ARTICLES

Bp. Sullivan students study effects of Holocaust

By Barabara Hughes
Special to The Catholic Virginian

After a few students from Bishop Sullivan High School in Virginia Beach targeted the Jewish religion during a sports event last year, Dennis Price, principal of the school said, “Something positive will come from this and we’ll be better because of it.”

Apologies to the Jewish community were extended and accepted and a commitment was made by Mr. Price and the faculty to take a more pro-active stance in promoting tolerance, understanding and inter-cultural sensitivity among students.

A multi-faceted approach towards this end is now in place. Elaine Lyons, religion teacher at the high school, was appointed full-time campus minister to better integrate the faith formation of students with every day life.

Freshmen students visited the Holocaust Museum in Richmond and juniors in the Honors English classes are reading “Night” by Elie Wiesel.

“The goal is to look at genocide from a global and personal perspective,” said Dana St. John who teaches the AP classes.

“The enhanced curriculum ties the cycle of tragedy with lessons taught in the classroom.”

Students are doing research and projects on the topic of genocide and will design a fabric swatch to form a quilt framed by the words of Dr. Martin Luther King: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable vulnerability, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”

Lauren Fletcher, a junior at the school, explained her project will illustrate that genocide values things more than people. She said her research has made her more sensitive to the genocide occurring in Darfur and other parts of the world.

Seniors Sarah Fletcher and Samuel Khorram were among art students who made ceramic heads representing Holocaust victims. Their features portray the suffering of victims as envisioned by the students.

Cylinders serve as bodies to illustrate that genocide happens when individuals are no longer seen as human beings.

When asked how the lessons learned affect her personally, Sarah responded, “When you try to imagine what it was like for them, it makes you think about what you say and do.”

Art teacher Robbin Brothers explained that students are taking something that happened over 60 years ago and relating it to what people are experiencing today.

“We want students to take some type of ownership for what’s happening in the world,” the teacher said.

A third facet of the commitment has been the formation of a coalition known as Communities Against Bigotry (CAB).

A group of 10 concerned individuals and affiliated institutions including Catholic Charities of Eastern Virginia and the Barry Robinson Foundation began meeting last summer. They approached local businesses and faith-based institutions to contribute funds and raised $100,000 towards the effort.

The mission of CAB is to reach young people through innovative educational programming and events. The coalition hopes to expand the focus to include civil rights and groups that are discriminated against or persecuted.

As a first effort, CAB is bringing the play “No More Raisins, No More Almonds” to the Sandler Performing Arts Center in Virginia Beach on November 20.

The play is about young people who were trapped in a European ghetto during the Holocaust. Directed by award-winning Artistic Director Byrne Wasserman from Montreal, Canada, the play is based on historical facts and features songs written about children during the Holocaust.

Ms. Lyons said the strength of the production lies in children speaking to children.

“The production continues to resonate because so many young people in our world today suffer — not because of what they did but for who they are,” she explained.

Students from Bishop Sullivan High School as well as eighth grade students from Catholic schools in Virginia Beach and Norfolk will attend a matinee performance. A total of 3,900 tickets have been sold to public and private schools.

Art projects from Bishop Sullivan High will be on display at the Sandler Center on the day of the performance.

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