'I Just Always Pray, Don't Forget Us': New Colorado Law Requires Holocaust Education

DENVER (CBS4) – Governor Polis is set to sign a bill that will cement Holocaust education in Colorado's curriculum. The new law calls for the state to adopt standards related to Holocaust and genocide studies, and that every school district and charter school adopt the standards by July 1, 2023.

For Fanny Starr, this new law is welcome relief. It guarantees that stories like hers will stand the test of time.

"I was born in Poland," Starr told CBS4.

At about age 15, she and her family were shipped off to concentration camps for the simple fact that they are Jewish.

"We didn't commit no crime. We were no killers…no cheaters…" Starr explained.

She spent 5 years at the mercy of her German captors.

"When we arrived Auschwitz, right away, they divide us … younger people… mothers and small children were in a different line. We didn't know what was what," Starr recalled.

She described being beaten and starved, being forced to work in a factory making uniforms, and living in a barrack with 70 to 80 other women.

"What we went through is hard to tell, and beyond comprehension…what they did to us," Starr said.

At 98-years-old, she has worried about who will be left to tell the story. Now she is relieved to know that it will be a permanent part of Colorado education. A move she hopes will keep history from repeating itself.

"So we cannot forget…and I just always pray… don't forget us."

Starr has spent much of her adult life educating Coloradans about the Holocaust, including meeting with Governor Polis. The Governor gave CBS4 this statement:

"I was honored to meet and learn from Fanny Starr, Colorado's oldest living Holocaust survivor. As the world marks the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, we have an obligation to oppose hate in all forms and to welcome immigrants, refugees, and huddled masses yearning to breathe free. I commend Representatives Michaelson Jenet and Sirota on their efforts to bring this legislation forward and support ensuring students learn about the history of the Holocaust so that it is never forgotten. Our state and country works best when we stand together against the voices of intolerance and bigotry, we reflect on our history and we fight for a world where everyone can live with dignity."