Remembrance Day

Coping With the Unimaginable What would happen if everything was lost? What if, one day, everything something had and everyone they loved was gone in an instant along with millions of others? Between January 1933 and May 1945, this happened to six million Jews along with five million others, including Poles, Gypsies, Russian prisoners of war, and homosexuals who were killed in Hitler’s attempt to wipe them out known as the Holocaust (Lehnardt, 2016). This is horrific event is one under the title of genocide and is an internationally punishable crime (History.com Staff, 2009). The average age of survivors in 2013 was around 85, with that number probably in the high 80’s now (Rosmarin, 2013). In the 72 years since the Holocaust, many of these
Rena Margulies Chernoff and her cousin Frieda Tenenbaum celebrate it as their birthday; however, it is not either of their actual birthdays, but the day the Soviet Red Army saved them and the rest of the people suffering in the Auschwitz death camp. Because of this pivotal event, the United Nations named January 27, International Holocaust Remembrance Day. A member of the U.N. General Assembly stated by celebrating this day it is the best way, “to develop educational programs that will inculcate future generations with the lessons of the Holocaust in order to help to prevent future acts of genocide” (Chernoff, 2013). This day will be celebrated forever as a day to remember the 11 million people who lost their lives in the Holocaust, including 2 million in Auschwitz alone (Lehnardt, 2016). Although many want to move on from their horrific past, this day cannot be forgotten. It represents so much in terms of who people are and what empowers them to do more. This day is to honor those who died in this tragic event and tell the stories of those who
Because they are in their 80’s and 90’s, many survivors need aid in their normal lives. For instance, Agnes Galgoczi, a survivor living in Budapest, cannot shop, cook, clean, or go to the bathroom on her own, she needs people to help her; in her words, “I completely depend on them for everything” (Eddy, 2016). Unfortunately, due to their condition, many Holocaust survivors cannot see each other in person; before International Holocaust Remembrance Day was made, this was the only way they could celebrate (Chernoff, 2013). As they grow older, survivors’ sense of distrust has only grown, making the process of finding someone to care for them more difficult. Putting them in nursing homes might not help either because, “you might feel like you’re incarcerating them again, and you know that trauma-related symptoms could manifest,” says Jenni Frumer, associate executive director of Alpert Jewish Family & Children’s Service in West Palm Beach, Florida (Rosmarin, 2013). This is one of the worst modern problems survivors have to face. Due to their age they cannot function on their own and due to their past they can be reminded of being taken to the concentration camps by isolating