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| EDITION 04/2023 |
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Dear Readers,
April 8 is International Roma Day. The day dates back to the year 1971. At that time, Roma civil rights activists from all over Europe met in London to talk about the issue of ongoing discrimination as well as the lack of recognition. Many of the representatives were survivors of National Socialist terror. They were persecuted by the National Socialists; more than 500,000 Sinti and Roma were murdered. Civil rights activists networked across Europe for the first time, demanding compensation as well as an end to those external labels that stigmatized them. A milestone in terms of self-organization!
But the history of the struggle for recognition and human rights also shows that the German majority society was very reluctant to support the struggle. The "not wanting to know" attitude amongst many people and the ongoing exclusion and discrimination frequently left those affected in a state of anger and despair. It was not until 1982 that Chancellor Schmidt announced that the minority had suffered "severe injustice" caused by the National Socialist dictatorship.
It takes networking and persistence to address injustice. In this newsletter, you will find some impressive examples of what can be achieved with support of strong partners.
You can also read about how Ukrainian activists in exile are fighting for a strong civil society despite Russia's war of aggression on Ukraine. We also report on discrimination against Roma refugees, the World Roma Congress 2023 in Berlin and clarify ways in which young people remember National Socialism.
With this in mind: Continue or begin to engage with us!
Dr. Andrea Despot
CEO of the EVZ Foundation
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FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM
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Vidnova Fellows Working from Exile
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With the Vidnova Fellowship program, the EVZ Foundation, together with commit gGmbH, supports refugee Ukrainian activists across Europe. How have Ukrainian activists experienced the past year since the Russian war of aggression expanded across Ukraine? How can they continue their commitment to civil society from a place of exile? Vidnova Fellow Yanush Panchenko had to flee the Kherson region. Now, with his project "Documenting Ukraine: Roma and War," he is examining how Roma from post-Soviet countries, amongst other things, are responding to Russian aggression. Yanush Panchenko documents how the resistance by the Roma against the Russian invasion is portrayed in the media.
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Read the reports of the Fellows now 
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CALLS FOR APPLICATIONS
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Support for a Diverse Culture of Remembrance
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How can historical-political education work address National Socialist history?With the funding program Kritisch erinnern (critical remembrance), the EVZ Foundation supports remembrance-related cultural activities of community organizations that have experienced racism and antisemitism. Until April 21, those organizations can apply that deal critically with existing cultural practices of remembrance, who want to (further) develop their own formats and who dare to try something new! With the YOUNG PEOPLE remember funding program, the Foundation initiates innovative projects for international youth education and memorial work. Up until April 16, appicants can submit ideas that make places of remembrance and learning about National Socialist persecution accessible with digital tools and applications for international historical-political education. The calls for applications in the four funding areas of the Education Agenda NS-Injustice will be open until May 7.
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Apply now
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CULTURE OF REMEMBRANCE
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MEMO Youth Study on the Culture of Remembrance in Germany
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In what ways do young people in Germany remember National Socialism? How do they perceive discrimination and the culture of remembrance today? With MEMO Germany – Multidimensional Remembrance Monitor, the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research on Conflict and Violence Bielefeld (IKG), funded by the EVZ Foundation, is looking at these issues. The new MEMO Youth Study shows what young people – as future bearers of the culture of remembrance – are moved by. One result of the study: For adolescents and young adults, National Socialism and World War II are still central points of reference in Germany's culture of remembrance. 63% of young adults say they have dealt intensively with the topic of National Socialism in the past.
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Learn more now 
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LOCAL HISTORY
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Blank Spaces of Memory
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Locally active history initiatives in Central and Eastern Europe are the focus of the EVZ Foundation's local.history funding program. Project sponsors from Poland deal with issues in a new report: Where in our cultures of remembrance and forgotten places of National Socialist history can we observe blank spaces? What opportunities does local history offer – and where are the potential pitfalls? The local.history report from Poland sheds light on an archive full of memory treasures close to the Ukrainian border as well as the history of Nowy Sącz under German occupation; it also explains why the biography of Łódź fashion designer Helena Bohle-Szacka can be considered a warning sign with regard to current events.
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Read the report now
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EARLY CONCENTRATION CAMPS
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The Unknown Prelude of Terror
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Have you ever heard of Ahrensbök or Breitenau? Today, many people know the names of the large concentration and extermination camps like Buchenwald or Auschwitz. But very few people are aware of the early concentration camps. However, these early camps played a central role in enforcing and securing National Socialist rule. They marked the beginning of National Socialist terror. However, the early camps remained unexplored for a long time. The exhibition "Auftakt des Terrors" [Prelude to Terror] by the "Working Group of Memorial Museums at Former Concentration Camps" is now simultaneously on show at many memorial sites across Germany. There, numerous biographies of people who suffered persecution as well as perpetrators make it possible to understand how the National Socialist regime undermined democracy, eliminated political opponents and secured power with the help of the early camps.
