Campaign aims to improve conditions for survivors in Israel
This is our last chance to identify Holocaust survivors and make sure they receive all the rights and benefits to which they are legally entitled, said attorney Aviva Silberman, founder and executive director of Aviv LeNitzolei HaShoah (“Spring for Holocaust Survivors”), on Tuesday.
She made the remarks ahead of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which will be marked on Thursday.
Aviv LeNitzolei HaShoah is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping Holocaust survivors in Israel realize their rights. The group has launched a firstof-its-kind campaign calling on the public to refer Holocaust survivors to the NGO, which will provide free professional help to assist them in accessing those rights.
“About one-quarter of Holocaust survivors live in poverty, and more than half are unaware of the rights and benefits to which they are legally entitled,” Silberman said. “That could, if realized, mean the difference between a life of poverty and a life of dignity and physical well-being.”
Silberman said that over the course of a decade, her organization has been able to reach and help more than 60,000 Holocaust survivors, gaining rights and benefits for them that are worth more than NIS 350 million.
“Unless we come together as a society, we will be unable to reach everyone,” she said.
To address this issue, the organization has launched a unique campaign with the crowdfunding Internet platform mimoona. co.il, which rather than asking for money, is looking to “source” Holocaust survivors.
The campaign is asking the public to answer a few simple questions online about Holocaust survivors they know.
The NGO said it is committed to reaching out to those survivors to ensure they are getting all their rights in Israel and from abroad. If they are not, the group will help them submit the relevant forms.
All the professional help is provided free of charge by attorneys and volunteers.
“Every one of us meets or knows Holocaust survivors in the family or from one’s apartment building or the doctor’s office,” Silberman said. “All you have to do is approach that survivor now, go into the campaign page and add this person’s contact information, which of course will be kept confidential. We promise to help every survivor professionally, with love and at no cost.”
The NGO will hold its annual March for the Living on Wednesday, the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day, at Habimah Square in Tel Aviv. The public is invited to march alongside Holocaust survivors to promote awareness of the conditions of survivors living in Israel today.