New Survey Showing Public Ignorance About the Holocaust Among Young Americans

A new survey finds that 1 in 5 Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 believe the Holocaust is a myth.

Peter Bergen : Ambiguities in the survey question make it seem worse than might actually be the case.

He says ignorance may be just one facet of general public ignorance about politics and history, not anti-Semitism.

Bergen says ignorance about the Holocaust not driven by a desire to cover up truth about this specific event.

Any solution to the problem probably cannot focus on the Holocaust alone, but must consider the broader issue of historical and political ignorance.

Increasing public knowledge of politics and history is likely to prove a much tougher challenge than some imagine it to be.

In the meantime, ignorance about the Holocaust makes it more likely that we will fail to learn the lessons of these tragic events, and thus be at greater risk of repeating them.