![]() But is this reason enough to keep me from doing it after they are both gone? For this reason, I have not, and will not while my grandfather is living. My grandfather and late grandmother would be irrevocably hurt if I chose to honor them with a remembrance tattoo. ![]() ![]() This is perhaps the heart of the whole issue. A tattoo would take away this luxury-a luxury my grandparents may have wanted for me, but I do not want for myself. Like many, I often get caught up in my own day-to-day drama and lose sight of these larger responsibilities. The tattoo would be a symbol of my duty to them, to remember, and to work towards ending genocide for the rest of my life. I, on the other hand, would be making the choice to be reminded. My grandparents were tattooed against their will and reminded of their suffering every day of their lives as a result. It upsets me to think that when my children read the same stories, there will be no tangible proof or physical evidence to make them "real." Could a remembrance tattoo on their mother's arm serve that function in some small way? Could it be a gateway to discuss the family's Holocaust history with my children once they are old enough to ask what mom's tattoo is all about?īut the tattoo would not simply be for my children. I did not hear my grandparents' stories until I was much older, but seeing their tattoos made the history and story books real it was right there on my grandmother's arm. Instead they were intriguing and mysterious.Ĭurious about my family's history, I read every young-adult Holocaust book I could get my hands on. The tattoos carried a silent presence in everything we did together, but for me as a child, the tattoos were neither sinister or depressing. The tattoos were present when my grandfather showed me how to lift smoked whitefish off the bone, and when my grandmother served a bowl of fruit compote for dessert. I remember looking at my grandparents' Auschwitz tattoos as a child, mesmerized by what they signified. Needless to say, I don't have a tattoo, but I continue to think about it to this day. What if it did happen again? And finally, the most compelling reason of all, getting a tattoo like that would cause my parents and especially my grandparents a lot of pain and bring tzuris to the family. Not only that, my father explained, it wasn't safe to walk around with a tattoo identifying you as Jewish. "Absolutely not!" My grandparents survived so that Jews would never have to be tattooed, marked, or counted ever again. When I first shared this idea with my parents, I quickly learned the traditional stance on this issue. But could or should I go under the needle myself? At the same time, tattoos are experiencing a revival among young Jews, and are perhaps becoming integrated into our generational identity and culture. Holocaust remembrance tattoos are not new, but they are always controversial in the Jewish community, especially since tattoos are somewhat taboo according to Jewish law. I was not the first person to have this idea. While I would not get my grandparents' numbers tattooed on my arm like the Israeli men profiled (I would not want to remember them by the number the Nazis gave them) I have considered getting the Hebrew word for "Remember" or perhaps "Love" tattooed on my forearm. The only thing that ever "felt right" was my Jewish identity, which to a large extent is based on being the grandchild of Holocaust survivors. And since this tattoo would be permanent, it would have to represent a part of my identity that would never change. I have always wanted a tattoo, but I never saw the point of butterflies or shooting stars I wanted something meaningful. As a grandchild of survivors who has seriously thought about getting a remembrance tattoo, I would like to offer a different point of view. While I am also a little uncomfortable with the idea of remembering a survivor by their Nazi-given number, I am not opposed to the idea of remembrance tattoos-even ones on the forearm. She, like many Jews, has trouble with tattoos and finds Holocaust remembrance tattoos particularly offensive. Today on Truth, Praise & Help, Renee Ghert-Zand expressed her displeasure at two Israeli men who decided to honor their Holocaust survivor matriarch with a tattoo of her Auschwitz number on their forearms.
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