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 Paper Clips
By J. Byron
Dean
MPAA RATING: G
Genre: Documentary
Studio: Miramax Films/Hart Sharp Video
Release on DVD: March 7, 2006
The horror of the Holocaust still has valuable lessons to teach. It was a
period in history that has impacted millions, either through the personal
stories of survivors, the reading of it in school books or novels, or films
like Schindler's List. Now
another moving film brings the story of the Holocaust to the present day, as
the lessons of this tragic time in history are made real for students at a
school in Tennessee. Little did the teachers at the Whitwell Middle School
realize how much the Holocaust would touch their lives when they set out to
construct a program to teach tolerance.
Paper Clips weaves their tale with simple, emotional elegance.
But when the teachers at the Whitwell Middle School
in Tennessee wanted to begin a program to teach tolerance they had no idea just
how much more the Holocaust would touch their lives and the lives of their
students.
 During a simple day of study, a teacher mentioned to
her class that there had been over 4 million Jews killed during the Holocaust.
One student asked how many was 4 million. The simple
question inspired the teacher to find a way to help her students fully grasp the
magnitude of the atrocity. How do you make four million
real?
She put the task to her students who did some research on the
subject. They found that the paper clip had been invented not for the task we
all take for granted, that of clipping papers together, but as a symbol that
could be worn on the clothes to signify the horrors that were going on
with Hitler and his desire to wipe the Jews off the face of the
earth. It was
then decided that they would collect 4 million paper clips, one for each Jew
killed in the Holocaust.
But they didn't stop there! To make the world aware
of the situation, the students decided to contact people from all over the world
and ask them for paper clips. They received paper clips from President George
W. Bush, and several film and TV celebrities along with many people from all
walks of life.
The paper clips began to pour in and eventually they
had more than 4 million ... they had enough to even include others that were
killed during the Holocaust (Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses, homosexuals, the
old, the sick and anyone who simply opposed Hitler).
Soon the news spread to survivors of the Holocaust
and they asked to come and speak with the children. Their moving and heart-wrenching stories touched the children and teachers deeply. They realized that
what they had learned and what they had been given needed to be shared. The
school built a permanent museum (from an actual train car used to transport
victims to the concentration camps) to house the paper clips and letters from
the people that had contacted them in their quest.
A moving and enlightening story, Paper Clips
gives us hope that one day we will all be able to coexist and respect one
another.
Family Movie Reviews
The Parents Television Council -
www.parentstv.org
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