Theme “Home and Belonging”
A mock trial on Psychiatrist Ernst Rudin will take place at the ECOSOC Room of the UN New York on January 31st 2023, as part of the UN 2023 Holocaust Remembrance and Education program. The full program includes exhibitions memorial ceremonies, lectures and others. Exploring how victims adjusted their ideas of “home” and “belonging” as they faced the violent, antisemitic onslaught during the Holocaust, and what “home” and “belonging” meant to survivors in the immediate post-war years will frame the outreach programme.
In 1933, the Nazi Party took control of the government of Germany and put its ideology into practice, identifying who could claim Germany as home and who belonged. The process of definition and exclusion went beyond legislation and propaganda campaigns of disinformation and hate speech, to state-sanctioned acts of terror that destroyed people’s places of worship, livelihood and homes. The definition of who belonged and who did not, soon extended to all who fell within the expanding borders of the Nazi Reich and was reproduced by collaborator governments.
The Nazis and their racist collaborators rendered many millions homeless and stateless before and during the Second World War. We consider how those who sought refuge from 1933 negotiated the meaning of “home” and “belonging”. We consider those who survived by hiding and the impact of this experience on their sense of “home”. We will examine the ways in which survivors as displaced persons in displaced persons’ camps, and the children born in these camps, navigated the post-War world – a world in which the meaning of “home” and “belonging” had been challenged radically by the perpetrators of the Holocaust.
Holocaust remembrance and education that includes opportunities to develop a deeper appreciation of the victims and survivors and their agency, can inform our response to the plight of contemporary victims. Placing the victims and survivors in the centre of historical research, learning and remembrance illuminates the humanity of victims of atrocities today, and the impact of antisemitism fuelled by disinformation and the distortion of history. Focusing on the humanity of the victims prompts us to remember our humanity, and our responsibility to combat hate speech, combat antisemitism and prejudice – to do all we can to prevent genocide.
Calendar of Events at United Nations Headquarters
January | February
Tuesday, 31 January 2023
International Mock Trial on Human Rights
3:00 p.m. EST, United Nations Headquarters
The International Mock Trial on Human Rights is the culmination of a year-long programme organized by The Social Excellence Forum (SEF) for a diverse group of 20-30 young leaders, ages 15-22 years, from several countries. The students will interrogate the actions and responsibilities of Ernst Rudin, the so-called father of Nazi Racial Hygiene. The Mock Trial will cover the subject of human rights violations, racism and discrimination, and the responsibility of leaders for the consequences of their incitement and actions. The International Youth Mock Trial on Human Rights is organized by The Social Excellence Forum (SEF), with the support of the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme. The Social Excellence Forum (SEF) is a non-profit youth leadership training initiative.
10 January – 23 February 2023
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 archives of the United Nations and the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, and draws upon the expertise of the Center for the Study of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Crimes Against Humanity at the Graduate Center—CUNY. The exhibition was created by the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme and Professor Debórah Dwork, together with the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research Archives, the United Nations Archives and Records Management Services, and with generous support of Stockton University.
Visitor Information:
The exhibition is free and open to the public. Guests are welcome to visit the exhibition during regular hours (Monday-Friday, 9 am – 5 pm). For more information, please, check the United Nations Visitor Centre entry guidelines.
16 January – 20 February 2023
Exhibition “#Fake Images: Unmask the dangers of stereotypes”
Stereotypes and conspiracy theories against Jews, Roma, migrants, LGBTQIA+ or other groups are not new. During the Second World War, the antisemitic propaganda of the Nazis and their racist collaborators used stereotyping, false images, disinformation and conspiracy thinking to encourage hatred, with deadly consequences. The propaganda and lies foreshadowed the genocide. The exhibition exposes how the Nazi’s false and manipulative imaging worked and continues to find expression today. The interactive exhibition challenges us to take action to unmask the lies that continue to divide and polarise our world. The exhibition was curated by Kazerne Dossin, in collaboration with the “Arthur Langerman Archive for the Study of Visual Antisemitism Foundation” (ALAVA) and the Center for Research on Antisemitism at the Technische Universität Berlin. The exhibition is supported by the Belgium Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Permanent Mission of Belgium to the United Nations.
