Francis Marion University students and professors will honor victims and survivors of the Holocaust Thursday, Jan. 27 with a remembrance program to be held at 5 p.m. in the Lowrimore Auditorium.

The FMU Multicultural Advisory Committee is hosting the International Holocaust Remembrance Program in order to educate students, promote awareness and honor the lives of the millions of people affected by the Holocaust.

Christopher McKagen, an FMU student and member of the Multicultural Advisory Committee, said that programs like this are an important and vital way to help people learn from history and honor those who suffered or lost their lives.

“The Holocaust was one of the greatest tragedies in human history,” McKagen said. “Promoting education of the Holocaust helps spread ideas that may help prevent something like that from happening again. This program will help us to remember and honor the people who lost their lives.”

The program will provide attendees with the chance to learn about the history of the Holocaust and hear personal stories given by faculty and students. The evening will end with a candlelight ceremony to honor the victims of the Holocaust.

According to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, located in Washington, D.C., approximately six million Jewish people were murdered by the Nazi regime during the Holocaust. The Nazis came into power in Germany in 1933 and were led by Adolf Hitler. Hitler led Germany on a quest to take over much of Europe by force and effectively convinced his Nazi followers that it was necessary to eliminate those who got in the way of that goal.

Between 1933 and 1945, it is estimated that the Nazis killed two out of every three European Jews. These murders took place as part of what the Nazis called “The Final Solution,” which grew out of a propagandized belief taught by Hitler that Jewish people were racially inferior to Germans and should therefore be eliminated.

The Holocaust was brought to an end in 1945 upon the completion of World War II when Hitler and his Nazi followers were defeated by other world powers. Although there is much debate by scholars over the events of World War II, there is no doubt that millions of innocent Jewish people were victims of unimaginable horrors. Their great loss and suffering during that time stands now as a symbol to people throughout the world to stand up and fight against the genocide of innocent people.

The Multicultural Advisory Committee consists of students, faculty and staff members who work to enhance the understanding and acceptance of a multicultural world and facilitate programs and events that achieve that purpose. For more information about the committee or the International Holocaust Remembrance Program contact Daphne Carter at (843) 661-1188.