How Do Romanians See The Holocaust Today?

aspecte ale istoriei noastre și datorită viziunii diferite, contradictorii, a celor care au opțiune sau alta cu privire la personajele istorice de atunci, implicate în fenomen, mai ales Ion Antonescu. Tocmai de aceea, problema Holocaustului necesită o mai intensă analiză, iar o concluzie finală este greu de dat. Însă nu putem să nu recunoaștem că, în societatea românească a zilelor noastre, se manifestă atitudini care, din păcate, contrastează puternic și periculos cu valorile democratice. Este necesară o mai bună informare a publicului românesc, iar mass-media, școala, instituțiile statului, toți factorii care pot fi implicați trebuie să prezinte, obiectiv, calitativ și cantitativ, acest fenomen istoric.

Bibliografie: http://www.inshr-ew.ro/ro/files/proiecte/Sondaje/Sondaj_opinie-INSHR-iunie_2015.pdf, accesat la 03.02.2021 http://www.inshr-ew.ro/ro/files/Kantar_TNS_Raport_INSHR_2017.pdf, accesat la 03.02.2021 http://www.inshr-ew.ro/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Kantar-TNS-Raport-INSHR2019.pdf?fbclid=IwAR2rqqHuk10CbUno4b4i5GSdHFMQDO0AGHz9XAQV8uSQcDbJrdu6kmVCg4, accesat la 03.02.2021

Teacher : Victor Gabriel Osaceanu "Zaharia Stancu" Gymnasium School, Roșiorii de Vede, Teleorman

How do Romanians see the Holocaust today? Do Romanians know what this is about and if so, what is the perspective of Romanian society towards this true stigma of human history? Was there a Romanian Holocaust? Who is responsible for this genocide? What is the opinion of the contemporary Romanian society about the leaders of the country at that time, about the factors responsible or not in the policy towards the Jewish community of those times? What attitude and opinion do Romanians have towards the Jewish people and the state of Israel? Where are Romanians informed? These are quite delicate questions that, among others, have been the subject of opinion polls in recent years, conducted by the well-known National Institute for the Study of the Holocaust in Romania, "Elie Wiesel". Based on these surveys, following these criteria, of course, quite relevant, I set out to conduct an analytical and comparative study, based on which to draw conclusions as close to the truth as possible. We have taken into account the last three opinion polls, of the last years, which reveal the concrete pulse of the current moment in relation to this issue.

A. The Kantar TNS survey from May-June 2015

a. Regarding the vision of Romanians towards Jews in general and towards the Jewish state, Israel, it was revealed that Romanians perceive Jews rather neutral, equidistantly, for over half of the respondents being no problem, but neither an advantage for Romania. However, in part it was appreciated that this minority in Romania today brings benefits to Romania, 17% of respondents appreciating that Jews have a useful contribution in certain regions and occupations, and 11% declaring that this minority is a valuable resource for our country. About two-thirds of respondents agree that Jews have a good relationship with the rest of the population, have many personalities in different fields and have a lot of international influence. This last point is the one that gathers stronger opinions, in the sense that 34% of the interviewees totally agree that Jews have a lot of influence internationally. There is a clear tendency of disagreement in relation to the fact that Jews act to destabilize society in which they live. The evaluation of the degree of involvement of the Jews in the establishment of communism in Romania reveals a large share of the lack of opinion regarding the evaluated aspect. Regarding the attitude towards the state of Israel, it has a rather weak image, close to a point of neutrality, which makes the respondents' opinions to be divided. Sometimes the state of Israel is negatively perceived as a state that generates instability in the area, the association with this characteristic being indicated by 23% of respondents, but the difference from the average of the answers is not statistically significant that the state of Israel has good relations with Romania, three quarters of the interviewees mentioning this. The positive attitude is also strengthened by the fact that 70% of respondents believe that Romania should strengthen relations with Israel. b. Regarding the Holocaust, most of the respondents state that they have heard about the Holocaust (73%), but this varies depending on the level of education and the environment of residence (it increases with the level of education, and the poorer knowledge is recorded in rural areas). Of those who said they had heard of the Holocaust, most define it spontaneous term as “Extermination of Jews during the Second World War” (78%). The following meanings that people associate with the Holocaust are: “Nazi concentration camps” (59%), “Gas chambers” (46%) and “Mass deportations” (40%). The Holocaust is located by the vast majority of respondents in Germany (73%); however, almost half of those surveyed agree that the Holocaust took place in other European countries (49%). About a quarter of the interviewees agree that the Holocaust also took place in Romania. If we refer to the people who heard about the Holocaust, the share of those who know that the Holocaust also took place in Romania increases to 34%. Among those who know that the Holocaust took place in Romania, the Holocaust is mainly associated with "Deportation of Jews to camps controlled by Nazi Germany" (80%), action followed by a share of "Expropriation of property and forced eviction" (49% ) and “Mass executions of Jews” (47%). c. As for the factors responsible for the Holocaust, Nazi Germany is considered to be the main responsible for the outbreak of the Holocaust in Romania (69%), followed by the Antonescu Government (19%). Overall, when all the responsible factors are mentioned, Nazi Germany is considered a responsible factor by 86% of the respondents, and the Antonescu Government by more than half of them, followed by the USSR with 15%. If we refer only to the internal factors, the main leaders indicated are the Legionary Movement (57%) and Ion Antonescu - as head of state (54%). It should be noted that there is a strong association between the Legionary Movement and the

