March of Living

At the end of the Passover holiday and the traditional Mimouna celebration today, Israel and the Jewish world are preparing to begin marking Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom Hashoah) on Wednesday evening and Thursday.

After a two-year break due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Jewish state is also sending a large delegation to the March of the Living, which takes place on Thursday in Poland.

This is a time to remember the six million Jews murdered in the Shoah and pay respect to the survivors who are still with us. As the war in Ukraine rages on and antisemitism again rears its ugly head, the 3.2 km. march between Auschwitz and Birkenau in memory of the victims of the Holocaust is more important than ever.

In the words of the march’s organizers, it is “a symbol of the Jewish people’s survival and to promote awareness and understanding of what can happen when hatred and bigotry are allowed to flourish.”

The first commemoration of Holocaust Remembrance Day took place in 1951, three years after the establishment of the state almost 74 years ago; the observance of the day was anchored in a law passed by the Knesset in 1959. The March of the Living program was established in 1988 by Avraham Hirschson and Dr. Shmuel Rosenman, who remains its chair.

“It is our duty to the world’s remaining Holocaust survivors and to the future of Holocaust memory to continue to carry the torch of remembrance,” Heideman and Rosenman said in a joint statement. “Our mission has never been more urgent.”

This year, organizers are expecting 2,500 participants from 25 countries in the march, including a delegation of refugees from the conflict in Ukraine. The Jewish Agency, led by Board of Governors Chairman Michael Siegal, will host a special delegation of victims of antisemitism from the US, Israel and Europe. They include those who lost loved ones as a result of deadly antisemitic attacks – from the Israeli Embassy bombing in Argentina 30 years ago to the Pittsburgh Tree of Life Synagogue attack in 2018.

“It’s a solemn honor to bear witness to the horrors of the past together with a group of brave Jewish sisters and brothers from around the world who have personally born the wrath of today’s antisemitism,” said Siegal. “The Jewish Agency for Israel stands here in support of the March of the Living’s mission to honor the victims of the past, while encouraging the world to remain vigilant on behalf of the victims of the future.”

They will be joined by senior members of European Police Forces under a special program entitled: “Learning from the Past to Protect the Future.”

They will march under a banner declaring “Never Means Never,” calling for an end to global antisemitism.

“There is no stronger testament to our determination that ‘never must mean never’ than law enforcement marching in solidarity with the victims of antisemitic violence,” said John Farmer, director of the Miller Center.

Also participating in the march will be Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Leon and a delegation from the Jewish National Fund-Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael led by its chair, Avraham Duvdevani, who noted that this year is the 120th anniversary of the organization.

“We are deeply moved and proud to take part in the March of the Living on Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day as committed partners in commemorating and honoring the victims of the Holocaust – including hundreds of thousands who helped build our homeland and greatly supported the Jewish National Fund,” Duvdevani said.

The march will conclude with the traditional ceremony held on the site of the Auschwitz-Birkenau crematoria, featuring former Chief Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau and other Holocaust survivors, IDF Cantor Shai Abramson and Israeli singer Harel Skaat. Torches of Remembrance will be lit in memory of the six million Jewish women, children and men who perished in the Holocaust.

After the march, many of the younger participants continue to Israel to participate in Remembrance Day (Memorial Day for the Fallen Soldiers of the Wars of Israel and Victims of Actions of Terrorism) and Independence Day next week and what the organizers call “a journey symbolizing the rebirth of the Jewish people in their ancient land.”

We wish them well and salute them ahead of this year’s March of the Living. They carry with them not only torches of remembrance, but a spirit of hope for the future.