“Flowering meadow with butterflies” by Dorit Weiserová (1932-1944). Copyright: The Jewish Museum in Prague
Resistance to Nazi dehumanization took many forms. The story of Friedl Dicker-Brandeis illustrates this clearly. Dorit Weiserová was one of 15,000 Jewish children imprisoned in Terezín ghetto-camp by the Nazis. The Nazis also incarcerated the elderly, war veterans, prominent Jewish artists, writers, composers, musicians, academics, at Terezín. Dorit was taught by Bauhaus-trained Jewish artist and educator, Friedl Dicker-Brandeis, who brought art materials with her when she was deported to Terezín. Dicker-Brandeis, along with other adult inmates, courageously resisted the Nazi intent to dehumanize the children. Through clandestine classes, the children were reminded of their ability to create and to imagine. In an increasingly dark and dangerous world, the children were given hope. Tragically, most of the children did not survive the Holocaust. Dorit was deported to Auschwitz Birkenau German Nazi Concentration and Death Camp and murdered. Dicker-Brandeis too did not survive. In a last act of defiance before being deported, Dicker-Brandeis hid much of the art the children had created. As a result, thousands of drawings and paintings survived the War. They remain vivid testimonies to courage and resistance against dehumanization.
Theme: Recognizing the Extraordinary Courage
of Victims and Survivors of the Holocaust
During the Holocaust, the Nazis went to great lengths to dehumanize their victims. Defying the Nazis took extraordinary courage.
In 2024, the United Nations is paying tribute to the bravery of all those who stood up to the Nazis, despite the grave risks. We will honour their legacy with their remarkable stories and history. In the memory of all victims and survivors, we will step up our efforts to counter Holocaust denial, antisemitism and racism.
Calendar of Events
January | February
Friday, 26 January 2024
United Nations Holocaust Memorial Ceremony
11:00 a.m. EST, United Nations Headquarters
Download the programme and watch the recording of the ceremony at UN WebTV, YouTube and X
The Holocaust Memorial Ceremony will be hosted by Ms. Melissa Fleming, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications. Survivors of the Holocaust will share their testimonies along with invited speakers who include the United Nations Secretary-General; the President of the 78th session of the General Assembly, the Permanent Representative of Israel and the United States Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism.
22 January – 23 February 2024
Exhibition: “Fighting for the Whole World” – Lower Saxony under Nazi Rule
Visitors’ Lobby, United Nations Headquarters
This exhibition traces how events unfolded from 1933 to 1945 in what is today’s state of Lower Saxony, Germany. How the Nazi regime shaped society in Lower Saxony to reflect Nazi ideology, the state-sanctioned crimes, state-fomented violence and intimidation, and responses to the actions of the state and its agents, reflects the experience across Germany and in occupied territories. A closer look at Lower Saxony illuminates the larger history of the Holocaust and expands our knowledge and awareness of the experiences of all who were caught up in the history.
Tuesday, 27 February 2024
Book Talk “The Counterfeit Countess: The Jewish Woman Who Rescued Thousands of Poles during the Holocaust”
1:00 p.m. EST, UN Bookshop, United Nations Headquarters
Jewish mathematician Dr. Josephine Janina Mehlberg operated in Lublin, headquarters of Aktion Reinhard, the SS operation that murdered 1.7 million Jews in occupied Poland. Masquerading as a Polish aristocrat, the “Countess” persuaded SS officials to release thousands of Poles from Majdanek concentration camp. She secured permission to deliver food and medicine for thousands more inmates, and she smuggled supplies and messages to incarcerated resistance fighters. Incredibly, she eluded detection, survived the war, and emigrated to the United States. Join co-authors Elizabeth B. White and Joanna Sliwa as they discuss how they pieced together Dr. Mehlberg’s history and ask why so little about this unrecognized hero is known by the broader public.
Elizabeth B. White is the former Research Director for the Center for the Prevention of Genocide at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and Joanna Sliwa is the historian at the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.
