Tribune-Star Editorial: CANDLES again sheds light on darkness of hate speech – Terre Haute Tribune Star

The most important takeaway from this week's saga involving a state legislator, quoting an infamous Nazi to make some sort of point, had little to do with the politician himself.

Instead, the glowing upside came from the CANDLES Holocaust Museum and Education Center in Terre Haute. The museum not only delivered a necessary and authoritative response to state Rep. Jim Lucas' provocative Facebook post, but it also beautifully fulfilled a prime facet of the facility's mission education.

Lucas initially insisted he was trying to educate others when he posted a quotation often attributed to Joseph Goebbels "If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it." The Goebbels quote goes on to claim "the State" must repress dissent and shield the people from the consequences of its lie, because "truth is the greatest enemy of the State."

The Republican legislator from Seymour displayed the quote from Goebbels Nazi Germany's propaganda minister under Adolf Hitler on Monday on Lucas' Facebook page. Later, after criticism on social media and from Chad Harmon, his Democratic opponent in race for the Indiana House's 69th District seat, Lucas pulled the Goebbels quote and replaced it with a quote from "Game of Thrones" author George R.R. Martin. Lucas added a lengthy explanation, asserting he was "only attempting to educate people on how evil can begin and the possible depth of that dark path it can lead to, that history shows can know no end."

Lucas seems drawn to stirring controversy, often through inflammatory social media comments. He once posted a meme on Facebook, widely criticized as racist. Republican House Speaker Todd Huston called it "unacceptable" and removed Lucas from two interim House study committees and demoted him from vice chair of another committee to merely a member.

In this week's incident, the CANDLES museum made clear that Lucas' social media post was dangerously wrong-headed. A museum statement pointed out that Lucas' post "included a link to the site with Goebbels' name and 'The Jewish Question.'" The statement added, "We are shocked and horrified that an Indiana lawmaker would make such a statement about Hitler's chief architect and purveyor of hate speech, ultimately leading to the murder of over 6 million Jews in the Holocaust. Hate propaganda was the driving force behind the Holocaust, and these seeds of hate have been, and are being planted, today in the United States." It also rightly called on Huston to condemn Lucas' actions.

At some point, Lucas must have understood the gravity of his irresponsibility. On Thursday, he traveled to Terre Haute and visited the museum and education center. The latter part of its name proved valuable.

Education is a powerful tool.

A news release from CANDLES said, "It was a positive visit, and we shared a great conversation about the importance of Holocaust education in Indiana." Troy Fears, the museum's executive director, had addressed that subject in February while testifying to the Indiana General Assembly against an awful piece of legislation that CANDLES rightly asserted would have discouraged Indiana teachers from educating students on the Holocaust.

In the wake of Thursday's museum visit by Lucas, the museum statement said it had a better understanding of what happened and sensed an opportunity "to build stronger communities through conversations like we had today."

Along with casting typical blame on the media and critics for "hysteria" over his post, Lucas also seemed to be moved by his visit. "I spent over 2 hours touring, discussing and learning about the museum's history and purpose," he wrote, again on Facebook. "If you've never been there, I can't recommend it enough. To see and learn about the personal history of Eva Kor is truly an incredible experience."

That is 100% true. The museum on South Third Street offers a powerful message on the life and efforts of its late founder, Eva Kor, the Holocaust survivor who made Terre Haute her adopted home and educated the world in the process.

Let us hope the experience in Terre Haute causes Lucas to end his reliance on insensitivity to attract attention to his opinions. Hoosiers would be much better served.

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Tribune-Star Editorial: CANDLES again sheds light on darkness of hate speech - Terre Haute Tribune Star