The Appropriate Use of Language in Reference to the Holocaust was discussed, regarding policy implications for the Commission. Many people have become concerned about the manner in which the word Holocaust is being used in the spoken and written language today.
Examples abound of the use of the word to represent a range of historic events.
Newspapers use the word with increasing frequency to describe events that involve great human tragedy, such as mass murder or genocide, as well as catastrophic natural events, such as the results of an earthquake, hurricane or tornado. As a result, it is developing a generic meaning and use in our language. In other cases, committee members believe the word is used as a means of comparing tragedies, and, perhaps, attempting to denigrate the unique tragedy that occurred to six million Jews and five million others at the hands of the Nazis and their collaborators in Europe from 1933 - 1945. The Holocaust is such an event. However, only one event is appropriately named the Holocaust.