Stuart Robinson ('02)

Perhaps the most exciting news I have to report is that I successfully completed my studies at Harvard College this spring. I recently graduated magna cum laude in Philosophy, having written my honors thesis on the ethics of forgiveness (a topic which Mr. Wiesel has approached in some of his own works and lectures). My experience in Cambridge is one for which I am extremely grateful, though I cannot say I am disappointed that I will not have to endure another winter in New England. As for the future, I am very excited to be enrolling this fall in UC Berkeley’s School of Law (Boalt Hall).

Of the experiences that have helped me decide to pursue a career in law, none was as strong a catalyst as the week I spent in Washington, D.C., as a part of Holland & Knight’s Holocaust Remembrance Project. Additionally, during that short time I formed friendships with people from all over the country, many of whom strongly influenced the way I thought about history and the future. From the impromptu conversations with the survivors, to the candid discussions with the curators at the USHMM, to the challenging debates with the instructors at Street Law, I realized more fully that the Holocaust cannot be studied or analyzed through a purely historical lens. Rather, our hosts brought to the foreground the idea that the elements that spawned the Holocaust continue to exist today, and it is the responsibility of each of us to confront those injustices and ensure that the past does not recycle itself.

I remain thankful to the Holocaust Remembrance Project not just for the generous scholarship they awarded me, but also for the moving experiences and close friendships I gained through my contact with the organization. I am proud to be an alumnus of the Holocaust Remembrance Project and I look forward to reading this year’s winning essays.