Holocaust memory and museums in the United States : problems of representation / by Jennifer Faber.

Despite the fact that the Holocaust took place in a distant location and involved but a few Americans, numerous communities and local governments have chosen to memorialize the event within the United States. This paper will address issues of representation of the Holocaust, specifically in museums, and will contemplate possible alternatives for museum exhibitions. Museums provide a unique opportunity to investigate Holocaust memory. Museum visitors not only learn through their experiences in exhibitions, but they also walk away with some sense of themselves and the world around them. Suggestions for alternatives or alterations to the narrative style of Holocaust museums, such as an atmosphere that encourages and demands visitors to ask questions of themselves and the knowledge that is presented to them, will also be considered. Such questioning by both museum visitors and historians is essential in effectively representing and attempting to understand the Holocaust.