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Poland remembers Holocaust survivals Posted by on Jan 27, 2022 in History, Holidays, Religion

January 27th marks the 77th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp (wyzwolenie obozu koncentracyjnego Auschwitz).  The U.N. General Assembly designated International Holocaust Remembrance Day on November 1, 2005 , and chose January 27th,  the day that Auschwitz-Birkenau was liberated by Soviet troops in 1945, an International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Holocaust Memorial. Image by 3093594 on Pixabay

Millions of people, most of them Jews (Żydzi), were killed at the Nazi death camp (Nazistowski obóz zagłady) which has became a symbol of the horrors of the Holocaust and World War Two (Druga Wojna Światowa), which ravaged Europe. This day is focused on commemorating victims, and talking about the dangers of anti-Semitism (antysemityzm), prejudice (uprzedzenie) and hatred toward other people (nienawiść do innych ludzi). Remembrance of the Holocaust teaches us all that humanity can survive unimaginable horrors. Some of these people survived…personal strength and the will to live carried Holocaust survivors on until their rescue at the end of the war.

Today, wreath is laid at the monument to the Heroes of the Warsaw Ghetto (pomnik Bohaterów Getta Warszawskiego) in Warsaw, Poland. Victims of the World War II Nazi German regime are honored  every year across the continent, gathering survivors and numerous government representatives paying their respects to the millions who lost their lives.

On this annual day of commemoration, the UN urges countries to honor the Jewish victims of the Holocaust and millions of other victims of Nazism and to develop educational programs to help prevent future genocides.

Auschwitz. Image by peter89ba on Pixabay

In Poland both state and local government institutions, universities, research institutes and schools are extensively involved in Holocaust commemoration. State and local authorities honour the victims of the Holocaust – with special ceremonies held on January 27th and on April 19th (to commemorate the heroic Warsaw Ghetto Uprising). Many towns and cities have erected monuments in remembrance of the annihilation of the Jews who had lived in these places before the war. Such monuments or commemorating plates can be found, among other places, in Warsaw (i.a. Umschlagplatz and the Mordechai Anielewicz Bunker), Łódz, Kraków, Kielce, Lublin, Zamość, Białystok, Góra Kalwaria , Otwock, Tykocin, Wielkie Oczy, Chmielnik, Płońsk, Szydłowiec and in Jedwabne, where a monument to the memory of the Jews murdered by their Polish neighbours in 1941 was placed in 2001.

Let’s all remember, today is the day people gather across the world to remember those who lost their lives.

 

 

 

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About the Author: Kasia

My name is Kasia Scontsas. I grew near Lublin, Poland and moved to Warsaw to study International Business. I have passion for languages: any languages! Currently I live in New Hampshire. I enjoy skiing, kayaking, biking and paddle boarding. My husband speaks a little Polish, but our daughters are fluent in it! I wanted to make sure that they can communicate with their Polish relatives in our native language. Teaching them Polish since they were born was the best thing I could have given them! I have been writing about learning Polish language and culture for Transparent Language’s Polish Blog since 2010.


Comments:

  1. Alice Basarke:

    The story of Auschwitz is not complete, without mentioning that the Russians after liberating the camp, then used it to imprison the AK prisoners who were arrested at the Warsaw Uprising. I have a cousin who suffered at the hands of the Soviets. Russia was no better than Germany. They were looking for POWER, not Justice.

  2. Yvonne:

    I found family in poland 2008 it was fabulous but learning the language is hard since my mum passed i keep at it

  3. Pam Prophet:

    Thank you Poland. We must never forget or let history repeat itself.

  4. Pam Prophet:

    we must never forget.