Deborah A. Steinerman

We must reverse trends toward hate — and that starts with our kids

In Vermont, hate crimes are at their highest levels and, by one account, two-thirds of millennials don’t know what Auschwitz is. State and federal laws should mandate teaching about the Holocaust.

Last weekend marked the 81st anniversary of Kristallnacht, or the “Night of Broken Glass.” On Nov. 9 and 10, 1938, Nazi leaders unleashed a series of pogroms against the Jewish population in Germany and its annexed territories.

This event came to be called Kristallnacht because of the shattered glass that littered the streets after the vandalism and destruction of thousands of Jewish-owned businesses, synagogues, and homes.

Closer to home, our nation recently commemorated the first anniversary of Pittsburgh's Tree of Life Synagogue massacre.

So, what have we learned?...

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