Holocaust, with 29% of respondents considering that this organization was entirely responsible for the Holocaust in Romania. On the other hand, King Mihai is the least associated with the factors responsible for Holocaust. Regarding the image of Marshal Ion Antonescu, more than a third of the respondents cannot make assessments on his personality, which indicates a poor knowledge of his activity, as well as of the events that took place during that period. Ion Antonescu is appreciated by some of the respondents as “great patriot” (54%) and “great strategist” (52%). 42% of those interviewed believe that he fought against communism. In the case of the assumptions that Ion Antonescu “was a democratic leader” and that he “reintegrated Greater Romania” the percentage indicates similar weights of agreement and disagreement regarding the evaluated aspects. The fact that Ion Antonescu was a "savior of the Jews" gathers only 18% of the positive opinions, the score indicating rather the disagreement with this aspect. Marshal Antonescu is considered "responsible for crimes against gypsies" by 46% of respondents. Although perceived as a dictator by 39% of respondents, it is still not believed that he would have led Romania to disaster, an assessment confirmed by the percentage that indicates disagreement with the latter. Regarding the causes that were the basis of the Antonescu government's decision, the relationship of subordination to Nazi Germany, but also the state of war in which the country was, are the main causes indicated by more than half of the respondents. The only aspect related to the Jewish population that could have led to this decision is the association with the communist movement, a factor mentioned by almost a quarter of those surveyed. Perceptions of the Legionary Movement indicate a high weight of lack of opinion or nonresponses regarding its evaluation. More than a third of the respondents cannot comment on the Legionary Movement organization. People mainly remember that it was responsible for crimes against Romanian politicians (53%). About half of those interviewed believe that the Legionary Movement was anti-communist, while 46% believe it was fascist. Moreover, this organization is perceived as terrorist by 37% of study participants. In relation to Jews, the Legionary Movement is considered responsible for crimes against Jews by 39% of respondents. The existence of parties with an anti-Semitic message in Romania is reported by 22% of respondents. The Greater Romania Party is most often mentioned as having anti-Semitic messages (49% of those who identified a political organization with this type of message). Note the high share of non-answers (25%) recorded to this question. d. In terms of the importance of the Holocaust in history and its negative magnitude as an event, compared to other violent episodes in the history of Romania, the Holocaust is perceived as just as serious by about 40% of respondents. However, 15% believe that the events of the Holocaust were more serious than the crimes committed by Hungarians against Romanians in Northern Transylvania between 1940-1944, than the crimes and persecutions committed by communists against Romanians between 1945-1989, but also than the killing of Romanian soldiers by Soviet soldiers during World War II. As a particular aspect, the existence of a national day of commemoration of the Holocaust in Romania is known by about a quarter of the interviewees. This share is increasing significantly among people who have heard of the Holocaust. Of these, only 4 people were able to mention the exact date for this day of commemoration. The interest in relation

