Really, ‘Human Dust’?

Abstract

Israeli society first came in contact with and formed its opinion of the survivors of the Holocaust largely through the publicity given to legal proceedings and Holocaust-related court cases — Kästner’s much publicized trial as well as the Eichmann trial and, more recently, the Demyanjuk case. These trials were all highly charged emotionally and aroused considerable public interest and sympathy for the Holocaust survivors. Several films made on the subject have had a similar effect — Claude Lantzman’s Shoah, and Orna Ben-Dor-Niv’s Because of that War and Cloudburst. In recent years, too, meetings arranged between the survivors and young Israelis have become an integral part of Holocaust studies in Israel’s education system.