World’s Largest Annual Holocaust Remembrance Event Kicks Off
The World Jewish Congress (WJC) on Monday launched its third annual #WeRemember campaign for International Holocaust Remembrance Day, the world’s largest digital Holocaust remembrance event.
The WJC stated that “with anti-Semitism on the rise across the globe and the number of survivors dwindling with each passing year, it is more important than ever to preserve the memory of the Holocaust.”
The #WeRemember campaign seeks to harness the power of digital media to spread knowledge and awareness of the Holocaust while passing on its lessons to younger generations in order to prevent future genocides and atrocities.
Millions of people across the globe will participate in a simple yet meaningful exercise to inspire conversation and impart upon a new generation the story and lessons of the Holocaust.
Participants are posting on social media photographs of themselves holding a sign with the words “We Remember,” using the hashtag #WeRemember.
Images posted to social media will be live streamed on the grounds of the former Auschwitz Birkenau Concentration Camp from January 24 to January 27, when International Holocaust Remembrance Day is marked, and subsequently live-streamed via Facebook LIVE, YouTube, and Twitter.
Last year, the global social media campaign to raise awareness about the Holocaust spread rapidly, reaching some 650 million people from 155 countries, or one out every 11 people in the world.
More than 1.5 million people took an active part in the social media initiative, including heads of state, celebrities, religious leaders, and citizens from countries around the world.
Participants of note included First Lady Melania Trump, actresses Gal Gadot and Mayim Bialik, congressmen, academics, and leaders such as Pope Francis, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovi?, Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid, First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel and Justice Minister Heiko Maas, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai, Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook and prominent football teams from Israel and Europe, including the entire Chelsea Football Club and its owner Roman Abramovich.
Additional participants included representatives of different religions including the head of the German Evangelical Church Bishop, Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, and the head of the All India Imam Association, in addition to ambassadors from Peru, Chile, Australia, Hungary, India, Slovenia, Azerbaijan, Malta, and Armenia, among other nations.
The CEOs of Volkswagon, Siemens, and BMW, three German companies that collaborated with the Nazis during World War II, have also posted their photos and shared the message against anti-Semitism.
The campaign was launched in 50 countries and 24 languages, including Chinese, Arabic, Russian, Spanish, French, Hebrew, German, and others, and secured media coverage in 40 different languages.