Amid growing hate crimes around the world, a new online campaign is calling on people to personally commit to standing up to hate.
International March of the Living will mark 82 years to Kristallnacht, or "Night of Broken Glass," with its #LetThereBeLight campaign, which invites individuals, institutions, and houses of worship across the world to keep their lights on during the night of Nov. 9th, as a symbol of solidarity and mutual commitment in the shared battle against anti-Semitism, racism, hatred, and intolerance. As part of the initiative, people from all over the world will be able to send their own personal messages of hope that will be projected onto the walls of Jerusalem's Old City, the central synagogue in Frankfurt, as well as other significant sites across the world.
To add your message to the campaign website: www.motl.org/let-there-be-light.
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Among the many leaders, organizations, and spiritual institutions that have come out in support of the March of the Living initiative are President Reuven Rivlin, the Foreign Ministry and its many embassies around the world, the Jewish community in the United Arab Emirates, the Jewish community of Frankfurt, Holocaust survivors, the Miller Center, the Jewish Agency, Taglit-Birthright Israel, the Peres Center, KKL-JNF, as well as US Congresswoman Alma Hernandez, the "Imam of Peace" Mohammad Tawhidi, and former Miss Iraq Sarah Idan.
In a statement, Rivlin said, "While the ovens of the Nazi crematoria have long since been extinguished, the flames that consumed Jewish houses of worship, homes, and businesses on Kristallnacht still burn to this day. They are the flames of hatred, intolerance, and racism. My hope and prayer is that humankind will learn from history, lest we repeat it. Am Yisrael Chai [The people of Israel live]."
Dr Shmuel Rosenman, World Chair of March of the Living, said, "Kristallnacht was one of the critical moments in the chain of events which led to the Holocaust, and this year we decided to launch an international awareness campaign with the Jewish community in Frankfurt and many partners around the world. By illuminating houses of prayer - synagogues, mosques and churches - we convey the message that burning and destroying synagogues and Jewish institutions is not just a Jewish issue. Eighty-two years have since passed, and synagogues are still burning, windows are still being smashed, and anti-Semitism is on the rise. Kristallnacht is not a chapter that is closed. Today we see acts not only of Jew-hatred, but hatred of 'the other' across the world."
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UAE Rabbi and Vice President of the Alliance of Rabbis in Islamic States Levi Duchman noted that "this year, there is more light in the Middle East and around the world, the light of peace and tolerance between peoples. Today, as the world marks the atrocities of Kristallnacht, when synagogues went up in flames, here in the United Arab Emirates, synagogues are opening with the sounds of Torah and prayer rising from within them. Here, too, in the United Arab Emirates, we will remember and not forget this terrible night and the six million of our brothers and sisters who perished because they were Jews. Here, too, in the Arabian Gulf, we will [bring even more] light into the world through our commitment to Jewish life and practice in their memory. The welcoming embrace that we feel here, as Jews, by the leaders in Abu Dhabi, headed by his excellency Sheikh Muhammad bin Zayed, is proof that we can embrace one another, no matter our differences, with respect and support."
On the night between Nov. 9 and 10, all across the German Reich, Nazi militias killed at least 91 people, burned down hundreds of synagogues, vandalized and looted 7,500 Jewish businesses, and arrested up to 30,000 Jewish men, many of whom were taken away to concentration camps.
International March of the Living has brought some 300,000 Jewish and non-Jewish youth, world leaders, Holocaust survivors, spiritual leaders, and artists from 52 countries around the world to Poland's concentration camps and then to Israel study the history of the Holocaust and examine the roots of prejudice, intolerance, and hatred.
