2022 Holocaust Remembrance Calendar of Events

2022 Holocaust Remembrance Calendar of Events   Clockwise from top left: Holocaust survivors Vered Kater (2022), Rabbi Arthur Schneier (2021), Ella Blumenthal (1938), Pinchas Gutter (2021), Vered Kater (age 4), Ella Blumenthal (2022). Credits: Ricardo Wolokita, Nathan Beriro, Courtesy of Ella Blumenthal, Nathan Beriro, Courtesy of Vered Kater, Sean O’Sullivan.   The Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme is pleased to share with you the theme guiding United Nations Holocaust remembrance and education in 2022, and a calendar of Holocaust remembrance and education programs for January and February 2022. As we continue to learn how to live with COVID-19, and rise to meet the challenges it poses, we hope that 2022 will be kinder to all – that we will stand together united in our humanity to build a world in which all can live with dignity and in peace. We invite you to join us virtually at our online memorial ceremony, film screenings, briefing and discussions.   “Memory, Dignity and Justice”    In 2022, the theme guiding the United Nations Holocaust remembrance and education is “Memory, Dignity and Justice”. Holocaust commemoration and education remains a global imperative. Safeguarding the historical record, remembering the victims, challenging the distortion of history often expressed in contemporary antisemitism, brings dignity and justice to those whom the perpetrators of the Holocaust intended to obliterate. The theme encompasses these concerns. Holocaust commemorative and educational activities will draw attention to the actions of Holocaust survivors in the immediate years following the devastation and brutality of the Holocaust, to reclaim their rights, their history, their cultural heritage and traditions, and their dignity. The role played by institutions and individuals in supporting survivors, the long-reaching impact of the Holocaust on survivors’ families, and the impact of the Holocaust on the shaping of human rights policy and interventions will be explored. The theme encourages action to challenge hatred, strengthen solidarity and champion compassion. The Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme is an expression of the unwavering commitment of the United Nations to promoting human rights, to countering antisemitism and racism, and to preventing future genocide.   Thursday, 27 January 2022 United Nations Holocaust Memorial Ceremony 11:00 a.m. EST Ms. Melissa Fleming, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications will host the virtual ceremony marking the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust. Invited speakers include United Nations Secretary-General; the President of the 76th General Assembly; the Permanent Representatives of Israel and the United States. Professor John K. Roth will deliver the keynote address. The ceremony will include testimonies from Holocaust survivors from Canada, Israel, South Africa and the United States, children and grandchildren of Holocaust and Romani survivors and a diverse range of speakers from Japan, Kenya, Senegal, South Africa and the United Kingdom. There will be a musical performance, and memorial prayers will be recited. The ceremony will be livestreamed worldwide through UN Web TV.   Get a reminder with the link to watch the Ceremony   January - February 2022 Exhibition “After the End of the World:  Displaced Persons and Displaced Persons Camps” Europe emerged from the Second World War utterly broken, with millions of refugees scattered across many countries. The United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) was created to resettle those displaced by the mayhem of the war and the Holocaust. The fragments from the past illuminate the work of UNRRA administrators, and chart how, in the aftermath of catastrophic loss, Holocaust survivors navigated their new lives in displaced persons camps. The exhibition is sourced with artefacts and documents from the United Nations Archives and the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research Archives. The exhibition was created by the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme, together with the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research Archives, and the United Nations Archives, and with generous support of Stockton University. The exhibition is on view through end February 2022. We will notify you should United Nations safety protocols for COVID-19 permit public viewing.     Monday, 24 January 2022 Briefing “Holocaust Remembrance: Responsibilities for All Society” 11:00 a.m. EST   For its annual United Nations event in conjunction with International Holocaust Remembrance Day—this month marking 15 years of observance by the world body—B’nai B’rith International presents a global virtual program entitled “Holocaust Remembrance: Responsibilities for All Society.” The event is organized by B’nai B’rith International.   Register for "Responsibilities for All Society"   Tuesday, 25 January 2022 Park East Synagogue Holocaust Commemoration Service 6:00 p.m. EST Park East Synagogue will host a virtual Holocaust Commemoration Service marking the 77th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and Rabbi Arthur Schneier will deliver remarks. The event will include the participation of the diplomatic corps, Holocaust Survivors' families, Rabbi Arthur Schneier Park East Day School students and music by Chief Cantor Yitzchak Meir Helfgot, Cantor Benny Rogosnitzky and the Park East Synagogue Choir, led by Conductor Maestro Russell Ger.   Watch Park East Synagogue Holocaust Commemoration Service   Thursday, 27 January 2022 United Nations Chamber Music Society Virtual Concert   9:00 a.m. EST The United Nations Chamber Music Society of the United Nations Staff Recreation Council will perform a virtual concert in memory of the victims of the Holocaust. The classical music program will feature Jewish composers, to instill the memory of the tragedy in future generations to prevent genocide from occurring again. It will also feature special performances from musicians from Maestro Daniel Barenboim’s West–Eastern Divan Orchestra. The concert will be livestreamed through UN Web TV and YouTube.   Thursday, 27 January 2022 Briefing "Lest We Forget: Combating Holocaust Denial and Distortion"   2:00 p.m. EST   In this online briefing, the panelists will consider measures that the United Nations, governments, and social media companies can take, as antisemitism continues to grow, to combat Holocaust denial and distortion, and how they can promote more effective Holocaust education and ensure that victims are never forgotten. This briefing is organized by the American Jewish Committee (AJC).   Register for "Lest We Forget"   Thursday, 3 February 2022   Civil Society Briefing “The Future of Memory: Holocaust Remembrance, History and New Media” 11:00 a.m. EST The briefing will examine how memories of the Holocaust are kept and discussed through new media, and the implications for Holocaust history, remembrance and education. Panelists consider how new media can combat Holocaust denial and distortion, antisemitism, and other identity-based hatreds.   Register for "The Future of Memory"   Thursday, 10 February 2022 Virtual Film Discussion: The Last Survivors 12:00 p.m. EST A virtual discussion with the director of the documentary The Last Survivors, joined by an esteemed Holocaust historian, and a Holocaust survivor, will consider what growing up Jewish during the Holocaust meant, and what it means to have survived. The documentary gathers together compelling testimony from Holocaust survivors living in Britain today. The survivors were children during the Holocaust. The film captures how they reflect on their experiences during the Holocaust with a different perspective and understanding of how their experience of trauma shapes their contemporary lives with increased significance. The film will be made available for viewing prior to the discussion. Please note that the film contains material that is disturbing, and not suitable for younger viewers. Viewer discretion is advised.   Register for film discussion "The Last Survivors"   Thursday, 17 February 2022 Virtual Series “Conversations with the Author” 12:00 p.m. EST Dr. Elizabeth Anthony, together with historian Professor Albert Lichtblau, discusses her award-winning book titled “The Compromise of Return: Viennese Jews after the Holocaust”. The book considers what prompted Viennese Jews to return to their home city after the devastation of the Holocaust, what their hopes were, and what they found. The discussion is organized in association with the Center for the Study of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Crimes against Humanity, the Graduate Center, CUNY and the Skirball Department of Hebrew and Judaic Studies, NYU. It forms part of the discussion series “Refugees and Forcibly Displaced Persons”, organized by the Center for the Study of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Crimes against Humanity, the Graduate Center, CUNY and the Skirball Department of Hebrew and Judaic Studies, NYU.   Register for "Conversations with the Author"