This year marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau.
In 2005, to commemorate the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the United Nations General Assembly designated January 27 as
International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
The resolution stated that every member of the UN should honor the six million Jews as well as others who perished in the Nazi genocide. The resolution also tasked them with the development and promotion of educational programs about this history to help prevent such atrocities in the future.
Tragically, denial and distortion of Holocaust history is rampant for all to witnesses, along with an alarming rise of antisemitism locally, nationally, and around the globe. More than ever, it is important that this dark chapter of human history is remembered.
One way to acknowledge the significance of International Holocaust Remembrance Day is to read a section in the Holocaust Commission’s To Life: The Past is Present, Holocaust Stories of Hampton Roads Survivors, Rescuers, and Liberators, a collection of stories and reflections from members of Jewish Tidewater who witnessed this brutal history. As the day specifically honors the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the stories of Sam and Irving Althaus, Paula Bromberg, Jan Frolich, Esther and Charles Goldman, Rosalia Kaplan, and Aaron Weintraub all take the reader into the largest and deadliest extermination camp in the vast network of 44,000 camps established by the Nazis and their allies throughout Europe. These stories, along with the others in the book, are a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the power of hope in the face of unimaginable adversity.
Other ways to reflect and learn about the Holocaust include listening to an episode of the podcast, Stars Among Us, watching a What We Carry film, or encouraging a student to enter the Elie Wiesel Writing and Visuals Arts Competition, all of which can be found on the Holocaust Commission’s website. Additional resources can be found by visiting the websites of United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (https://www.ushmm.org) or the Virginia Holocaust Museum (https://www.vaholocaust.org/).
To Life is available for purchase at the Simon Family Jewish Community Center, at all area temple gift shops, Prince Books, the MacArthur Memorial gift shop, and on the Holocaust Commission’s website.
For more information about the Holocaust Commission of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, visit holocaustcommission.org or contact Elka Mednick: EMednick@UJFT.org or 757-965-6100.
Commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day with local stories in “To Life: The Past Is Present”
