denial of the Dead On the Faurisson Affair.
- Germinario, Francesco (2001). Estranei alla democrazia. Negazionismo e antisemitismo nella destra radicale italiana. Pisa: BFS Editore.
- Gottfried, Ted (2001). Deniers of the Holocaust: Who They Are, What They Do, Why They Do It. Brookfield, CT: Twenty-First Century Books.
- Gray, Charles (2000). The Irving Judgment. Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-029899-1. — Actual text of the judgment in the Irving case.
- Guttenplan, D. D. (2002). The Holocaust on Trial. Norton.
- Igounet, Valérie (May 1998). "Un négationnisme stratégique". Les terroirs de l'extrême-droite. Le Monde diplomatique. Archived from the original on March 16, 2024. Retrieved March 16, 2024.
- Igounet, Valérie (2000). Histoire du négationnisme en France [History of negationism in France] (in French). Le Seuil. ISBN 9782021009538. Archived from the original on July 5, 2024. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
- Klein, Wayne (1998). "Truth's Turning: History and the Holocaust". In Milchman, Alan; Rosenberg, Alan (eds.). Postmodernism and the Holocaust. Amsterdam: Editions Rodopi. pp. 53–83.
- Lipstadt, Deborah (1993). Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory. Plume. — Debunking Holocaust revisionism.
- Markiewicz, Jan; Gubala, Wojciech; Labedz, Jerzy (1994). "A Study of the Cyanide Compounds Content in the Walls of the Gas Chambers in the Former Auschwitz & Birkenau Concentration Camps". Z Zagadnien Sądowych. XXX.
- Morris, Errol (director) (1999). Mr. Death: The Rise and Fall of Fred A. Leuchter, Jr. Holocaust denial at IMDb .
- Niewyk, Donald L., ed. (1992). The Holocaust: Problems and Perspectives of Interpretation. D.C. Heath and Company.
- Petropoulos, Jonathan (1999). "Holocaust Denial: A Generational Typology". In Hayes, Peter (ed.). Lessons and Legacies. Vol. III: Memory, Memorialization, and Denial. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press.
- Pisanty, Valentina (1998). L'irritante questione delle camere a gas. Logica del negazionismo. Milano: Bompiani.
- Pressac, Jean Claude (December 12, 1988). "Les carences et incohérences du Rapport Leuchter". Jour J., la lettre télégraphique juive (in French).
- Pressac, Jean Claude (1993). Les Crématoires d'Auschwitz: La machinerie du meurtre de masse (in French). Paris: CNRS editions.
- Rotondi, Francesco (2005). Luna di miele ad Auschwitz. Riflessioni sul negazionismo della Shoah. Napoli: Edizioni Scientifiche Italiane.
- Rousso, Henry (September 1, 2004). Commission sur le racisme et le négationnisme à l'université Jean-Moulin Lyon III : Rapport à Monsieur le Ministre de l'Education nationale (PDF) (Report). Paris. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 16, 2024. Retrieved March 16, 2024.
- Shermer, Michael (1997). Why People Believe Weird Things: Pseudoscience, Superstition, and Other Confusions of Our Time. New York: Freeman. ISBN 0-8050-7089-3.
- Shermer, Michael (1998). "Holocaust Revisionism Update: David Cole Recants/David Irving Says Churchill Knew About Pearl Harbor". Skeptic. 6 (1): 23–25.
- Shermer, Michael; Grobman, Alex (2002). Denying History: Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and Why Do They Say It?. University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-23469-3.
- Van Pelt, Robert Jan (February 4, 2002). The Case for Auschwitz: Evidence from the Irving Trial. Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-34016-0.
- Vidal-Naquet, Pierre (1995). "Qui sont les assassins de la mémoire?". Réflexions sur le génocide. Les juifs, la mémoire et le présent. Vol. III. La Découverte.
- Vidal-Naquet, Pierre (2005). "Les assassins de la mémoire". Un Eichman de papier. Afterword by Gisèle Sapiro (Nouvelle revue et augmentée ed.). Paris: La Découverte. ISBN 2-7071-4545-9.
