The road to Auschwitz was paved with frustration, populism, stigmatization of the Jews as scapegoats, dehumanization of fellow man and passivity to institutionalized hatred.
Today, our anxiety should be aroused by the fact that the post-war road out of Auschwitz may paradoxically have come full circle. It may occur again as none of the initial stages of the road that led to Auschwitz have disappeared once and for all. The escalation of populism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism and other racist ideologies is discernible in many parts of our world.
Perhaps this unrest is a signpost for us to find paths to lasting peace. Today, anyone seeking peace cannot escape the feeling of unrest. Because we know too much.
Today, unawareness is no longer an excuse or justification. We have access to all information and to several tools that influence public discourse.
And yet, our human passivity has not undergone a profound transformation. Our familial, tribal and national egotism are still perceived as virtues of patriotism. Pride continually prevents us from seeing equality in humans. Maturity is a state that we are still nowhere near.
Memory is, therefore, the fundamental key to responsibility. Memory thus compels us to look into the future.
The world, meanwhile, is changing at an alarming rate. For many years, analysts have been unable to keep up with the changing pace of civilization. It has been even more difficult for the entire education system to keep pace with these changes. Therefore, we need clear signposting, indisputable boundary conditions, stable and uncontested points of reference. Hence, of all the events of the recent past, Auschwitz increasingly appeals to us. We cannot cope without this memory.
Auschwitz and the Shoah do not yet constitute another single, dramatic event in the linear history of humanity. When we look at everything that happened before, and how much has happened in opposition to this unique experience, it is difficult not to understand that it is a critical point in the history of Europe, and perhaps the world.
It was after this war - and none other - that the legal definitions of genocide and crimes against humanity were established. It was then that human rights were universally understood, as a natural entitlement of all. It is from this perspective that the building of intra-European relations, based on values of community and interdependence, was set in motion. At the same time, a vision of a new civil society was born, not based on paramilitary models from earlier centuries. This period also gave birth to the large-scale search for ecumenical paths. Auschwitz, as a critical point, has a chance to become a point of no return. However, it will happen only thanks to memory. Or perhaps it will not happen.
Therefore, through this exhibition, this encounter with the darkest card in the history of Europe, listening to the words of witnesses, coming into contact with such meaningful authentic objects, and this time of self-reflection - we invite you to take this road full of unrest. Desired unrest.
Dr. Piotr M. A. Cywiński, Director of the Auschwitz Memorial. This article was published in the exhibition catalogue.
We all need peace. Meanwhile, memory breeds unrest
Dr Piotr M.A. Cywiński