Center Security Sector & Law Enforcement Professional Education Program

The Holocaust Memorial Center’s Security Sector and Law Enforcement Professional Education Program provides educational opportunities about the Holocaust and preventing atrocities to the specific needs of local and state security and law enforcement agencies. They actively reach out to new partners to expand this customized training, seeking to partner with agencies of any size throughout Michigan. A substantial amount of work is done to engage and support small departments in rural areas, the Upper Peninsula, and other underserved communities.

The Holocaust provides a robust case study for understanding societal radicalization toward genocide. The Holocaust was committed with the widespread complicity and participation of law enforcement and criminal justice professionals, who enforced the Nazi regime’s antisemitic laws, implementing mass persecution, incarcerations, and violence against the Jewish community. Thus, Holocaust education provides a unique opportunity for security sector professionals to explore relevant themes like ethics, leadership, diversity, and responsibility that can inform their professional standards and service.

The Center’s Program, which began in 2022, was developed with guidance from local police departments who encouraged The Center to frame the training around themes such as demonstrating heroic leadership in public safety and developing cultural awareness of the enduring impact of antisemitism in our community.  This work resulted in a customized police training course which focused on the radicalization of the German security sector and the dangers of antisemitism. The course was officially registered with the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES) so that participants may receive necessary continuing education credits. To date, over 300 officers have been trained in the program. 

The program expansion will increase outreach activities to develop new partnerships with security sector agencies, resulting in at least 2,500 new participants from throughout the state. These new trainees will include state, local, and tribal police; dispatchers; corrections officers; and probation officers. The content of each training is tailored to meet the needs of each organization in consultation with their leadership and based on recommendations from a voluntary Security Sector Advisory Group, which will also be created in the program expansion.

The Center’s customized Holocaust education programming for security sector professionals ensures that participants understand their responsibility to prevent atrocities, act with courageous moral leadership, and counter antisemitism in their communities. Through their participation in the program, participants will be equipped to recognize the risks of hate and bias that lead to identity-based violence and genocide.