The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) published the 100 Words project, a video Op-Ed made by 100 Holocaust survivors asking the world to stand with them and remember on Holocaust Remembrance Day.
Click here to view the 100 words video Op-Ed.
April 28 is Yom HaShoah, Hebrew for Holocaust Remembrance Day. The 100 Word project statement declared by Holocaust survivors around the world urged viewers to remember so that the past does not become our future.
“The world is full of strife – from the pandemic to the crisis happening in Ukraine – on remembrance days like Yom HaShoah, it is so important to stop and reflect,” said Gideon Taylor, President of the Claims Conference. “The call to action these survivors put forth today is not only one of remembrance, but one of action, a reminder that we do not have to be bystanders. We can all stand up in our own way, and we can choose to not let our collective history repeat itself.”
The Claims Conference is a nonprofit organization with offices in New York, Israel and Germany. The organization secures material compensation for Holocaust survivors globally, negotiates for and disburses funds to individuals and organizations and seeks the return of Jewish property stolen during the Holocaust. In 2021, the Claims Conference distributed approximately $820 million in compensation to over 210,000 survivors in 83 countries and allocated over $650 million in grants to over 300 social service agencies worldwide that provide vital services for Holocaust survivors, such as home care, food and medicine.
In addition, the Claims Conference has published many survivor-led campaigns, including their most recent #DontBeABystander campaign. It is a social media campaign highlighting Righteous rescuers, the non-Jews who saved Jews during the Holocaust, reminding everyone that standing by while hatred goes unchecked is a choice.
Similarly, the 100 Words project is a call to action in remembrance.
“The reminder survivors are giving us in this statement isn’t just about remembering the past. This is a call to action to ensure our past does not become our future,” said Greg Schneider, Executive Vice President of the Claims Conference. “We were especially touched that Ukrainian survivors we recently evacuated wanted to participate, despite their upheaval. More than six million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust – one and a half million of them were children, murdered just because they were Jewish. Our task is to remember those we lost, care for those who survived, and educate future generations so that the atrocities of the Holocaust are never again repeated.”
Survivors located across the nations participated in the powerful statement, including survivors from the United States, Germany, Israel, France, England, Ukraine and Canada. The video Op-Ed itself also includes the different languages spoken in these countries.
“I am so proud to be one of the 100 Holocaust survivors participating in this video op-ed reminding those watching that hate must not remain unchecked and that remembrance is vital,” said Abe Foxman, Holocaust survivor and member of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council. “As a survivor, not only do I know what happens when evil is allowed to flourish, I also know the urgency of continuing to tell the world of the atrocities that allowed one-third of a population to be murdered. Only through remembrance can we be sure this will never happen again.”
