This evening Israel marks the Holocaust Remembrance Day, commemorating the loss of 6 million Jews in the hands of the Nazis and their collaborators, honoring those who have survived, celebrating rebirth and discussing how such events could be prevented from ever happening again.
There are so many aspects of this topic that could be discussed, but I've chosen to focus on how the psychological impact it's had on Israeli Jews played an important role in driving the country's economic success.
It is very difficult to comprehend what happened during the Holocaust. For the first time in history, there was a concerted effort to annihilate an entire people united by a culture, history and religion. Jews were dragged away from their ordinary life, their families and friends, transported in sub-human conditions to camps, starved, underclothed, mistreated and murdered. The horrors inflicted upon so many caused them to live as hunted animals, always on the alert for danger. What kept them going was the hope of reuniting with their families.
Many survivors who chose to immigrate to Israel were characterized by their desire to rebuild their lives and their families, to succeed and claim victory for themselves, to eradicate the image of Jews as passive sheep. Together with Israelis who had not personally experienced the Holocaust, survivors focused on rebuilding their land through strong work ethic, a desire to prove their worth to themselves and to the world. This attitude became ingrained in Israeli society and greatly contributed to the country's economic, social and military successes against all odds.
Economic reform, which primarily began in the late 70's, unleashed the pent-up educational and attitudinal characteristics and potential of the people, resulting in consistent economic growth with brain capital at its core.
The success-orientation of Israelis, their self-reliance, and focus on families, friends and communities are some of the characteristics that have contributed to the country's leadership in technological innovation, entrepreneurship and capital investment, and which can be traced, at least to a degree, to the survival of the most horrific event civilization has witnessed.
Ilan Friedman
Originally posted April 15, 2015
With contribution from: http://www.sandrawilliams.org/HOLOCAUST/holocaust.html
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