to the issue of the Holocaust is not particularly high among the population, only 12% of the respondents declaring that they are more or very interested in this subject. Although the level of declared interest is low, however, a share of 32% of those interviewed consider that in Romania there is less talk about the Holocaust than necessary. More than half of the interviewees consider that for the Jews the Holocaust in Romania is an occasion to commemorate innocent victims. Opinions are divided when it comes to the fact that Jews use the Holocaust in Romania to earn money (8%) or to acquire property (3%). An obvious disagreement is expressed in relation to the fact that "Jews use the Holocaust to blackmail or denigrate Romania", about 60% disagreeing with these statements. e. Regarding the sources of information for those who are interested in the Holocaust, the main one consists of the Romanian television chanels (58%), followed by the internet (23%) and the specialized literature (16%).

B. The Kantar TNS survey from September - October 2017 a. The Jews are perceived rather neutrally, as they are not a problem, but no advantage for Romania. Although, in the opinion of 16% of Romanians, this minority also benefits Romania, there is a significant decrease in the proportion of people who consider Jews to be a valuable resource for our country (8% compared to 11% in 2015). The shorter social distance from Jews results from the fact that they are accepted in the family (15%), in the group of friends (16%) or as neighbours (16%), to a greater extent than other minorities. Similar to 2015, about two thirds of respondents believe that Romanians are on good terms with Jews. Also, 64% believe that this minority has many important personalities in various fields. However, the number of respondents who claim that Jews are an important minority for Romania and that would lead to the progress of society has decreased. Significant increases are observed in the percentage of respondents who believe that it would be better for Jews to live in their country. However, in 2017, fewer Romanians blame Jews for establishing communism in Romania. Strongly agreeing tendencies, in a positive way, are found in terms of the fact that Jews have many important personalities in various fields and the fact that they have a good relationship with Romanians. A clear tendency of disagreement is observed in the case of the statement “Jews act to destabilize the society in which they live”, which meets the disagreement of over half of the interviewees. There is also a slight disagreement in the case of the support given by the Jews for the establishment of communism in Romania. b. Regarding the perception of the Holocaust, several of the respondents state that they have heard about the Holocaust (68%), but the percentage is decreasing compared to 2015 (73%). Whether or not a respondent has heard of the Holocaust varies depending on the level of education and the environment of residence (increases with the level of education). Of those who said they had heard of the Holocaust, most associated the term with "the extermination of Jews during World War II" (61%). The following meanings that people associate with the Holocaust are: “Nazi concentration camps” (54%), “Gas chambers” (40%) and “Mass deportations” (39%). The top of these associations is unchanged compared to the one obtained in 2015. Apart from Jews, Romanians

