Keep trying in the quest for unity, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Elie Wiesel said last night during a lecture at the UA.
In his sold-out lecture at Centennial Hall, the 76-year-old Holocaust survivor relived the horrors of the past but said there is hope for the future.
The Community-Builders Humanitarian Award Dinner preceded the lecture and Wiesel honored President Peter Likins along with businessman Donald Diamond for their contributions to society.
Likins was chosen as a recipient of the award for his commitment to diversity and is a "model for humanitarianism," said Ed Wright, director of the Center for Judaic Studies.
Likins also lauded Wiesel as "a teacher for us all" whose mission is to promote peace and human rights.
During his visit, Wiesel spoke about fanaticism, the Holocaust, the years he spent trying to understand human cruelty and the anguish he felt when he realized the tragedy could have been prevented.
Many Nazis who murdered children and created mass graves had college degrees, yet Wiesel said education was not enough to prevent intolerance.
"Education without ethos can go astray," said Wiesel, author of "La Nuit" (The Night).
This was Wiesel's sixth visit to Tucson, and the event marked the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Nazi camps in Europe.
Wiesel also discussed today's society, including widespread violence and said the United States, as well as the United Nations, should intervene in the genocides, specifically in the Darfur region of western Sudan, Wiesel said.
"Mass murder is still a daily event and we don't do enough to prevent it," Wiesel said during a press conference.
But after the Holocaust, Wiesel thought people would never hate again.
"And here we are 60 years later," Wiesel said.
Danielle Rehr-Davis, a pre-nursing freshman, said Wiesel's speech was touching.
Ultimately, Wiesel said purging the suffering of children, the suffering of neighbors and the suffering of strangers is what will lead to a better tomorrow.
Despite his profound words and notable accomplishments, the "teacher of generation" had a simple lesson for students.
"This century is not mine," Wiesel said. "It's yours."