HomeMy WebLinkAboutApril 2017 - 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 EdinaMN.gov
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Edina ‘Days of Remembrance’ To Address Remembering the
Holocaust and Genocide Through the Generations
Edina, Minn., April 13, 2017 – The City of Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission (HRRC) holds an
annual human rights forum, “Days of Remembrance.” To mark Edina’s seventh-annual Days of Remembrance
observance, the City will host “The Holocaust and Genocides: From Generation to Generation” from 1 to 3
p.m. Sunday, May 7 at Edina City Hall, 4801 W. 50th St.
“The passing of Elie Wiesel in 2016, noted author and holocaust survivor, serves as a timely reminder that
one day soon Holocaust and genocide survivors will no longer be able to tell their own stories,” said Days of
Remembrance Working Group member Jan Seidman. “In his book, Night, Wiesel shared his direct
experiences as a prisoner in the Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps and how human spirits
endured during horrific times. Now, with the passing of time and many of his peers who have passed away, it
is up to the second- and third-generation families to tell these stories.”
The event will feature two speakers who will address the importance of passing the lessons learned from one
generation to the next. Past President of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the
Dakotas (JCRC) Joni Sussman, who now serves as chair of Holocaust Education for JCRC and is the daughter
of Holocaust survivors, will speak about her parents’ experiences and the generational impact of the
Holocaust.
Green Card Voices Co-founder and Executive Director Tea Rozman Clark is also a featured speaker. Green
Card Voices is based in Minneapolis and uses digital storytelling to share personal narratives of America’s
immigrants to establish a better understanding between the immigrant and non-immigrant populations.
Rozman recently spoke at the annual state-wide Model UN Conference on the topic of Bosnian genocide of
1995. Her PhD dissertation featured her recorded recollection of genocide survivors as well as peacekeepers
who failed to prevent it.
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 the
community to reflect on the need for respect for all people. In previous years, Edina has acknowledged
women in the Holocaust and genocides, 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. 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-