consider that gypsies are also victims, almost half indicating that they are the ones who suffered the most from the Holocaust. The majority of respondents locate the Holocaust in Germany (63%). 1 in 3 Romanians know that the Holocaust also took place in Romania, being 5 percentage points higher than in 2015. The Holocaust in Romania is mainly associated with the deportation of Jews to camps controlled by Germany (71%). There is also an increase in the percentage of respondents who know that Jews were deported to Transnistria during the Holocaust (38% compared to 28% in 2015). Nazi Germany is considered to be the main culprit for the outbreak of the Holocaust in Romania (55%), followed at a considerable distance by the Antonescu Government (22%). When all the responsible factors are mentioned, Nazi Germany is considered a responsible factor by 77% of the respondents, and the Antonescu Government by more than half of them (52%). c. If we refer to the factors that triggered and supported the Holocaust in Romania, the main culprits indicated are Ion Antonescu (as head of state - 54%) and the Romanian governments from 19901994 (49%). According to respondents, King Mihai has the least responsibility for the Holocaust in Romania, but is perceived as significantly higher in 2017 (19% compared to 6% in 2015). Approximately 2 out of 5 respondents cannot make assessments on the personality of Marshal Ion Antonescu, which indicates a poor knowledge of his activity, as well as of the events that took place during that period. In 2017, the share of respondents who consider that Antonescu was a patriot (44% compared to 54% in 2015) and a strategist (46% compared to 52% in 2015) decreased. In fact, Romanians do not believe that he should be rehabilitated for his deeds, nor is he credited with the merit of having completed Greater Romania. There is an upward trend of people who consider that Antonescu had a negative impact on Romania and was a war criminal and of the Jews. The anti-Semitic policy of the Antonescu government is based mainly on Germany's influence over the government. Therefore, although overall a somewhat positive opinion about Ion Antonescu predominates, there is a significant decrease in positive evaluations. Compared to 2015, several Romanians condemn Antonescu as a weak leader, leading Romania to disaster. The results of the study indicate a high share of lack of opinion or non-response in terms of evaluation of the organization Legionary Movement, so that about 4 out of 10 respondents can not express a point of view. People mainly remember the Legionary Movement, similar to 2015, the fact that it was responsible for crimes against Romanian politicians (45%). 43% of the interviewed people think that the Legionary Movement was anti-communist (decreasing compared to 2015). Moreover, this organization is perceived as terrorist by 37% of study participants. More Romanians than in 2015 totally agree with the fact that the Legionary Movement was a patriotic, Christian and democratic organization (+4 percentage points). In relation to Jews, the Legionary Movement is considered responsible for crimes against them by 35% of respondents. The existence of parties with anti-Semitic message in Romania is reported by a quarter of respondents (increasing compared to 2015). UDMR (Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania) is the most frequently mentioned party that would have anti-Semitic messages (39% of those who identified a political organization with this type of message). Note the high share of non-responses (34%) to this question, which could indicate that there is a poor knowledge of the messages of political parties.

d. Regarding the importance and place in history, compared to other episodes of this kind in the history of Romania, the Holocaust is perceived as equally serious by about 2 out of 5 respondents, the data being similar to those obtained in 2015. The existence of a national day of commemoration of the Holocaust in Romania is known by about a quarter of the interviewees (23%). This share increases significantly among people who have heard of the Holocaust and especially among those who know that the Holocaust also took place in Romania. Of these, 30 people mentioned the exact date for this day of commemoration. Interest in the issue of the Holocaust is quite low among the adult population, with only 10% of respondents declaring that they are more or very interested in this topic. Although the level of declared interest is very low, 1 in 3 Romanians consider that in Romania there is less talk about the Holocaust than necessary. More than half of the interviewees (57%) consider that, for Jews, the Holocaust in Romania is an occasion to commemorate innocent victims. There are increases in the view of the use of the Holocaust by Jews to earn money and property. However, there are fewer Romanians who believe that Jews are using the Holocaust to blackmail and denigrate Romania, compared to 2015. e. As for the media, although television remains the number one source of information on the Holocaust, it is down 16% compared to 2015 (42% compared to 58% in 2015), while the Internet gained + 11% (34% compared to 23% in 2015).

C. The Kantar TNS survey from October-November 2019 The results of the study indicate a high share of lack of opinion or non-response in terms of evaluation of the organization Legionary Movement, so that about 4 out of 10 respondents can not

express a point of view. People mainly remember the Legionary Movement, similar to 2015, the fact that it was responsible for crimes against Romanian politicians (45%). 43% of the interviewed people think that the Legionary Movement was anti-communist (decreasing compared to 2015). Moreover, this organization is perceived as terrorist by 37% of study participants. More Romanians than in 2015 totally agree with the fact that the Legionary Movement was a patriotic, Christian and democratic organization (+4 percentage points). In relation to Jews, the Legionary Movement is considered responsible for crimes against them by 35% of respondents. The existence of parties with anti-Semitic message in Romania is reported by a quarter of respondents (increasing compared to 2015). UDMR (Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania) is the most frequently mentioned party that would have anti-Semitic messages (39% of those who identified a political organization with this type of message). Note the high share of non-responses (34%) to this question, which could indicate that there is a poor knowledge of the messages of political parties. d. Regarding the importance and place in history, compared to other episodes of this kind in the history of Romania, the Holocaust is perceived as equally serious by about 2 out of 5 respondents, the data being similar to those obtained in 2015. The existence of a national day of commemoration of the Holocaust in Romania is known by about a quarter of the interviewees (23%). This share increases significantly among people who have heard of the Holocaust and especially among those who know that the Holocaust also took place in Romania. Of these, 30 people mentioned the exact date for this day of commemoration. Interest in the issue of the Holocaust is quite low among the adult population, with only 10% of respondents declaring that they are more or very interested in this topic. Although the level of declared interest is very low, 1 in 3 Romanians consider that in Romania there is less talk about the Holocaust than necessary. More than half of the interviewees (57%) consider that, for Jews, the Holocaust in Romania is an occasion to commemorate innocent victims. There are increases in the view of the use of the Holocaust by Jews to earn money and property. However, there are fewer Romanians who believe that Jews are using the Holocaust to blackmail and denigrate Romania, compared to 2015. e. As for the media, although television remains the number one source of information on the Holocaust, it is down 16% compared to 2015 (42% compared to 58% in 2015), while the Internet gained + 11% (34% compared to 23% in 2015).

