AHS’s STAND experienced a revelation when they went to their annual visit to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) on Saturday, January 16th 2010, at 9:30am.

Typically, STAND meetings range from discussions about genocides around the world to preparing for an upcoming event that will inform others about said genocides. It is no surprise that STAND took a field trip to the USHMM, a museum that is dedicated to one of the world’s largest genocides in history: the Holocaust.

Junior Stephanie Ayala, said, “…STAND advocates for problems in the world today so that events such as the Holocaust can be stopped and prevented. The Holocaust Museum teaches about one of the several genocides that have occurred around the World and STAND focuses on the genocide occurring today…”

STAND members know just how bad genocide can be for a civilization, but do they know just how bad the consequences are? STAND’s guided tour at the museum had exposed them to the effects of genocide. Actually seeing the artifacts and reading the personal stories of the victims of the Holocaust can truly help a person grasp the idea of how catastrophic genocides can be.

Senior and President of STAND Manal Elhak, said, “USHMM aims to educate, and not just about history, but as well as human rights. Educating others about genocide is of paramount importance. It keeps an individual informed and aware of past genocides and current genocides taking place…Educating and showing students what genocide is, imperative.”

” Many students are not aware of genocide or what is happening in Darfur, what has happened in Bosnia, Cambodia, Europe [The Holocaust] and many other countries that were affected…We will remember them so that we are not doomed to repeat them. We want to educate students about other genocides so that they can become more human, more gentle, more caring, more compassionate.  Moreover, take action to confront genocide and crime related crimes against humanity,” said Elhak.

Though it was not mandatory for all STAND members to attend the field trip, it is an experience one should not have missed.