How Yom Hashoah is being marked in New York City

Source: Jewish Telegraphic Agency

By Julia Gergely April 14, 2023

(New York Jewish Week) — Yom Hashoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day, begins this year on the evening of Monday, April 17 and lasts through Tuesday, April 18. The day is Israel’s official day of commemoration of the Holocaust and is marked by Jewish communities and congregations worldwide.

The date was chosen in 1951 to mark the anniversary on the Hebrew calendar of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, whose 80th anniversary is being marked this year. On April 19, 1943, German troops and police entered the ghetto to deport its surviving inhabitants to concentration camps and killing centers. Jewish insurgents fought back for nearly a month before the rebellion was crushed.

Below is a list of events, panels, screenings and gatherings happening in New York City next week to commemorate the lives of the six million murdered and the heroism of the Jewish resistance during the Holocaust.

April 16

Annual Gathering of Remembrance at Temple Emanu-El

The Museum of Jewish Heritage: A Living Memorial to the Holocaust and Temple Emanu-El partner to host the annual “Gathering of Remembrance” on Sunday beginning at 2:00 p.m. The in-person and live streamed event will include speeches from Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the United States ambassador to the United Nations; U.S. Rep. Daniel Goldman (D-New York) and Holocaust survivors Toby Levi, Ilana Yaari and Jerry Lindenstraus. There will also be performances from HaZamir International Jewish Teen Choir and Steven Skybell. Register here.

“Celebration of Life and Hope” concert with Holocaust Music Lost & Found

On Sunday at 7:30 p.m., join Holocaust Music Lost & Found for a free concert and conversation at the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan. The concert will feature songs written during the Holocaust and will be hosted by Israeli cellist Elad Kabilio.More information here.

April 17

Reading of the Names on the Upper West Side

From Monday night through Tuesday, Upper West Side congregations will come together to read the names of victims of the Holocaust and commemorate their lives. The readings will occur from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. at Congregation Ansche Chesed (251 W. 100th St.) and from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan (334 Amsterdam Ave.). The readings will also be livestreamed. For more information, click here.

Stories of Survival and Remembrance at the United Nations

The United Nations is opening a brand new exhibit in honor of Holocaust Remembrance Day: “Stories of Survival and Remembrance: A Call to Action for Genocide Prevention.” Per the website, the exhibit “reveals the lives of those impacted by war, trauma, displacement and exile through the Holocaust, genocide and other atrocity crimes in Cambodia, Srebrenica and Rwanda, while reflecting on how the UN has responded to genocide and atrocity crimes since its establishment.” It will be on display through June 15.

Additionally, on Monday at 10:00 a.m., the United Nations is hosting a panel discussion with Holocaust survivor Lily Ebert and her great-grandson Dov Forman, who in 2022 together published “Lily’s Promise,” Ebert’s memoir of her time in Auschwitz and the aftermath. They will be in conversation with Holocaust historian Debórah Dwork. The discussion will take place online. Register for the link here.

Film Screening of “Mathilde et Rosette” at the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan

The Carole Zabar Center for Film is screening Mathilde et Rosette on Monday at 7:00 p.m. The French documentary tells the story of director Alice Ekman’s visit to her 92-year-old great uncle to uncover 75 years of her family’s secret and traumatic history. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Ekman, moderated by Scott Richman, regional director for the Anti-Defamation League. Tickets start at $16, register here.

Screening and Conversation at 92NY

On Monday at 7:30 p.m., join 92NY for a screening of the documentary “Four Winters: A Story of Jewish Partisan Resistance and Bravery in WWII,” which tells the story of eight survivors who joined the Jewish resistance during the Holocaust. A conversation with director Julia Mintz will follow the screening at 9:15 p.m. The conversation will also be livestreamed. Tickets from $18, register here.

Yom HaShoah with the Manhattan Jewish Experience

The Manhattan Jewish Experience (131 W. 86th St.) invites New Yorkers in their 20s and 30s to commemorate Yom HaShoah on Monday at 7:30 p.m. Holocaust survivor Gerd Korman, author of “Nightmare’s Fairy Tale: A Young Refugee’s Home Fronts, 1938–1948” will share his story, with a dessert reception to follow. Tickets from $10, available here.

The Warsaw Ghetto Memorial, located at the south end of the Promenade at 83rd Street in Manhattan’s Riverside Park, will be site of an annual gathering on Wednesday, April 19. (Joan Roth)

April 19

Commemoration of the 80th Anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising at Der Shteyn

The Congress for Jewish Culture, Friends of the Bund, Jewish Labor Committee, the Workers Circle and YIVO will join together to commemorate the 80th Anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. The annual gathering will take place on Wednesday at 3:00 p.m. at Der Shteyn, a memorial stone in Riverside Park between 83rd and 84th Street. The event will include speeches and performances. It will also be recorded. Find more information here.

The Sound of the Siren: The History of the Holocaust and the Rise of Global Antisemitism

The New York City Bar Association will host a lunchtime panel discussion on Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. featuring experts, Holocaust survivors and advocates who work to counteract Holocaust denial. This event will share three reports of the NYC Bar Association which address antisemitic conspiracy theories and the rise of antisemitism. The program is free for members and non-lawyers and $15 for non-member lawyers. Lunch will be served. Register here.

April 20

Women, Theater and the Holocaust

On April 20 at 7:00 p.m., Remember the Women Institute is hosting an evening of dramatic readings of plays and monologues about the Holocaust in partnership with the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan, the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene and the National Jewish Theater Foundation. The in-person event will be at the JCC Manhattan and will coincide with the launch of the fifth edition of Remember the Women Institute’s “Women, Theater, and the Holocaust Resource Handbook.” Tickets from $10, register here.