Holocaust and Sweden – On a Museum
How can a museum work when its task is to treat the most severe crimes in human history? Is there a meaningful place for it at all in Sweden? An official report concerning a Swedish museum of the Holocaust has been worked out and presented at the request of Swedish government.
The guiding thought of the proposal is to establish a place for knowledge and discussion of values with a starting-point in the Holocaust.
The proposal is a step in the strive for the analysis and understanding of the modern Swedish society. It is also an attempt to repress and obstruct rascism and xenophobia and what has been seen as a lack of knowledge in the history of the Holocaust.
The proposal gives certain emphasis to the pedagogical problems. This applies particularly to the possibilities of each individual visitor to raise questions and search for knowledge. The museum should also supply the visitor with instruments to move on. There must be room for hope and relief. The proposal also emphasizes the importance of a close connection between the museum and the research institutes.
It is the author’s hope that the museum will be an injection to the Swedish world of museums. Most Swedish museums have not been able to raise and discuss the important questions of our time. Nor have sufficient attention been paid to the use of the cultural heritage in racism and xenophobia. A new museum of the Holocaust will hopefully help to reinstall such questions in the museums.
