Only after they had established themselves did they begin to open up by talking to their grandchildren, but not to their children. In the 1950s and 60s, only one or two memoirs a year were published. Today, we have a flood of 240 a year, or about five a week. For the Jewish people, the Holocaust has become the cement that binds them together as they struggle to preserve their Jewish identity amid rampant assimilation and the loss of religious values. It helps Jews remain connected to Judaism, and encourages them to learn about Judaism.
People learn about the Holocaust because it is dramatic, it is a turning point.
The Holocaust has become a preventative force against assimilation. In Israel in the early years of the State there was a sense of purpose that united the population. But in recent decades that consensus has been broken. Israelis are looking for a secular way to give meaning to Jewish identity. The Holocaust has become the common thread connecting Israelis with their Jewish past.