As the world prepares to mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, a troubling new study has exposed critical gaps in Holocaust knowledge and awareness among young adults in the United Kingdom and United States. The survey, conducted by the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, found that a third of British youth aged 18-29 were unable to name Auschwitz or any other Nazi concentration camp or ghetto.
Lack of Basic Holocaust Facts
The study revealed stark deficiencies in fundamental Holocaust knowledge across the countries surveyed. While 69% of respondents in the UK were able to identify Auschwitz-Birkenau, more than a quarter could not name a single Nazi camp or ghetto. In the US, nearly half of young adults were unable to name any concentration camps or killing sites.
Additionally, significant portions of the population in the eight countries surveyed were unaware that 6 million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust. Subsets ranging from 18-28% believed that 2 million or fewer Jews were killed. This lack of basic factual knowledge about the scope and details of the Holocaust is highly concerning to historians and educators.
Growing Holocaust Distortion on Social Media
Compounding the knowledge gaps is the alarming spread of Holocaust denial and distortion on social media platforms. Nearly a quarter of UK respondents said they had encountered Holocaust denial or distortion on social media, with that figure rising to 47% in Poland and over a third in Austria, Hungary, Germany and the US.
The reported high levels of Holocaust denial and distortion, seemingly fuelled by misinformation and disinformation on social media platforms, are particularly troubling.
Prof Stuart Foster, UCL Centre for Holocaust Education
Among the 18-29 age group in the UK who had encountered Holocaust denial online, 42% cited TikTok as the platform where they had seen it, highlighting the urgent need for social media companies to combat the spread of hate and misinformation on their sites.
Calls for Strengthened Holocaust Education
In light of these “alarming gaps in knowledge,” historians and Holocaust education advocates are calling for a redoubling of efforts to improve and expand Holocaust teaching in schools worldwide. Gideon Taylor, president of the Claims Conference, emphasized that “the fact that a significant number of adults cannot identify basic facts – such as the 6 million Jews who perished – is deeply concerning.”
- 69% in UK able to identify Auschwitz-Birkenau
- 26% in UK unable to name any Nazi camps or ghettos
- 48% of US young adults could not name a single camp
Professor Foster added, “It is some comfort that respondents overwhelmingly support Holocaust education in schools.” As living memory of the Holocaust fades with the passing of elderly survivors, it is more critical than ever that the history and lessons of the Holocaust be passed on to younger generations to prevent a resurgence of antisemitism and far-right extremism.
It happened, it can happen again: that is the warning of the Holocaust to us all.
Sir Keir Starmer, UK Labour Party Leader
The study’s findings serve as a stark reminder of the work still needed to preserve and promote Holocaust memory and education, both to honor the victims and to safeguard against hatred and denial. As the world remembers the horrors of Auschwitz 80 years on, it is incumbent upon educators, leaders, and citizens to ensure that the facts of the Holocaust are never forgotten or distorted.