Valerie Hebert ed., "Framing the Holocaust: Photographs of a Mass Shooting in Latvia, 1941" (U Wisconsin Press, 2023)
Framing the Holocaust: Photographs of a Mass Shooting in Latvia, 1941\xa0(University of Wisconsin Press, 2023), edited by\xa0Valerie H\xe9bert, compiles essays on the meaning of twelve photographs of a terrible atrocity.\xa0In December 1941, German police and their local collaborators shot 2,749 Jews at the beach in S\u0137\u0113de, near Liep\u0101ja, Latvia. Twelve photographs were taken at the scene. These now-infamous images show people in extreme distress, sometimes without clothing. Some capture the very moments when women and children confronted their imminent deaths, while others show their dead bodies. They are nearly unbearable to look at -- so why should we?\xa0\nFraming the Holocaust\xa0offers a multidimensional response to this question. While photographs are central to our memory of modern historical events, they often inhabit an ambivalent intellectual space. What separates the sincere desire to understand from voyeuristic curiosity? Comprehending atrocity photographs requires viewers to place themselves in the very positions of the perpetrators who took the images. When we engage with these photographs, do we risk replicating the original violence? In this tightly organized book, scholars of history, photography, language, gender, photojournalism, and pedagogy examine the images of the S\u0137\u0113de atrocity along with other difficult images, giving historical, political, and ethical depth to the acts of looking and interpreting. With a foreword by Edward Anders, who narrowly escaped the December 1941 shooting,\xa0Framing the Holocaust\xa0represents an original approach to an iconic series of Holocaust photographs. This book contributes to compelling debates in the emerging field of visual history, including the challenges and responsibilities of using photographs to teach about atrocity.\nLink Mentioned in the Episode:\xa0\ufeffDigitized\xa0Mizrakh Yidisher Historisher Arkhiv archive\xa0(YIVO Institute for Jewish Research)\n\ufeffHallel Yadin\xa0is an archivist and special projects manager at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices\nSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/genocide-studies