1/27: Remembering Pain and Relishing Hope

What events from the past do you recall today?

The answer might seem quite obvious: it depends on the culture that influenced you most. Today is a remembrance day for many countries, all connected by the sorrow caused by Nazi totalitarian ideology.

Let us stay united today and commemorate all of the victims—regardless of their nationality, religion, and location. 

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

January 27 is observed globally as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. The date marks the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration and extermination camp. The main concept is not limited to honoring the memory of the victims as it is also valuable to support the survivors, and to remind people about the importance of tolerance, acceptance, and justice.

Viktor E. Frankl, a Holocaust survivor and author of Man’s Search for Meaning wrote:

Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.

And it is our choice not to close this chapter of history, but rather to reflect on it and pay tribute to those who, despite tragic circumstances, never lost their passion for life.

The Link in the Chain

The History of a Dutch Jewish Family, Before, During, and After WWII

The Link in the Chain is a memoir that intricately weaves the private life stories of a young Jewish Dutch couple with the broader narrative of their epoch. It is also a poignant love story, depicting those who endured tragic times and eventually began building a peaceful life in Canada.

The Destruction of Jewish Cemeteries in Poland

This volume provides an in-depth examination of the history and devastation of Jewish cemeteries within the country, highlighting a frequently overlooked aspect of Holocaust history. It chronicles the establishment and subsequent destruction of over 1,200 Jewish cemeteries within the country’s present borders and also seeks to identify the perpetrators. 

Marta’s Notebooks

Marta’s life was completely changed and destroyed by the Holocaust and the Second World War. This book tells the heartrending story Marta wrote decades after the war, while she was in a psychiatric ward, struggling with deep depression. 

Poles and Jews

A Call for Myth Reconstruction

In this book, the author uncovers the story of her family and her long journey to reconcile with her Polish and Jewish roots. Drawing on two decades of research and extensive interviews with scholars, community leaders, and laity in both Poland and the U.S., Stark-Blumenthal debunks myths and explores new perspectives on this relationship. This is a compelling narrative of healing past traumas through historical research and intercommunity dialogue.


In Germany, this day is called Day of Remembrance for the Victims of National Socialism and serves as a reminder of all victims of National Socialism, including those persecuted and murdered by the Nazi regime. This includes not only Holocaust victims but also political dissidents, resistance fighters, Jehovah’s Witnesses, people with disabilities, and others who suffered under Nazi oppression.

In 1996, German President Roman Herzog decided to dedicate this day to reflection on the atrocities committed by the Nazi regime. It aims to ensure that the memory of these victims is preserved and that the lessons of history are not forgotten. Since then, an annual ceremony of remembrance has been held, where Holocaust survivors are invited to share their firsthand experiences through speeches.

Holocaust

German History and Our Half-Jewish Family

This book is a must-read for anyone interested in personal narratives of resistance and the enduring lessons from history. It reveals the story of a half-Jewish family who struggled to save the lives of their children. Bravery and dedication to humanitarian values are applicable to overcoming challenges in our time, too. 

How We Outwitted and Survived the Nazis

The True Story of the Holocaust Rescuers, Zofia Sterner and Her Family

This story is about maintaining one’s humanity under the most inhumane conditions, and about people who were ready to risk to help others even if they were also in an unsafe situation. Reading such books definitely makes one feel that hope is stronger than horror. 

Poisoning the Wells

Antisemitism in Contemporary America

This volume examines the contemporary rise of intolerance which seems to be a clear sign that many history lessons are sadly left unlearned. This book contains articles written by leading scholars working on contemporary antisemitism. 


Remembrance Day of the End of the 900-day Siege of Leningrad during WWII

On January 27, 1944, the siege of Leningrad, which lasted for almost 900 days, was finally lifted. It still remains challenging to determine the exact number of victims. “More civilians died in the siege of Leningrad than in the modernist infernos of Hamburg, Dresden, Tokyo, Hiroshima, and Nagasaki combined.” – stated Michael Walzer.

Although the siege of Leningrad was addressed in the Nuremberg Trials, this narrative was heavily censored within the Soviet Union. During 1941-1942, newspapers did not report the humanitarian disaster of Leningrad; instead, mass media published photos of food supposedly produced in the city, working industry, and heroic portraits of soldiers. It was also forbidden to take photos in the city without special permission. The intention was to maintain positive morale within the country, which could have been shattered by the knowledge that Russia’s second-largest city was fully surrounded by Hitler’s army.

It is difficult to imagine how people lived day by day in total isolation, feeling abandoned. Yet, many found solace in writing diaries, documenting their honest thoughts and daily lives. These diaries became key documents of the era, and one undeniable symbol of inner liberty that couldn’t be destroyed is Dmitry Shostakovich’s “Leningrad Symphony,” which he began composing in Leningrad. The symphony was performed on August 9, 1942, at the Leningrad Philharmonic.

“I am a Phenomenon Quite Out of the Ordinary”

The Notebooks, Diaries, and Letters of Daniil Kharms

Daniil Kharms, a founder of Russia’s “lost literature of the absurd,” died on February 2, 1942, during the siege’s most severe month in terms of starvation deaths. He was in the psychiatry department of the prison hospital “Kresty” following his second arrest in 1941. His diary is not only a work of art but also a monument to an epoch in words.

The Man Who Brought Brodsky into English

Conversations with George L. Kline

Joseph Brodsky was born in Leningrad just before the war started and spent part of his childhood during the siege. Although not directly about the siege, the book about his friend George Kline—who helped Brodsky in his global career—offers another layer of connection to the biography of the poet raised in the city’s war and postwar times.

“Akhmatova discovered Brodsky for Russia, but I discovered him for the West,” said his friend and the main figure of the book, George Kline. 

Soviet Jews in World War II

“Fighting, Witnessing, Remembering”

This book is not specifically dedicated to the siege of Leningrad, but it would undoubtedly interest those involved in Jewish Studies. It tells the stories of people from a discriminated group who took action in Leningrad and many other regions of the Soviet Union.

These memorial days do not compete with each other in any way, but they encourage us to reflect on the interconnected destinies of people affected by the same tragedy. Hopefully, all of these books remind us of our collective responsibility to preserve the memory of the millions who suffered and died, ensuring their stories are never forgotten. They also make us think about the importance and fragility of peace.


Sources:

Michael Walzer, Just and Unjust Wars: A Moral Argument with Historical Illustrations, Basic Books, 1977

Victor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning, Beacon Press, 2006

M.T.Anderson, Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad, Candlewick, 2017

Mirjam Wenzel (2015), On Inter­national and Other Remem­brance Days.