Frederick Naftel Speaker | Primary & PHSCE & Assemblies and Celebrations Events & Music & Humanities & Citizenship & Parents

Frederick Naftel

The Legacy of The Holocaust - A Personal Journey

Frederick has been working as a Holocaust educator since 2012, having visited over 160 different schools and sixth form colleges nationwide. Although he now only travels within a 30-mile radius, Frederick is also able to offer virtual presentations for those establishments further afield.

The Holocaust from a personal viewpoint. Frederick's Mother and Grandparents were German refugees from Nazi Germany and his Great-Grandmother survived the camps. His Great Aunt and Uncle both perished in Auschwitz.

Frederick relates his family story and illustrates each talk with a slideshow of images, which are adapted for suitability for specific year groups.

Frederick touches on facts that are often overlooked and describes the rise of antisemitism throughout Europe and the rest of the world since The Holocaust and what we can all do to combat hatred.

Questions from the students are cordially invited at the end of each talk.

The History of Antisemitism from Medieval Times to the Present Day

In view of an ever-increasing rise in antisemitism over the past couple of years amid the usual cries of "not our problem" and without effective support from the government and police force, Frederick aims to set the record straight and confront the problem head-on, without excuses. Antisemitism did not start with The Holocaust nor with the foundation of the State of Israel. It has been around for 3000 years and shows no sign of going away. Recent tragic events have unfortunately proved that hate does not die, only innocent citizens. The attack at a Manchester synagogue on Yom Kippur and the shootings at Bondi Beach are warning signs that Jews are not safe while extremism and terrorism dominate the streets. His talk aims to show that nothing has changed since the earliest times and the vile policies of Nazi Germany are alive and kicking around the world.

Music:

As a former music teacher and as another string to his bow(!), Frederick also offers audio-visual musical presentations to primary schools on a variety of topics, the object being to introduce young children to classical music, often with a descriptive theme. For further details, Frederick would arrange a virtual meeting during which he would demonstrate the extent of his musical sessions.

Testimonials from Teachers

"Dear Mr Naftel,

I wanted to thank you very much indeed for your talk yesterday. It was very moving and informative and the girls will really have benefited from it. I have had excellent feedback from the girls and we are very grateful to you and hope that you will consider visiting us again next year.

With very best wishes and many thanks

Victoria"

– Dr Victoria Sherwood, Careers and Work Experience Manager, Second in RS and Philosophy, Cheltenham Ladies' College

"Hi Freddy,

Thank you very much for today. I have spoken to some Y10 and Y11 students and they really enjoyed it. Some of their comments included "It was really interested to hear about the Holocaust from someone who has links to it" and "I was shocked by the video at the end" and "I liked the way he had strong opinions, I didn't expect that." The students got a lot from it.

I've been asked to give something to the press, here's what I've written: "Mr Freddy Naftel came to talk to our GCSE and Year 8 students about the Holocaust. We were shown a range of video clips and photographs, including members of his family some of whom had escaped from Nazi Germany and his Great Aunty and Uncle who perished in Auschwitz. He also discussed the problem of anti-Semitism today as well as other forms of intolerance and invited students to consider why discrimination still exists. The talk was excellent and the students appreciated a personal perspective on the Holocaust."

– Becky Abbotson, Alsager School

"Freddy Naftel visited Harrow School on Tuesday 31 January 2023. Freddy was extremely generous with his time and was kind enough to provide an array of different learning opportunities for students and members of staff. This included running seminars for pupils in Year 9 and Year 10, as well as presenting a keynote lecture in the evening. In the afternoon, Freddy also led a staff training session which focused on how to approach Anti-Semitism in a school environment. The staff that attended this seminar were extremely grateful to hear Freddy’s perspective and personal experiences. This led to important questions being addressed and discussed.

The seminars run by Freddy for the pupils were interesting and engaging. Freddy explained the history of Anti-Semitism and was able to deliver the material in an extremely accessible manner. Freddy also spoke about his own family connections with the Holocaust and was able to give a very personal perspective on the impact that Anti-Semitism has had on his family. Freddy’s lecture was insightful and very useful for the pupils preparing for the CAIE IGCSE History Depth Study on Germany 1918-45.

It was a great pleasure to host Freddy at Harrow School and we would be delighted to welcome him back at some stage in the future."

– Rob Potter, Head of History, Harrow School