Whoopi Goldberg's remarks aren't unnoticed

I have taught Holocaust lessons for more than a decade. The one common thread I have noticed inside and outside my classroom is a lack of knowledge of what the Holocaust truly was. It doesn’t surprise me, considering so many states still do not teach about it. Whoopi Goldberg’s remarks on "The View" were and should be condemned, but I fail to see the logic in ABC suspending her, making her the latest casualty of cancel culture ["Whoopi was wrong, but not hateful," Opinion, Feb. 3].

Goldberg has a tremendous platform to further the education of society about the true horror of the Holocaust. Let her ABC bosses allow her to do that, to use this as a wonderful teaching opportunity.

I encourage them to have shows devoted to the education and the memory of the Holocaust. Let Goldberg be a vital part of them. Let the viewers see her educating thousands of viewers, as well as herself, in the process, that it is never too late to learn about what happened, and why it is vitally important to keep the memory of the Holocaust alive, so we can truly say in one defiant voice: Never again!

— Marc Aronin, Oceanside

Whoopi Goldberg made an extremely unfortunate and ill-advised misstatement. Because of the immediate, well-warranted backlash, she apologized on air. Many people today, far removed from the tragedy that was Adolf Hitler’s Final Solution, do not comprehend what that "solution" entailed. She certainly did not.

Six million innocent men, women and children were exterminated by being shot, gassed and thrown into ovens for one reason alone — because they were of the ("inferior") Jewish race. Even non-Jews who had some Jewish blood were sent to concentration camps. It was unequivocal racial prejudice, not merely religious bias.

Anyone who fails to recognize this definition of racism is uneducated. People of color are not the only victims of racism, and it is wrong to make statements to imply they are. Others were also considered "inferior," people with developmental challenges as well as the Romany ethnic group, once known as gypsies, who were likewise killed. The Jews alone, however, were targeted solely because of their race.

It dishonors the memory of those 6 million Jews, who perished in ways too horrific to contemplate, to deny the monstrous racism of the Third Reich by calling it "man’s inhumanity to man."

— Rochy Fried, Far Rockaway

Whoopi Goldberg elaborated that she sees racism as discrimination based on skin color. But now she’s apologized, saying that because Adolf Hitler saw Jews as an inferior race, the Holocaust was about racism.

As a Jew, this leaves me with some questions. Isn’t racism discrimination based on race? If so, does this mean that Jews are a race? And if Jews are a race, which is news to me, why am I asked on forms about my race but don’t see Jew as a choice? Should I be offended? Does Hitler considering the Jews to be a race mean it’s true? When did he become an authority on defining race? He also didn’t like homosexuals. Was that racism, too?

This outrage seems to be based on Goldberg’s definition of the word "racism" and her understanding of Hitler’s motivations. Is this what we do as a society? Punish people for how they define words and their knowledge of historical leaders’ motivations? Whoopi chose the name Goldberg. She isn’t antisemitic. Maybe we should focus outrage on actual antisemites. There’s no shortage of them.

— David Cohen, Lynbrook

We are living in a time when people can be "canceled" for saying something questionable, even if they apologize and learn from the misstep. Who among us has not said or done something, been schooled, and then understood and changed?

The best outcome here is that a conversation is being had, and that people will be educated about the Holocaust’s horrors. Whoopi Goldberg’s statement ruffled feathers and as soon as it was explained why it was hurtful and incorrect, she said she was sorry, hadn’t understood the concern and now she does. She was invited to visit the Holocaust History Museum in Jerusalem to learn more about it and gain a deeper perspective. This was a perfect way to handle this.

Punishment rather than education is not the way to open someone’s heart and mind — especially at a time when so many people are hateful, violent, divisive and never apologize or learn from their words or deeds. I, as a Jewish woman, find her apology and willingness to listen and learn to be a positive step in the conversation.

— Brenda Ferrante, Lindenhurst

Using her TV forum to spew an uninformed and quasi-racist opinion does not exempt Whoopi Goldberg of responsibility and repercussions.

Because she ultimately gave an apology does not mean she shouldn’t be sanctioned by ABC.

She’s had plenty of controversial opinions on "The View" over the years, and maybe management had had enough.

— Robert Barnes, North Babylon

I thought the purpose of "The View" was to allow panelists to express opposing views on important issues. Obviously those views should have been preapproved. In this brave new world that progressives have paved, speech and behavior deemed inappropriate are met with the loss of livelihood, money or reputation. And now those repercussions have landed on one of their own. Whoopi Goldberg was definitely ignorant, but the punishment didn’t fit the crime.

— Robert C. Schmidt, Albertson

Certain responsibilities come with being a moderator on "The View." Words have consequences. Sometimes a tweet or verbal apology is not enough. Some people need very little encouragement to justify and perpetuate hatred and antisemitism. Just three weeks ago, a terrorist entered a Texas congregation and took four hostages.

Antisemitism has reached an alarming and fearful high in the United States. This has particularly been true in the aftermath of the mass shootings at synagogues in Pittsburgh in 2018 and Poway, California in 2019 and the subsequent attacks on Jewish targets in Jersey City and upstate Monsey. And don’t forget the antisemitism during the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017.

— Beverly Kasper, Mount Sinai

It’s simple. It’s antisemitism. It’s ugly, and it ought to be in the rearview mirror, but it’s not. We owe a lot to the first monotheistic religion, leading to Christianity and Islam.

When good people stay quiet, bad things happen. The Holocaust was real, and we’d better shape up because the same dynamic is afoot now. You could be in the crosshairs next time.

— Joan Nelson, Ridge