Two-thirds of young adults in America unaware 6 million Jews killed in Holocaust

Nearly two-thirds of U.S. young adults were unaware that six million Jews were killed during the Holocaust, according to a survey released Wednesday.

A study conducted by the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) among American Millenial and Gen Z adults aged between 18 and 39, found that 36% of those surveyed said that they thought that “two million or fewer Jews” were killed during the Holocaust.

The survey also found that nearly half (48%) were unable to name at least one concentration camp or ghetto established by the Nazis and their collaborators during World War II.

Approximately half (49%) said they had seen Holocaust denial or distortion posts on social media or elsewhere online, with 56% saying they saw Nazi imagery on their social media and/or their local communities.

Eleven percent of respondents across the U.S. believed that Jews had caused the Holocaust.

However, almost two-thirds (64%) of American millennial and Gen Z adults believe Holocaust education should be compulsory in schools. Seven out of 10 said it was not acceptable for an individual to hold neo-Nazi views.

“The results are both shocking and saddening, and they underscore why we must act now while Holocaust survivors are still with us to voice their stories,” said Gideon Taylor, president of Claims Conference.

“We need to understand why we aren’t doing better in educating a younger generation about the Holocaust and the lessons of the past. This needs to serve as a wake-up call to us all, and as a road map of where government officials need to act.”