HomeMy WebLinkAboutMarch 11 2016 - Days of Remembrance
City of Edina 4801 W. 50th St. Edina, MN 55424
Contact: Krystal Caron, Communications Coordinator
Phone 952-826-0347 kcaron@EdinaMN.gov www.EdinaMN.gov
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Edina Recognizes Genocide Awareness and Prevention Month
with ‘Days of Remembrance’
Edina, Minn., March 11, 2016 – The City of Edina’s Human Rights & Relations Commission (HRRC) holds
an annual human rights forum, entitled Days of Remembrance, in conjunction with the state-recognized
Genocide Awareness and Prevention month each April. To mark Edina’s sixth-annual Days of Remembrance
observance, the City will host “Days of Remembrance: Women in the Holocaust and Genocides” from 1 to 3
p.m. Sunday, April 10, at Edina City Hall.
Holocaust survivor Lucy Kreisler Smith, a St. Paul artist, will speak about hiding from the Nazis as a child with
her mother. Living with fear every day, Smith and her mother often had to change locations, towns and even
identities with increasing danger of being exposed and sent to death at concentration camps. Smith will talk
about her experiences during the Holocaust, her life as a refugee and her involvement today in community
outreach and education.
In addition, World Without Genocide Executive Director Ellen Kennedy will speak about Ravensbruck, a
women’s concentration camp 50 miles outside of Berlin where the Nazis perpetrated horrific violence.
Finally, World Without Genocide staff will present a short play entitled “The Line.” “The Line” is about
Sophie Scholl, a brave college student in Germany who stood up against the Nazis and was guillotined by the
Gestapo. Today, Scholl represents a global symbol for human rights and courage.
Following a proclamation adopted in May 2012 by the Edina City Council, the City began to recognize the
National Days of Remembrance annually in memory of victims of the Holocaust and to encourage our
community to reflect on the need for respect for all people. In 2013, April was designated as Genocide
Awareness and Prevention Month in Minnesota by Governor Mark Dayton. Since then, Edina’s Days of
Remembrance has expanded to recognize the Holocaust and other genocides that continue to impact families
in our community.
In previous years, Edina has acknowledged the 20th anniversary of the Rwandan Genocide, the crises in the
Congo where six million people have perished since 1996, the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide
and the 70th anniversary of the end of WWII and the liberation of Auschwitz.
The Days of Remembrance Human Rights Forum is free and open to the public. Lawyers can receive two
standard CLE credits ($40 fee) and educators can receive two clock hours at no cost. Advance registration is
not required.
For more information about the City of Edina’s Days of Remembrance program, contact HRRC staff liaison
MJ Lamon at 952-826-0360 or MLamon@EdinaMN.gov.
-30-