C. The Kantar TNS survey from October-November 2019 d. As for the importance of the historical phenomenon, the Holocaust is not a matter of interest to those interviewed. Only 12% said they were interested. e. The sources of information are television (58%), internet (23%), and literature (16%) and school (14%) are in weak positions.

Conclusions: Compared to the perception of the post-Revolutionary period of 1989, and generally before 2010, the situation of recent years is somewhat changed, which is in parallel with previous surveys,

For example, in the last mentioned survey, most recently in 2019, compared to the one made in 2007, the number of those who say they have heard about the Holocaust is increasing by 12%, as well as the number of those who know that the Holocaust took place in Romania (increasing by 6%) The percentage of those who consider the Government Antonescu responsible for the outbreak of the Holocaust in Romania is increasing by 8%, and that of those who attribute responsibility to Nazi Germany is decreasing by 10%. It is true that the change in the vision of this issue of the Jewish Holocaust, which leads to a situation closer to the historical reality, is also informational and emotional propaganda about what happened then, through education, through thematic events and symposia organized and less through mass media. Another conclusion, derived from the figures, from the percentages presented, is that it cannot be said that today's vision of Romanians towards Jews and the problem of the Holocaust is a positive, favorable one, it is true that none is too bad. There are still anti-Semitic mentalities, as can be seen. Basically, we can say that Romanians, in situations where they are not involved, do not approach. If they happen to meet Jews in various circumstances throughout their lives, they stay with them, but they do not necessarily seek to approach them. There are manifestations, it is a situation that can turn in certain crisis situations into direct manifestations of anti-Semitism. What is happening in the social spaces and in the online space proves that in Romania there are still many messages of anti-Semitic hatred. There are Facebook groups that promote hatred of Jews. Consequently, it may not be accidental that, recently, in the Romanian Parliament, a law was voted that is against the manifestations of antiSemitism in Romania and seeks to penalize them, to sanction them. On a possible grid of interpretations there are at least three types of discourse of memory circumscribed between denial and recognition of the Holocaust in Romania by assuming responsibility: 1. memorization of victims, 2. uncritical memory of the Legionary Movement with two subcategories, heroization of political leaders and militants and that of the extremist cultural elite and 3. minimizing the memory of the victims by "ethnicizing" the memory of the Holocaust. In other words, in the conception of the Romanians, is the tragedy of the extermination of the Jews in Romania an invention? This is one of the risks of promoting an inverted or distorted public memory. The limit case is the public recognition, today, of Ion Antonescu as a model of the head of state. The third category, although it recognizes the Holocaust, the victims and those responsible, considers that the public promotion of memory is one of the Jews. Moreover, the ethnicization of memory would favor the masking of so-called strongholds of militants for the imposition of Holocaust memory, such as the appetite for Marxism, (neo) communism and other derivatives of the left. But the symbolism of Holocaust memory is all the stronger as it is a state institutional one. On the other hand, the cultural, academic or media visibility elite has positioned itself in favor of promoting, without barriers, everything that is or considers to be a national spiritual value. One of the strong conclusions of the surveys is the orientation of Romanians especially according to conservative and traditional civic values. In other words, there are still mass-level civic values, xenophobic, ethnic, racial prejudices or easy acceptance of new myths launched in post-communism that far from stimulating inhibit the