Announcement of the programme of educational and commemorative activities in January
The Hague is the first municipality to join the national Holocaust Education Month, which takes place annually in January.
As a city with the second largest Jewish community in the Netherlands, after Amsterdam, The Hague plays an important role in keeping the memory of the Holocaust alive. That is why a program has been put together in the context of Holocaust Education Month with activities around International Holocaust Remembrance Day on January 27.
For example, a film screening with Job Cohen will be organized in Pathé Buitenhof, there will be city walks through the vanished Jewish neighborhood, there will be a Story Festival in the Library with attention for Jewish stories and everyone can visit the National Monument Oranjehotel for free.
The initiative coincides with the celebration of 80 years of freedom in 2025: the year in which the end of the Second World War and the importance of freedom, tolerance and human rights will be commemorated on a grand scale.
This year, the municipality of The Hague will focus on combating anti-Semitism and other forms of discrimination based on religion, gender, orientation and/or disability.
For more information and the full programme, see (in Dutch): https://www.leeroverdeholocaust.nl
Only 2,000 Jews from The Hague survived the war
This month is dedicated to commemoration, awareness and education about the Holocaust: one of the darkest periods in world history. With a programme of activities, The Hague is giving substance to the Holocaust Education Month for the first time, with which it not only commemorates the victims, but also contributes to social values such as combating discrimination, tolerance and inclusivity. The choice of The Hague to join this initiative is historically and emotionally charged. At the beginning of the Second World War, The Hague had 17,000 Jewish residents. Only 2,000 of them survived the war and returned. These figures underline the impact of the Holocaust on the city and its residents.
“Unfortunately, anti-Semitism, discrimination and exclusion are increasing in our society,” says Alderman Mariëlle Vavier. And knowledge about the terrible events of the Second World War, the Holocaust, is actually decreasing. Now that there are fewer and fewer people who survived the extermination camps and can share their experiences and stories with us, it is a responsibility as a society to keep this history alive and to pass on the memory to future generations. It is important to know the history and to know what can happen if we allow anti-Semitism, discrimination and exclusion. That is why Holocaust education is so incredibly important. I hope that many people will visit the activities and that this will form a valuable basis for more dialogue, connection and understanding.”
Image provided: The Hague first municipality to join national Holocaust Education Month © Municipality of The Hague