Howard Kerner
Howard Kerner
Human Goodness
Expertise:
Stories Of Bravery & Kindness During The Holocaust
Available for in-person lectures in:
Tampa
Available via Zoom?
Yes
To book Howard, e-mail:
dan@hudakonhollywood.com
Howard Kerner is a retired English professor who taught at the high school, college and university levels in NY and FL during his 47 year career. Before and since retirement, his “passion project” has been discovering and sharing fascinating, unknown stories about inspiring people who performed brave acts of kindness even during the unlikely period of the Holocaust. He has presented his uplifting programs at OLLI’s, temples, churches and civic organizations across the country and in Canada. His philosophy is that although there is no bad time to learn about human goodness, there is no better time than now!
Lectures include:
Why Don’t We Know The Names Of The Good?
We are all well aware of the names of evil doers throughout history, especially during the Holocaust. But unaccountably, we don’t know the names of those who performed amazing and uplifting acts of goodness during that same time. In this presentation, retired professor and Holocaust educator Howard Kerner will surprise us with some inspiring stories of unknown human goodness during the Holocaust as well as ways that we can look for, practice and celebrate more goodness in our own lives.
ZOOM PROGRAMS – FALL 2024
THE 1936 NAZI OLYMPICS: THE CONVERGENCE OF ATHLETES AND POLITICS
Of the 128 years of the modern Olympics, few were as nakedly political as the 1936 Nazi Olympics. This little known, inside story of the 1936 Olympics is especially important because the games occurred at a dangerous crossroads in history. Learn about the Nazis’ ugly manipulation and abuse of Jewish and other minority athletes before and during the games, America’s back door involvement, and the lifelong effects on the athletes.
IBM & ITS NAZI PARTNERSHIP
Few may know that such American and International corporations as IBM, Ford and Coca-Cola actively supported Nazi Germany during World War II. In some cases, these companies and others helped facilitate German plans for implementation of the Holocaust. In this fascinating audio/video presentation, we will look into these alliances between international business and the Nazis.
GREAT ESCAPES OF WORLD WAR II
Amazing POW’S and death camp inmates found the astonishing courage, determination and creativity to concoct a plan to break out of their extremely dangerous and horrific Nazi controlled captivity during World War II. In this astonishing audio/visual presentation, we will examine the incredible lengths to which some inspiring people went to seek freedom.
“NAZI TITANIC” & OTHER HOLOCAUST ERA MARITIME DISASTERS
Though the loss of over 1500 lives upon the sinking of the Titanic seems like an historical record, just 33 years later, during WW II in Europe, another shipping disaster caused the loss of 6 times as many! In this surprising audio/video program, we will feature generally unknown naval tragedies of the war years, how they came to be, and their alarming consequences.
HOLOCAUST RESCUERS: DARING DIPLOMATS & PUBLIC OFFICIALS
While many diplomats & other public officials during World War II ignored the human catastrophe all around them, some daring and brave ones risked their careers and lives to create ingenious plans to outsmart the Nazis. In so doing, they saved hundreds of thousands of persecuted people. In this uplifting audio/video program, we will examine the brilliant goodness of these inspiring altruists.
NAZIS AND OTHER HIGHLY UNLIKELY HOLOCAUST HEROES
Among those who resisted the Nazis and rescued Jews during the Holocaust, were some surprising and unlikely people. In this uplifting presentation we will profile some amazing individuals including members of the Nazi party and royal family members and who chose to risk their lives to help save persecuted Jews.
ANNE FRANK REDISCOVERED
Certainly, the most famous victim of the Holocaust was young Anne Frank. But how much do we really know about Anne and her family apart from her Diary? Through surprising information and video clips in which relatives and friends reveal the “real” Anne Frank, we will fill in mostly unknown facts about this complex Holocaust victim and her family.
UNKNOWN TEEN DIARISTS OF THE HOLOCAUST
When most people think of a teenager who kept a diary during the Holocaust, they think of Anne Frank. Few know that over 60 diaries written by teenagers from all over Europe survived during this same period. This intriguing audio/visual presentation introduces you to unknown boys and girls who, with awesome depth of feeling and eloquence, wrote down what they were experiencing and in so doing became historians!
