So, the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum decided to install “misting showers,” recently to “cool off” visitors during a recent heat wave in Poland. For some reason, no one realized that showers were not the best choice of cooling option, given the history of the place and context. Visitors to were outraged at the symbolism when they saw the showers at the front entrance, according to the Jerusalem Post. Meir Bulka told them;
“As a Jew who has lost so many relatives in the Holocaust, they looked like the showers that the Jews were forced to take before entering the gas chambers. All the Israelis felt this was very distasteful… Someone called it a ‘Holocaust gimmick.’”
The temperature in Auschwitz, Poland, was 87 degrees fahrenheit, which doesn’t seem THAT hot really. Pawel Sawicki, a museum spokesman, said the “sprinklers” were NOT showers…
“Because of the extreme heat wave we have experienced in August in Poland, mist sprinklers which cool the air were placed near the entrance to the Museum.”
Opps. Sometimes in our PC culture, “correctness” can be taken TOO far, but this is one instance where anyone with eyes could see this was a BAD idea. They might just as well have passed out hand-held fans printed with Hitler‘s photo and the words;
“NOT A FAN.”
(via NY Observer)
The post #WeeksWorstIdea: Auschwitz Museum Installs Showers in an (Offensive) Attempt to Cool Off Visitors appeared first on World of Wonder.
