Center for Holocaust and Genocide Research

Getting Started

This guide will help you locate information about the Holocaust and other genocides throughout history. There are different types of resources that are provided, including journals, databases, books, secondary resources, and primary resources. The goal of this guide is to help start with the research process. There are a plethora of resources available to use that may not be listed in this resource guide but are available at your disposal.

About FGCU's Center for Holocaust and Genocide Research

The Center for Holocaust and Genocide Research increases the knowledge and understanding of the Holocaust and genocide by providing education and research opportunities within the university and the Southwest Florida community. By facilitating partnerships with organizations here and abroad, we strengthen democratic institutions that confront genocide and other threats to human rights, such as intolerance, antisemitism, racism, and ignorance. 

Definition of Genocide

The word "genocide" is an internationally recognized crime against humanity in which there is an intent to destroy, in whole or partial, an ethnic, racial, or religious group. The word was first used in 1944 by Raphäel Lemkin when he wrote the book, Axis Rule in Occupied Europe. The term was developed in response to the Nazi policies of systematic killings of Jewish people and also in response to previous instances in history when such atrocities occurred. 

The following are acts that contribute to the crime: 

1. Killing members of the targeted group;
2. Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the targeted group;
3. Deliberately inflicting on the targeted group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
4. Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
5. Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group

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   Sources: The United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Local Resources to Help with Research

These institutions are available to assist with and provide resources for research regarding the Holocaust and Genocide

1. The Naples Holocaust Museum and Cohen Education Center
2. Florida Gulf Coast University Archives and Special Collections
3. FGCU Center for Holocaust and Genocide Research 

Florida Gulf Coast University Faculty 

These faculty members are available to assist with and provide resources for research regarding the Holocaust and Genocide

1. Dr. Paul Bartrop, Professor Emeritus of History (pbartrop@fgcu.edu)
2. Dr. Erik Carlson, Associate Professor (ecarlson@fgcu.edu)
3. Dr. Melodie Eichbauer, Professor and Assistant Director, Office of Scholarly Innovation & Student Scholarship (meichbauer@fgcu.edu)
4. Jonathan Harrison, Visiting Instructor I, Sociology (jharrison@fgcu.edu)
5. Dr. Vanja Petricevic, Associate Professor (vpetricevic@fgcu.edu)