“Never Forget” Holocaust exhibit up for viewing at HCC

The auditorium building of Hopkinsville Community College will be home to the “Never Again” Holocaust Murals for the next few days and the community is invited to come view the artwork.

The pieces, crafted by students taking part in a gifted and talented program at Western Kentucky University, are designed to remember those who lost their lives during one of history’s darkest times. Ron Skillern with the Center for Gifted Studies at WKU teaches the students who create the pieces during summer courses that last seven hours a day and often include a trip to the Holocaust Memorial in Washington D.C.

Skillern says the program is very important, as it teaches the students and those who attend the exhibit to never forget what humankind is capable of and to never fall into that outcome again. 

He says this exhibit is unlike any other and he urges people to read the explanations that come with the art so they can learn more about the Holocaust and those who were impacted by it—especially the 6 million plus Jewish people who lost their lives. 

The exhibit will be open from 8 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. Saturday and then will reopen Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday during college business hours. A time and day for an exhibit reception will be announced soon.

The Kentucky legislature recently passed a “Never Forget” bill, which makes teaching of the Holocaust and other acts of genocide mandatory in Kentucky schools.