What does being Jewish mean? Jewish identity is complex and impossible to define, as its meaning differs from person to person, period by period. During the Holocaust, one’s Jewishness—as defined by the Nazis—came to dominate Jewish life and identity. The Nazis regarded Jews as members of an inferior race. Yet, in exploring several artifacts and stories of victims from the Permanent Collection of the Museum of Jewish Heritage, we see that Jews themselves considered their own plight in very different ways. For some, it was racial, for others cultural or national, and still others experienced persecution as religious; it is likely that many identified with a combination of some or all of these modes. Whether it be through caricaturing Nazis, turning meaningful objects into keepsakes, or defiantly wearing a Star of David necklace, each person’s attempt to understand and reclaim their Jewish identity was a rebellion against the Nazis. Join Chaskel Tydor Curatorial Intern, Esme Kamlet, and Professor Judy Tydor Baumel-Schwartz for this deep dive of the Museum’s Collection and mission.
Esme Kamlet is a native New Yorker and a rising senior at Brandeis University where she studies Near Eastern and Judaic Studies, focusing on the Bible and the Ancient World. Esme aspires to be a museum professional. In her free time, Esme enjoys knitting, singing and spending time with friends.
Professor Judy Tydor Baumel-Schwartz is the Director of the Arnold and Leona Finkler Institute of Holocaust Research, the Abraham and Edita Spiegel Family Professor in Holocaust Research, the Rabbi Pynchas Brener Professor in Research on the Holocaust of European Jewry, and Professor of Modern Jewish History in the Israel and Golda Koschitzky Department of Jewish History and Contemporary Jewry at Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel. She is the Consulting Historian and Curator of the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York.
The Chaskel Tydor Curatorial Internship is awarded to one student twice annually, who should be engaged in scholarship in Holocaust Studies, Jewish History and/or Studies, European History, Museum Studies, or related fields. Interns work closely with the Collections and Exhibitions Department, meet with object donors to welcome new objects into the Collection, and host public programs as part of the Museum’s adult education initiatives to provide insight into the Museum’s curatorial and scholarly work. As the benefactor of the internship, the Museum’s new Consulting Historian and Curator, Professor Judy Tydor Baumel-Schwartz, will mentor interns participating in the program.
Image credit: Star of David necklace made by Manci Rubinstein in Auschwitz, Poland. Gift of Sugar siblings in memory of Rosenfeld & Schwartz families, 2000.A.105