75 Years Ago, Auschwitz was Liberated — How the World Is Remembering
The Fellowship | January 27, 2020
Even as the number of Holocaust survivors dwindles, we are inspired to know the world hasn’t forgotten and that the 75th anniversary of Auschwitz’s liberation is being commemorated by many across the globe.
THE MUSEUM OF JEWISH HERITAGE – A LIVING MEMORIAL TO THE HOLOCAUST
In Battery Park City, the Museum of Jewish Heritage, now home to the exhibition “Auschwitz. Not long ago. Not far away,” is holding a day of activities. At 9:00 AM, the museum’s Edmond J. Safra Hall will feature a simulcast of a ceremony being held at Auschwitz. At 11:00 AM, Dr. Robert Jan van Pelt, the curator of the museum’s Auschwitz exhibition, will hold a discussion about Auschwitz’s liberation and Rabbi Eli Babich of Fifth Avenue Synagogue will sound a shofar that was secretly blown at the camp during the high holidays of 1944 before Auschwitz was liberated in 1945. Van Pelt will give another talk at 3 PM about many of the artifacts on display at the exhibit and his decision-making about the show’s content. From 10 AM to 6 PM, the museum will offer free admission.
TEMPLE EMANU-EL
At 7 PM, Temple Emanu-El in will host a concert with performances by violinist Itzhak Perlman, the Klezmer Conservatory Band, actress Tovah Felshuh, Cantor Yitzchak Meir Helfgot of the Park East Synagogue and the cast and orchestra of the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene’s production of “Fiddler on the Roof,” among others. The evening will also feature a keynote address by Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis to remember when Auschwitz was liberated.