25 January 2016
President Obama to attend a Righteous Among the Nations Ceremony at the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., United States
(Jerusalem, January 25, 2016) Due to inclement weather, Yad Vashem has canceled the symposium for the diplomatic corps, which was due to take place on its campus tomorrow. Despite this cancelation, Yad Vashem is honoring the International Day of Commemoration in Memory of Victims of the Holocaust with a series of high profile events, both in Israel and abroad.
Jerusalem, Israel
The Knesset will display a Yad Vashem special traveling exhibition, entitled "The Anguish of Liberation as Reflected in Art, 1945-1947." To see a selection of images from the exhibition, please visit our website.
Washington D.C., USA
On January 27th a unique ceremony honoring Righteous Among the Nations will be held at the Israeli Embassy in Washington D.C. The event, hosted by the Israeli Embassy, Yad Vashem and the American Society for Yad Vashem, will mark the first time that a ceremony presenting the medal and certificate of honor to Righteous Among the Nations will be held in the United States. The Righteous Among the Nations to be honored include two Americans, Master Sargent Roddie Edmonds and Lois Gunden, and Polish citizens Walery and Maryla Zbijewski, all of whom have been recognized posthumously by Yad Vashem for risking their lives to rescue Jews during the Holocaust. The medals and certificates will be accepted on their behalf by their next of kin. President Barak Obama will deliver the keynote address at the event. Remarks will be offered by Israel’s Ambassador to the US, H.E. Ron Dermer; Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, Chairman of the Yad Vashem Council and Holocaust survivor who was rescued by Righteous Among the Nations; Lenny Wilf, Chairman of the American Society for Yad Vashem and Holocaust survivors.
Online
Yad Vashem will commemorate the day with a special online event. The IRemember Wall provides people all over the world with a unique opportunity to engage in a unique commemorative activity. Each participant's Facebook profile will be randomly linked to the name of one of the over 4.5 million men, women and children currently found in Yad Vashem's Central Database of Shoah Victims' Names, and then posted to the wall together with the photo and name of the Holocaust victim. Additionally, thousands of Yad Vashem Instagram followers receive personal stories and pictures of survivors from Auschwitz-Birkenau . Educational resources, online exhibitions and materials and a range of social media will all be readily available to help thousands of people around the world commemorate the day in a meaningful way.
Berlin, Germany
Yad Vashem's exhibition, "Art from the Holocaust: 100 Works from the Yad Vashem Collection" will be inaugurated by Chancellor Angela Merkel at the German Historical Museum in Berlin. The exhibition will be on display from January 26-April 3, 2016. A selection of the artworks featured in the exhibition may be viewed on Yad Vashem's website.
Worldwide
Yad Vashem historians, researchers and educators will travel to participate in various events and ceremonies around the world marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day in many countries including Belgium, Ghana, Kenya, Ethiopia, Rwanda, South Africa, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Brazil, Slovakia, Malta, Russia. ·
United Nations – New York, USA
Jane Jacobs-Kimmelman, Director of the International Relations Section at Yad Vashem's International School for Holocaust Studies, will attend an NGO briefing at the United Nations in New York to present Yad Vashem's approach to Holocaust education and how the International School is working with educators around the world. ·
Foreign and Commonwealth Office – London, United Kingdom
Prof. Dan Michman, Head of Yad Vashem's International Institute for Holocaust Research and Incumbent of the John Najmann Chair for Holocaust Studies, will deliver a lecture on the Righteous Among the Nations at a memorial service organized by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in cooperation with the Israeli embassy. ·
European Union – Brussels, Belgium
Dr. Robert Rozett, Director of the Yad Vashem Libraries will present a keynote lecture about Antisemitism at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Brussels.
