Unmasking the origins and impact of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.
ONLINE
TUESDAYS, 10:00-11:30am (ET) Dates: October 28 - December 9
"If a patent forgery like the 'Protocols of the Elders of Zion' is believed by so many people that it could become the text of a whole political movement, the task of the historian is no longer to discover a forgery... [It is to explain why that forgery is being believed.]
-Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism
"The Protocols of the Elders of Zion is an antisemitic book used to promote hatred of the Jews... Despite the fact that it is a forgery, people seeking to spread conspiracy theories about Jews have used the Protocols for more than 120 years. The Protocols is regularly adapted to address current events. Its appeal... relies on its ability to provide simple explanations to a complex world."
-United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM)
Course Description :
First published in Russia in 1903, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion is one of the most infamous antisemitic forgeries in history. Posing as minutes from secret meetings of Jewish leaders, the text claims to reveal a plan for global domination through economic control, media influence, and the fomenting of religious conflict. In this six-week course, we will examine the content of the 24 so-called “protocols,” trace how this fabrication spread from czarist Russia to the United States, and uncover the ways it has fueled antisemitic movements worldwide for more than a century. Together, we will consider how this long-debunked hoax continues to shape conspiracy theories and prejudice today.
TUESDAYS, 10:00-11:30am (ET)
Dates: Oct. 28; Nov. 4, 11, 18; Dec. 2, 9