Visitor Information:
The exhibition is free and open to the public. Guests are welcome to visit the exhibition during regular hours (Monday-Friday, 9 am – 5 pm). For more information, please, check the United Nations Visitor Centre entry guidelines.
Opening event: Wednesday, 25 January 2023, 6:30 p.m. EST, Visitors Lobby, United Nations Headquarters
Registration will open soon.
26 January – 17 February 2023
Exhibition “The Yad Vashem Book of Names of Holocaust Victims”
Yad Vashem – The World Holocaust Remembrance Center has specially updated its exhibition, “The Yad Vashem Book of Names of Holocaust Victims” for display at United Nations Headquarters. “The Yad Vashem Book of Names of Holocaust Victims” details alphabetically the name of each of the approximately 4.8 million Holocaust victims that Yad Vashem has currently documented and confirmed. Whenever possible, “The Yad Vashem Book of Names of Holocaust Victims” shows the date of birth, home town and place of death of the respective victim. The names are taken from Pages of Testimony in Yad Vashem’s Hall of Names, as well as from various lists compiled during and following the Holocaust, and subsequently reviewed by Yad Vashem experts. The display of “The Yad Vashem Book of Names of Holocaust Victims” at the United Nations is supported by the Permanent Mission of Israel to the United Nations.
Visitor Information:
The exhibition is free and open to the public. Guests are welcome to visit the exhibition during regular hours (Monday-Friday, 9 am – 5 pm). For more information, please, check the United Nations Visitor Centre entry guidelines.
Opening event: Thursday, 26 January 2023, 1:30 p.m. EST, United Nations Headquarters
Friday, 27 January 2023
United Nations Holocaust Memorial Ceremony
11:00 a.m. EST, United Nations Headquarters
Ms. Melissa Fleming, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications will host the ceremony. The event includes remarks by United Nations Secretary-General; the President of the 77th session of the General Assembly and the Permanent Representatives of Israel and the United States to the United Nations. Professor Debórah Dwork will deliver the keynote address. Mr. Jacques Grishaver of the Netherlands will share his testimony as a survivor of the Holocaust. Professor Ethel Brooks will speak to the persecution and mass murder of the Roma and Sinti. Two grandchildren of Holocaust survivors will present – Professor Karen Frostig and Mr. Michael Shaham. Musicians include Ms. Shoshana Shattenkirk, Mr. Michael Shaham (who will perform on a Violin of Hope). Professor Renée Jolles will perform a piece for violin specially composed by Ms. Victoria Bond for the 2023 Holocaust memorial ceremony. Cantor Nissim Saal will recite the memorial prayer.
Register here to attend the Holocaust Memorial Ceremony in person. Registration will close on Monday, 23 January 2023.
Thursday, 9 February 2023
Film Screening “The U.S. and the Holocaust” and Panel Discussion
6:30-8:00 p.m. EST, United Nations Headquarters
A screening of a special 40-minute version of “The U.S. and the Holocaust”, a film by Ken Burns, Lynn Novick and Sarah Botstein will be followed by a discussion with Ken Burns and Lynn Novick. The documentary combines first-person accounts of Holocaust witnesses and survivors and interviews with leading historians and writers. Inspired in part by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s “Americans and the Holocaust” exhibition and supported by its historical resources, the film examines the rise of Hitler and Nazism in Germany in the context of global antisemitism and racism, the eugenics movement in the United States and race laws in the American south. The documentary tackles a range of questions that remain essential to our society today, including how racism influences policies related to immigration and refugees as well as how governments and people respond to the rise of authoritarian states that manipulate history and facts to consolidate power.
Thursday, 16 February 2023
Civil Society Briefing “Social Media and the Holocaust – Education or Distortion?”
11:00 a.m. EST, United Nations Headquarters
A diverse panel will consider the relationship between social media and Holocaust education and remembrance – why some disseminate “dangerous speech”; how youth navigate the digital landscape; strategies to counter online disinformation and hate speech and maximize the potential of social media for education and mutual respect. The report by the United Nations and UNESCO, “History Under Attack: Holocaust Denial and Distortion on Social Media” will be presented.
Registration will open soon.
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