"The U.S. and the Holocaust" a new documentary by Ken Burns, Lynn Novick and Sarah Botstein - is a three-part, six-hour PBS series that examines America’s response to one of the greatest humanitarian crises of the twentieth century. Americans consider themselves a “nation of immigrants,” but as the catastrophe of the Holocaust unfolded in Europe, the United States proved unwilling to open its doors to more than a fraction of the hundreds of thousands of desperate people seeking refuge.
Through firsthand testimony of witnesses and survivors who as children endured persecution, violence and flight as their families tried to escape Hitler, the series delves deeply into the tragic human consequences of public indifference, bureaucratic red tape and restrictive quota laws in America.
This question is asked - Did the nation fail to live up to its ideals? This is a history to be reckoned with. For a preview of the series – which premiers September 18, we welcome filmmakers Ken Burns and Lynn Novick.