- Wandres, Thomas (2000). Die Strafbarkeit des Auschwitz-Leugnens. Berlin. ISBN 3-428-10055-7.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Wegner, Werner (1990). "Keine Massenvergasungen in Auschwitz? Zur Kritik des Leuchter-Gutachtens". In Backes, Uwe; Jesse, Eckhard; Zitelmann, Rainer (eds.). Die Schatten der Vergangenheit. Impulse zur Historisierung der Vergangenheit. Berlin: Propyläen. pp. 450–476. ISBN 3-549-07407-7.
- Wellers, George (1989). "A propos du "Rapport Leuchter" et les chambres à gaz d'Auschwitz". Le Monde Juif. 134.
- Wicken, Stephen (2006). "Views of the Holocaust in Arab Media and Public Discourse" (PDF). Yale Journal of International Affairs: 103–15. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 21, 2013. Retrieved February 2, 2014.
- Zarusky, Jürgen (November 9–10, 1999). Leugnung des Holocaust. Die antisemitische Strategie nach Auschwitz. Bundesprüfstelle für jugendgefährdende Schriften Aktuell – Amtliches Mitteilungsblatt (Report). Marburg.
- Zimmerman, John C. (January 16, 2000). "Holocaust Denial". Los Angeles Times. p. M4.
- Zimmerman, John C. (2000). Holocaust denial: demographics, testimonies, and ideologies. Lanham, MD: University Press of America.
- By Holocaust deniers
- "Anti-Semitism and Holocaust Denial in the Iranian Media". Special Dispatch Series. Vol. 855. Middle East Media Research Institute. January 28, 2005. Archived from the original on August 2, 2006. Retrieved November 8, 2005.
- Butz, Arthur R. (1994). The Hoax of the Twentieth Century: The Case Against the Presumed Extermination of European Jewry. Newport Beach: Institute for Historical Review. ISBN 0-9679856-9-2.
- Daoud, Mohammad (September 6, 2000). "Syrian Holocaust Denial". Syria Times. Archived from the original on December 17, 2016. Retrieved November 8, 2005 – via Jewish Virtual Library.
- Faurisson, Robert (Spring 1989). "My Life As a Revisionist". The Journal of Historical Review. 9 (1): 5.
- Gauss, Ernst, ed. (2000). Dissecting the Holocaust: The Growing Critique of 'Truth' and 'Memory. Alabama: Theses & Dissertations Press. ISBN 0-9679856-0-9. — "Gauss" is a pseudonym for Germar Rudolf, the founder of "Theses & Dissertations Press."
- Graf, Jürgen (1992). Der Holocaust auf dem Prüfstand.
- Harwood, Richard E. Did Six Million Really Die?. Noontide Press.
- Hoffman, II, Michael (June 1985). The Great Holocaust Trial (2nd ed.). ISBN 0-939484-22-6.
- Leuchter, Fred A.; Faurisson, Robert; Rudolf, Germar (2005). The Leuchter Reports: Critical Edition. Chicago: Theses & Dissertations Press. ISBN 1-59148-015-9.
- Paz, Reuven (April 21, 2000). "Palestinian Holocaust Denial". Peacewatch. Archived from the original on October 23, 2006. Retrieved November 8, 2005.
- Rudolf, Germar (2001). The Rudolf Report: Expert Report on Chemical and Technical Aspects of the 'Gas Chambers' of Auschwitz. Chicago: Theses & Dissertations Press.
External links
- An online lecture by Ephraim Kaye, of Yad Vashem
- When Denying History is Incitement to Violence, By Robert Rozett of Yad Vashem
- The Wiener Holocaust Library – The World's Oldest Holocaust Memorial Institution
- The Nizkor Project – responses to Holocaust denial
- 66 questions and answers on Holocaust denial—the Nizkor Project
- The Holocaust History Project – documents and essays on the Holocaust and its denial
- Holocaust Education & Archive Research Team (HEART)
- Holocaust Denial: An Online Guide to Exposing and Combating Anti-Semitic Propaganda Published by the Anti-Defamation League
- Holocaust Denial on Trial, Documents and resources relating to the David Irving vs. Penguin Books and Deborah Lipstadt trial
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Absence of Humanity Exhibit – The Breman Museum
- Denial of the Holocaust and the genocide in Auschwitz from the online web site
- Holocaust Denial Laws and Other Legislation Criminalizing Promotion of Nazism by Prof. Michael J. Bazyler