The Jewish Community of the Republic of Moldova (JCM), as a member of the World Jewish Congress (WJC), is taking part in WJC and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)’s annual #WeRemember campaign for International Holocaust Remembrance Day on 27 January.
What is it?
- The campaign, which began on 24 January and runs through International Holocaust Remembrance Week and IHR Day on 27 Jan, promotes the importance and awareness of Holocaust education.
- With the theme, “Learn from the past, protect the future,” the 2023 #WeRemember campaign encourages participants around the world to take pictures of themselves holding a sign with the words “We Remember,” and then post their pictures to social media using the hashtag #WeRemember, to spread the message that “never again” must mean never again.
- Previous participants have included Ursula von Leyden, Angela Merkel, the Pope, Chelsea football team and Borussia Dortmund football team
Why?
- This last year was a difficult one for the Jewish people and other vulnerable communities around the world. Rising antisemitism and the increased spread of Holocaust denial online have led to new threats that demand urgent action.
- Encouraging society to reflect on the lessons of the past can ensure that future generations develop the knowledge and skills to effectively confront these challenges. The #WeRemember Campaign is to remind the world of what can happen when hatred is allowed to thrive unchecked.
- The Holocaust was the organized persecution and killing of 6 million Jewish people, alongside other targeted groups, by the Nazis and their collaborators during World War II. Learning about this history, and understanding what led to the greatest tragedy in modern times, can help prevent future genocides and acts of hatred based on religion, ethnicity, or other differences.
- With the number of survivors growing fewer with each passing year, it’s our shared responsibility to preserve the memory of the victims and ensure that the past is never forgotten.
Why in Moldova?
- Shockingly few people know about Holocaust in Moldova, and holocaust denial or distortion online is seen widely.
- According to the findings of the International Commission on the Holocaust chaired by Elie Wiesel, around 300,000 Jews and several thousand Roma, as well as other groups, were murdered in the Holocaust in Moldova. The Jewish Community of the Republic of Moldova prepared a poster for the #WeRemember campaign which uses an image from the Holocaust in Moldova in 1941.
- The poster is now on display in bus stops and stations across Moldova, as well as on social media of the Jewish Community of Moldova and its national partners
- In Moldova, Ambassadors from foreign missions and representatives of NGOs and civil society have taken part in the campaign by writing a short message about the importance of International Holocaust Memorial Day and posting a picture of themselves.
How you can take part?
- Take a photo of yourself with a piece of paper that says #WeRemember and post it on instagram, facebook, twitter or tiktok. Tag us at Jewish Community of Moldova and WJC, so we can share it.
- This sends a message that we must learn from the past to protect the future.
For more information about the Holocaust Remembrance Week in Moldova, please send questions to office@jcm.md Additional resources about the #WeRemember campaign are available on the platform https://weremember.worldjewishcongress.org/ and information on the history of the Holocaust on web page https://aboutholocaust.org
https://www.instagram.com/jewish.moldova/
https://www.facebook.com/JCM.md/
https://jcm.md/
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