On December 11, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) held a program in conjunction with their exhibition now on view at the Maltz Museum, State of Deception: The Power of Nazi Propaganda. The exhibition not only demonstrates the horrifying ways the Nazis propagated their message, but also acts as a sober reminder of the seemingly inescapable propaganda that circulates around the world today.
The use of media to proliferate anti-Semitism in Arab lands was the topic of discussion between Warren Marcus, an educator at the USHMM, and his colleague Mina Abdelmalak, Arab Audience Outreach Specialist, who was born and raised in Egypt and works to correct misinformation about Jews for Arabic speakers online. As someone who grew up in Iran and immigrated to the U.S. at the age of 17, I found myself drawn to this dialogue. I have witnessed firsthand how the Iranian government censors the truth and spreads false information through the media. I was on the streets with my fellow young activists in Tehran as we stood up for the truth during the Green Movement. And I was there when the government put an end to our momentum with one swift move to announce Ahamdinejad as the victor in the elections even when it was clear to all those involved that he did not deserve that title.
Mina has had similar experiences in his hometown. In one of his slides, he presented the audience with an image of a woman on the streets of Cairo reading Hitler’s Mein Kampf, a bestseller in Egypt. While according to Mina’s contact in that country, there are only 9 Jews currently living among the population of roughly 90 million Egyptians, state-controlled media still propagates a stereotypical image of the Jewish people. And opposing political groups accuse each other of being connected to Zionism, as if that is the ultimate insult. Mina, who since childhood has wanted to help his fellow citizens adopt acceptance and equality, believes that a society that clings to anti-Semitism is not ready to embrace these liberal ideologies. Mina’s work to combat the misinformation on Wikipedia’s Arabic pages on topics like the Final Solution, for example, is a small step to make a real difference in the world. Such articles are referenced daily by many Arabic readers around the world, who have no way of accessing facts due to governmental censorships. My hope is that with the help of those like Mina, the population in Egypt, Iran and all over the world is given the opportunity to obtain truthful information and allow us all to become more informed global citizens.
