Jewish Book Festival Guest Speaks to Students About "The Assignment" and Antisemitism

The Charlotte Jewish News May 2022

By Abby Sherman

All generations, young and old, were gathered in Lerner Hall to hear Liza Wiemer talk about her book titled “The Assignment.” Tair Guidice from the Jewish Federation of Greater Charlotte introduced the presentation and described how outstanding it is. She had attended it multiple times before and was excited to participate again. Guidice had reasons to be excited because the presentation Liza Wiemer gave was outstanding and one to remember.

The book follows two students and the people in their community as they struggle to decide what to do with an assignment that unintentionally justifies the Nazis’ actions. Because the book was based on a true story, Wiemer described the events that led her to writing the book. She explained that she was on her way to a book talk when she got stuck in the snow of Oswego, New York, and had to stop by a grocery store. While passing some time, she opened her phone to her Facebook feed and saw an appalling post. A mom had just posted that her child had been given an assignment to write an essay justifying the Nazis’ actions in World War II. Wiemer was shocked that an assignment like this was given. She needed to know more. She kept digging and discovered that the assignment had been given in the town she was visiting. She found out that one of the children protesting the assignment was going to be at the library where she was speaking. She then found the girl and interviewed her.

From then on, a book and a movement were born and have been preventing more assignments like the one given in New York from occurring again. That’s why she talked to our community in Charlotte — to tell us her tale and to urge us to speak out against hate. She told us ways that we can make a difference. We can make noise and speak out against antisemitism; if we never speak out, the anti-Semites win.

I think that the students in the book made the right decision to speak out against what happened. If people try to justify the Nazi actions, even if it’s done just to see all sides of a debate and make the Nazis’ actions seem even worse, it still promotes antisemitism and hate.

Assignments like the one Wiemer stopped should never be given again. I was definitely impressed by Wiemer’s speech and the way she stood up against injustice. Just like her book cover says, “Would YOU speak up for what is right?” I feel like I certainly would.

Main photo caption: Liza Wiemer speaks to students at Davidson K-8