By Addison Schwing – Staff Reporter

The History Department held a special event in remembrance of the Holocaust for the Class of 2022 on May 2.

The Class of 2022 was treated to a viewing of “The Pianist” and then heard Holocaust survivors give their accounts of surviving. History teacher Mr. Dooley organized the day and has been doing so for 12 years, with assistance from history teacher Mr. Young.

“The first year coming in, myself and another teacher were brainstorming what we can do like this event, where we could get the students interested in the topic, and have a cumulative activity in our classrooms,” Dooley said.

“The Pianist” is a 2002 film that follows the story of  Władysław Szpilman, a Polish pianist who lived in Warsaw when Germany invaded Poland in 1939. Szpilman survived the ghettos and concentration camps and aided the Warsaw uprising by smuggling weapons. The film received critical acclaim for its raw depictions of life in the ghettos, as well as winning numerous awards, including an Academy Award for Best Picture.

“We chose ‘The Pianist’ because it is a true story, and how it expresses how it looked throughout the ghettos and the Holocaust,” Dooley said.

Young also lamented on the significance of the film and why it was chosen as a component of this event.

“It puts a firsthand view of what that experience was like and (Szpilman’s) survival towards the end,” he said.

Young and Dooley both teach Modern World History to freshmen, and together they have been successfully running this show for over a decade. World War II is one of the most prominent facets of this class, and with it, the Holocaust.

“Everyone in the history department recognizes how important it is to properly remember what happened, study what happened, and recognize how people who were involved tried to resist what happened,” Young said. “It’s important to ensure that this never happens again.”

Guest speakers from the Holocaust Child Survivors of Connecticut (HCSC) also came and shared their stories about growing up in a time that was incredibly unsafe and dangerous for them.

“Our speaker did a great job talking about how he experienced so much hate, but how he still has so much love for the world and people,” Young said.

Freshman Connor Richards said that the presentations had an impact on him.

“It made me realize how real the situation was, and how recent it was as well,” he said. “People were severely affected by this, as well as their parents, their homes and everything around them, and it changed the way they look at life. It makes you realize how real these things are, and that there are survivors who won’t be here for long. We need to embrace it as much as possible before it’s gone.”

Freshman Jayden Wyoda appreciated the authenticity of the guest speakers.

“I thought it was very interesting to hear a firsthand account of what happened during the Holocaust,” Wyodasaid.” It was very moving to me because it’s such a hard thing to talk about. The speaker was so proud to share his story, and he made sure to emphasize certain things so we would remember and ensure that these things wouldn’t happen again.

Freshman Lucas Piscelli said the entire day was memorable.

“I thought it was very interesting yet also very informal,” Piscelli said. “The movie showed how the guy escaped and survived throughout, and it was cool to hear how the speaker survived as well.”