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There are
other historical events similar to the Holocaust, but the Holocaust
has characteristics that, in the opinion of many scholars, make it
unique. Mass murder, sometimes on a scale of millions and targeting
specific religious, ethnic, or social groups, has occurred in
history. Governments other than that of Nazi Germany have used camp
systems and technology to serve deadly plans, and the Jews have been
persecuted throughout much of history. However, the Holocaust may be
considered unique for two main reasons: 1) unlike their policies
toward other groups, the Nazis sought to murder every Jew
everywhere, regardless of age, gender, beliefs, or actions, and they
invoked a modern government bureaucracy to accomplish their goal;
and 2) the Nazi leadership held that ridding the world of the Jewish
presence would be beneficial to the German people and all mankind,
although in reality the Jews posed no threat. Grounded in a spurious
racist ideology that considered the Jews "the destructive
race," it was this idea, more than any other, that eventually
led to the implementation of the murderous policy known as the Final
Solution. |
