“Many of the stories we tell are about people’s lives before the series of events that we associate with the Holocaust and the dissolution of those lives in some way or another — be it deportation, murder, despoliation, etc. And then in many instances, it’s about reconstruction,” Brown says. “Because that’s part of the story — the displaced persons and ultimate reconstruction of their lives.

“This is not just a story about what caused the Holocaust — how did it happen?  how did people learn to hate their neighbors? — but also about resilience,” Brown says of the exhibit’s mission. “It’s a story about coming back, about reconstruction. And in that sense, we end the exhibit with a portion about the Nuremberg trials, about the liberation [of concentration camps], and about post-war migration.””

Greg Brown, UNLV History Professor

“The Holocaust: Reconstructing Shattered Humanity” is on display at the office of Gov. Joe Lombardo (1 State of Nevada Way, Las Vegas). The exhibit runs through March 13, and guided tours are offered twice weekly by appointment on Wednesday (10 a.m.-noon) and Thursday (1-3 p.m.). To schedule a tour, contact Heidi Straus at heidi.straus@unlv.edu or contact@nchnevada.org.