Viroloog Jaap Goudsmit: ‘Ik vind het te makkelijk om de Holocaust overal de schuld van te geven’

Virologist and former AIDS researcher Jaap Goudsmit has published a new personal book exploring the influence of his family history on his identity. In the work, Goudsmit examines the extent to which his life path was shaped by the Holocaust versus the absence of his father during his upbringing.

Central to the book is Goudsmit’s critical stance on the use of the Holocaust as a universal explanation for personal outcomes. He argues that it is too simplistic to attribute all aspects of his life and character solely to the historical trauma of the Holocaust.