Roosevelt and the Holocaust
Mike Spinrad
San Marin High School
and
Dave Fichman
Sonoma Valley High
California Council for the Social Studies
46th Annual Conference
March 2-4, 2007
Oakland, CA
W ork Shall M ake You Free
Background Notes
Prior To The Lesson
In The New York Times
“Throughout World War II,
the American media
published and broadcast
timely, detailed, and accurate
accounts of what was
happening to the Jews in
Europe. The New York Times
alone printed nearly 1,200
articles about what we have
now come to call the
Holocaust, about one every
other day.” (Leff par 1)
Roosevelt’s Response to Govenor of South Carolina
Blackwood’s Request to Help European Jews During
1933
“Confidentially, I instructed the State
Department recently to carefully
observe the situation in Germany
and to take every step that one
Government can take in a situation
where another Government us
dealing with a domestic
problem on its own”
Rabbis March To Inform Roosevelt
October 6, 1943
• October 6, 1943, three
days before Yom
Kippur and more than
four hundred rabbis
had come Washington
D.C. to plead for U.S.
government action to
save Jews from Hitler.
Birkenau Extermination Camp Allied Aerial Photo
25 August 1944
April 4, 1944
The Lesson
Grade Level 11 - US History or AP US History
Summary: Franklin Roosevelt was president
during the destruction of European Jewry. Was
his administration’s response correct for fighting
total war or should he have done more to save
those doomed by Nazism? This lesson will
familiarize students with both sides of the current
historical controversy, assessing Roosevelt as a
wartime leader.
Standards Addressed:
History/Social Science:
11.75: Discuss the constitutional issues and impact of
events on the U.S. homefront including…the response
of the administration to Hitler’s atrocities against
Jews and other groups….
12.82: Describe the roles of broadcast…media…as
means of communication in American politics.
Language Arts:
2.3: Synthesize the content from several sources or
works… paraphrase the ideas and connect them to
other sources and related topics to demonstrate
comprehension
English Language Learner (ELL)
Strategies:
Partnering: students work in partners to
analyze video. Teacher asks for verbal
answers from prepared students.
Group Work: students jigsaw and summarize
paragraphs from scholarly journal and
present synopsis to class. Results are written
in T-chart form on worksheet.
Engaging Scenario
Who is the last president who was assassinated? Who
killed President Kennedy? Today, 44 years later, there is
still some controversy over the Warren Commission’s
report. The facts—who was hit and how many shots were
fired—are not greatly contested. The debate rages over the
interpretation of those facts. Likewise, Franklin
Roosevelt’s administration provided little direct aid for
victims of Nazi genocide. Is it reasonable to assume that
FDR could have done more to save the doomed Jews of
Europe? Some historians’ interpretation of the facts leads
them to believe that FDR should have done more. Other
historians write that the president did what was possible,
considering the political climate of the pre-war and war
years.
Task Summary: 1 of 3
1. Introduce PBS documentary. PBS aired a
documentary about fifteen years ago called
America and the Holocaust: Deceit and
Indifference. This video was based on historian
David Wyman’s The Abandonment of the Jews.
The media prefers Wyman’s outlook and has
contributed to make it the dominant view on FDR
and the Holocaust.
2. Show segments of the video, adding up to about
seven minutes.
Task Summary: 2 of 3
3. Students work with partners to fill out the left side
of the worksheet (Roosevelt Should Have Done
More). I call upon three students to share their
answers.
4. Introduce historians Henry Feingold and
Richard Breitman who represent the right side of
the worksheet. These historians, in contrast to
Wyman, look at the Roosevelt administration and
the American people not as they should have been
but as they actually were.
5. Divide the class into seven groups and jigsaw
seven paragraphs from Feingold’s and Breitman’s
articles in Dimensions.
Task Summary: 2 of 3
6. Each group writes three to five bullet-points
summarized from their paragraph on large sheets
of paper posted around the room. Each large
sheet is titled to match the paragraph.
7. Each group presents its findings and all student
finish the right side of the worksheet.
8. Students work again in pairs and discuss how the
Roosevelt administration should be judged,
drawing from their worksheet. If needed, step
eight can be assessed with a homework
paragraph asking the same question.
Resources/Materials Needed:
1. Paragraphs from Dimensions: A Journal of
Holocaust Studies, Vol. 8, Number 2,
1994.
2. Worksheet and rubric
3. Large sheets of paper taped around the
room. A blackboard/dryboard can
substitute.
4. America and the Holocaust, American
Experience Series, WGBH Video, 1994.
Roosevelt and the Holocaust
Grading Rubric
Exceeds Standard
90-100%
1. Answers all questions thoroughly
2. Responses on assessment show balance between views
3. Student uses critical thought
Meets Standard
70-89%
1. Answers all questions
2. Answers lack balance or critical thought
3. Understands difference between what FDR should have done
versus what he could have done
Progressing Toward Standard
60-69%
1. Does not answer all questions on assessment
2. Confused answers—does not understand difference between what
FDR should have done versus what he could have done
3. Sloppy work
4. Participates minimally in partner work, group activity, and class
discussion
Contacts
• Mike Spinrad
– email mspinrad@nusd.org
• Dave Fichman
– email dfichman@sonomavly.k12.ca.us
– We would really like your feedback. If you use
this lesson please let us know how it goes.
Works Cited
–
Leff, Laurel. “How the NYT Missed the Story of the Holocaust While It Was Happening” 4
April,2005 <http://hnn.us/articles/10903.html>.