Us vs. Them - Creating the Other

The Us vs. Them – Creating the Other pedagogical guide, developed in collaboration with the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, explores the relationship between othering, human rights violations, and the process of genocide.

Students will analyse artefacts, timelines, and survivor testimonies from two case studies of genocide, one historical and one contemporary: the Holocaust and the Rohingya genocide in Myanmar. By reflecting on how the process of othering has been used by dominant groups to facilitate the exclusion of, discrimination against, and persecution of minority groups, students will come to understand that genocide cannot take place without the initial step of othering.

Curriculum Links

• Understand contemporary world issues (racism and genocide)
• Explore past and present links by identifying the similarities and differences between the Holocaust and the Rohingya genocide
• Develop an understanding of prejudice, stereotypes, and the impacts of othering on individuals and society
• Identify possible courses of action to defend groups and individuals against human rights violations

Download the Us vs. Them – Creating the Other pedagogical activity

The Us vs. Them – Creating the Other pedagogical guide is available online free of charge. Click on the download links at the bottom of this page to access this resource. The in-class activities can be used by teachers in all Canadian provinces and territories.

1

A police checkpoint with closed-off Rohingya area, Rakhine State, 2014. (WikiCommons/Adam)

2

George Ehrman with his brother Karel in Prague, 1941. He is wearing the yellow star featured in Lesson 1. (Montreal Holocaust Museum's Collection)

3

Kutapalong Refugee Camp in Bangladesh, 2016.

4

This identification card belonged to Else Eggers. Because she was Jewish, Nazi officials stamped her card with a “J” and added “Sara” to her name. (Montreal Holocaust Museum's Collection, donated by Edith Borenstein)