Holocaust survivor teaches kids not to stand by discrimination

People who remain silent about discrimination are sometimes just as guilty as those committing the bias.

So said Aaron Elster, whose parents, aunts, uncles and little sister perished in the Holocaust.

Elster survived it by living on the run, at first in a barn and then in a dark attic infested with rats and mice.

Every day he lived in fear for his life, and because he had very little food to eat, he said, he weighed 55 pounds by the time it was over.

He wondered if he would have gone through the same thing if the Germans and others had spoken out against Hitler before the situation escalated into millions of murders.

Although the Holocaust occurred more than 60 years ago, people still are killing each other because of their differences, he told a packed room of teachers and administrators of Central Unit District 301.

That's why it's important to teach children they should speak out when they see discrimination, he said.

"I warn them, never become bystanders, (but) become proactive because the future is in their hands," Elster said.

Officials invited Elster as the motivational speaker to kick off their staff development proceedings.

Elster's message is especially relevant to the district these days, said director of staff development Rich Perry, who organized Wednesday's program.

The district, which traditionally had been overwhelmingly white, has in recent years attracted many more students of color, thanks to thousands of new homes.

As an example, 19 languages now are spoken within the district, Superintendent Brad Hawk said.

Perry said the district's diversity is an opportunity to address challenges that may arise because of it.

Perry also said the way administrators handled the situation at Jena High School in Louisiana saddened him.

Soon after black students sat under a tree on the Jena campus where white students frequently congregated, nooses were hung from that tree.

School administrators later ordered that the tree be cut down, and in doing so, Perry said they missed a chance to educate students.

"It's your choice what you end up doing, that or cutting down our own tree," said Perry, former principal of Howard B. Thomas Grade School.