Brief Summary
The Set-Up
World War I was called "The War to End All Wars." Yeah; it wasn't. And neither was its sequel.
The world is still stuck in the Cold War, with nuclear annihilation a button away. The Middle East is starting to destabilize thanks to the invasion by the USSR and the US's subsequent arms dealing. A racist regime festers in the heart of South Africa.
Has anyone learned anything from the horrific events that took place during World War II?
The Text
The Holocaust was an unthinkable atrocity, and those few who survived had the experience burned into their minds. They spoke out constantly, trying to keep the memory of all who had passed away alive.
Elie Wiesel initially thought it might have been enough to remind anyone thinking of violating some human rights about the Holocaust. Surely a mention of the Holocaust would get them to stop short of wrongdoing?
…nope.
As hindsight shows pretty clearly, we as humans didn't learn that particular lesson all that well.
The social ills that led up to the Holocaust are still alive and well forty years later, and exist all across the globe. In the wake of all of that (plus the atom bomb), mankind needs to stop ignoring its mistakes and come to grip with them…and with them firmly in mind, work toward peace.
Maybe another forty years will do the trick?
TL;DR
In a world on the brink of destruction where suffering runs rampant, one man (Wiesel) urges the world to remember the lessons of the past.