Smiling rubber duck at Auschwitz ignites online debate about photo ethics
- Internet users slam image after Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum asks on Twitter if picture of toy in front of ‘Gate of Death’ is disrespectful
- Travel Instagramer who takes pictures of duck with landmarks says he wanted to teach people about important locations in ‘creative and informative way’
The Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum publishes historic facts on its Twitter account about the horrors that occurred at the Holocaust’s most infamous death camp, and it frequently engages with social media users around the world for educational purposes.
Last week, it had to deliver one of its occasional lessons in decorum after a travel Instagram account posted a photo of a rubber duck outside the entrance to the Birkenau death camp where an estimated 1 million people died at the hands of the Nazis.
It was the latest case in which Auschwitz and other Holocaust memorial sites have needed to convey proper etiquette to visitors, who increasingly convey their presence at such sights with photographs and, controversially, selfies.
On Wednesday, the memorial tweeted out a photo taken by @atuk.apil, a travel Instagram account run by a 22-year-old Venezuelan university student who travels the world with a smiling rubber duck. His account features photos of the toy in front of international landmarks such as St Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow and Petra in Jordan.
The student, who asked not be named for fear of further backlash, said he had travelled to Auschwitz-Birkenau in September to learn about its history. He insisted he used the duck to teach people about important locations in “creative and informative way” and “never intended to offend or generate controversy”.