SCHINDLER'S LIST REVISITED: UNKNOWN FACTS
For almost 30 years, Stephen Spielberg’s masterpiece film Schindler’s List has been the public’s main source of information about this mysterious man who rescued some 1200 Jewish people from the Holocaust. But there is so much more to know about Schindler and the novel on which the film was based. In this program we will learn lots of fascinating, unknown facts about Oskar Schindler’s childhood, adulthood, marriage and older years, truths that are not included in the movie.
RESISTANCE AND REDEMPTION: ART & MUSIC IN THE HOLOCAUST, Parts 1 & 2
How could a concentration camp inmate during the Holocaust cope with constant visual and auditory ugliness and savagery? Some Jews used their magnificent artistic gifts to create beauty for themselves and their fellow victims. We will examine those extremely talented men and women who understood that the only antidote to destruction was creation! Week 1 will focus on Artists and Week 2 on Music.
AMERICA’S RESPONSE TO THE HOLOCAUST, Parts 1 & 2
The 1939 Gallup Poll revealed that 65% of Americans felt that Germany’s persecution of Jews was mostly or entirely the fault of the Jews. What was going on in this country to elicit such a feeling and how did America act – or not – to confront the Nazi menace in Europe and in America? Eye-opening and little-known facts and video evidence make this issue all the more fascinating and provocative. This is a 2-part class.
AMERICAN HEROES OF THE HOLOCAUST
Through the years, the Israeli Holocaust Center, Yad Vashem, has awarded some 27,000 Holocaust rescuers around the world the title of “Righteous Among the Nations.” These individuals so honored—men, women and couples—saved multiple Jews. Some European countries have thousands of such rescuers awarded; the US has only five such designees. We will learn about nine brave Americans who displayed courage and compassion during one of history’s darkest days.
HEROES OF THE HOLOCAUST: PRIESTS AND NUNS
During the Holocaust, it was exceedingly difficult to find an individual or an organization ready to help Jewish victims. Among those few who, at risk of death to themselves and those they rescued, still chose to save Jews were Catholic priests and nuns. This uplifting presentation on human goodness shares the stories of these little-known brave and inspiring men and women.
PROTECTORS: MUSLIM RESCUERS & RESISTERS OF THE HOLOCAUST
While Christian rescuers in WWII are virtually unknown, even less recognized and celebrated are the extraordinary Muslim resisters and rescuers that saved thousands of Jews and other persecuted people. Learn about an aspect of Islam called “Sufism” and the cultural/religious concept of Besa and how these influenced diplomats and many others to save Jews at the risk of their own lives. This inspiring course uses films, lectures and discussion to understand and celebrate the beauty of Muslim goodness during the Holocaust.
JEWISH RESISTERS & RESCUERS DURING THE HOLOCAUST
Incredible though it seems, in addition to the amazing, little-known Christians and Muslims who risked their lives to save tens of thousands of Jews from the Holocaust, there are many unknown Jews who risked their own lives by using breathtaking courage and goodness to fight for, help, and save their own people. This uplifting program will disprove once and for all the lie that Jews passively accepted their imminent destruction.
GOODNESS KNOWS NO AGE: TEEN RESCUERS OF THE HOLOCAUST
Although most of the wonderful altruists who rescued Jews during the Holocaust were adults, there were an astonishing number of brave young people who similarly risked their lives to save Jews and obstruct the Nazi cruelty. These unknown stories of courageous teens are a testament to the power of youthful idealism and goodness. Learn about these courageous youths and be inspired!
WONDERFUL WOMEN RESCUERS OF THE HOLOCAUST
During the 1940’s, when women were expected to be seen but not heard, we will learn about inspiring, though little-known women who defied their times and whose extreme courage and goodness saved thousands of Jews from the Holocaust!
WOMEN AND CHILDREN OF THE NAZI ERA
At every stage of life, women and children of Nazi Germany were controlled by shocking, expectations and requirements. The female ability to give birth was especially exploited to a degree unheard of in history. This program uses video clips and first hand testimony to explore these surprising, mostly unknown Nazi programs and the alarming lifelong effects that they had on women and their children.
Are you ready to bring Hudak On Hollywood to your community?
Please e-mail dan@hudakonhollywood.com for additional information. We look forward to hearing from you!