As part of Seton Hill's Annual Washington, D.C., Trip, the Center arranged a group tour of The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum on Saturday, September 29, 2007. The tour was led by two of the Center’s interns, seniors Andrea Perkins and Marcus Thompson.

“It was a lot to take in,” said Thompson. “Reading the testimonials really stuck out in my mind. I think everyone should visit the museum.”

“The exhibits at the museum were unique in that they depicted a horrific aspect of human behavior that most classes about the Holocaust fail to touch on,” said Rosemary McFee, a senior.

“The museum shows the high and low points of human nature, from the selfless and brave actions of those who took Jewish children into their homes to protect them from the Nazis, to the despicable and atrocious actions of the Nazis themselves,” said Ryan Gephart, a junior.

The museum has earned national recognition for its content, exhibitions, and architecture.

An inside look at The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

“The architecture is designed to resemble a concentration camp facility, so as soon as I entered the building, I got this really sterile and emotionless feeling,” said McFee.

The permanent exhibitions are on three floors and consist of the Nazi Assault - 1933 to 1939, the “Final Solution” - 1940 to 1945, and the Last Chapter.

“The experience is unlike any other,” said Gephart. “When you first walk through the doors of the elevator to the permanent exhibit, you bear witness to some of the most powerful and emotional scenes that one could fathom.”

The museum has one of the world’s largest collections of artifacts, photos, films, survivor-testimonies. There’s also the Hall of Remembrance and a wall of over 3,000 ceramic tiles painted by schoolchildren, in honor of the 1.5 million child victims of the Holocaust.

“A part of the museum that resonated with me strongly showed how the Nazis administered unethical medical testing on Jewish people in concentration camps. We saw pictures and video footage of some of the experiments that the Nazis conducted on them, including young children,” said McFee. “As a biology major looking to enter the medical field, and more importantly, as a person who understands the importance of human rights, seeing footage of humans mistreating other humans made me feel disgusted and angry that such acts were allowed to occur.”

The museum is visited by thousands of people every year. It is a place that exposes the past and provides information for the future.

“Although I've been to the museum before, it just hit me harder this time,” said Gephart. “I found myself in tears at the beginning and end of the exhibit, as well as giving a slight smile in between at the brave actions of those who fought for freedom, whether on the battlefield or in homes all across Europe.”

McFee said, “One quote that I read in the museum stuck with me and made me realize that by learning about the tragic events of the Holocaust, we can ensure that we will not let genocide occur again: ‘Thou shalt not be a victim. Thou shalt not be a perpetrator. Above all, thou shalt not be a bystander.’”

(From left to right) Andrea Perkins, Orit Farchi, Marcus Thompson, and Rosemary McFee