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Visit the exhibition on site now
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HUMAN RIGHTS
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Violence and Discrimination Against Roma Refugees
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Since the extension of the Russian war of aggression to Ukraine in February 2022, the ERRC (European Roma Rights Centre), with partner organizations and funded by the EVZ Foundation, has carried out extensive monitoring of the human rights situation of Roma refugees in Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and the Republic of Moldova. The results have now been published in a report, which describes cases of discrimination, violent attacks and "racial profiling" to which Roma were subjected at the time of their escape. The report confirms the allegations raised by Roma refugees; it also shows that refugees are racially discriminated against in Europe and how this happens.
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Read the report now 
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ANTISEMITISM
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Antisemitism Tracker and Russian Propaganda
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The Russian war of aggression is raging not only in Ukrainian villages and cities, but also in the digital space. In this context, antisemitism and conspiracy narratives are integral components of disinformation – especially from the pro-Russian camp. However, those narratives are frequently not recognizable as such at a first glance. The polisphere antisemitism tracker, a continuously updated online dashboard funded by the EVZ Foundation, gives an overview and analysis of antisemitic and conspiracy-related statements, narratives and social media players in the German-speaking world.
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Discover the tracker now
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With the YOUNG PEOPLE remember funding program, the EVZ Foundation supports young people in their critical examination of history. The focus is on transnational learning at historical sites of National Socialist persecution and extermination as well as matters of European culture(s) of remembrance. Join us on a journey to YOUNG PEOPLE remember projects: Learn about biographies of heroes with the help of an app and discover amazing things about buried memories in the Naliboki Forest in Belarus as part of a Belarusian-Belgian-German project.
The report is part of the annual theme #WatchOutHstry! What is it about?
As the MEMO V Study revealed, Ukraine and Belarus – as well as many other Eastern and Southeastern European countries in general – hardly play a role in Germans' remembrance of World War II. But territorial, historical, political and personal interconnections do not come to a halt at national borders: Where are the gaps in our cultures of remembrance and forgotten places of National Socialist history? In 2023, the EVZ Foundation will focus on Belarus, Ukraine and Poland under the motto #WatchOutHstry. Whether through stories told by historical eyewitnesses, reports from the projects or conversations with partners about the reality of forgetting – #WatchOutHstry makes white spots in remembrance and (hi)stories of places, people and events visible.
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In this portrait photo, Misak Misakian wears a coat with a prisoner number. The small picture lies on a blanket that he brought to Athens from Germany. Who is this man?
Misak was born in 1906 in the western part of the Ottoman Empire, in Manisa. As a youth, he had to flee with his Armenian family from persecution by the Ottoman Empire. Like many other Armenians who had survived the genocide, Misak's family came to Greece as refugees in 1922. Only a few years later, the young Misak experienced the horrors of the National Socialist occupation. Like numerous Athenians, he was arrested by German troops and collaborators on August 9, 1944, in the Athens neighborhood of Dourghouti under a pretext and then brought to the Chaidari concentration camp. A few days later, the German authorities deported Misak to Geislingen in Württemberg, together with thousands of others. He had to carry out forced labor there. Fortunately, he managed to survive National Socialist terror as well as the last months of the war and returned to Greece, where he ended up working to support people in his neighborhood of Dourghouti as Father Khoren. He had the blanket in his luggage on the journey home to Athens.
Misak Misakian's story is representative of many Greek-Armenian biographies. The exhibition "Überlebenswege" [Ways of Survival] funded by the EVZ Foundation, sheds light on other, hitherto barely-noticed, Greek-Armenian testimonies about the Armenian Genocide, National Socialist atrocities as well as survival. Following the opening of the exhibition in Athens, "Überlebenswege" is now also visible at the August Bebel Institute in Berlin – with a special supporting program!
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Visit the exhibition now 
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Anna Lenchovska, executive director and Lyn Sidelnikov, intern at Kyiv Educational Center Tolerspace, which runs a TikTok campaign to educate about Antisemitism
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Anna Lenchovska, what is the goal of your TikTok campaign?
Our big goal is a tolerant society, lowering prejudice among youth and providing an opportunity for youth to discuss complicated topics. Our campaign is based on “peer-to-peer approach”, it is scholarly proven that teenagers trust their peers more than their parents and other adults. Teenagers are already in TikTok, for many of them it is both entertainment and a source of knowledge. So, we decided to enter so-called “edutainment” segment of TikTok. We work with 15-19 year old interns, organize meetings with experts on antisemitism, antigypsyism, hate speech and correct vocabulary, Holocaust history, history of national-socialist crimes, genocide, human rights as well as non-discrimination.
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Read more
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MORGENPOST
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Richter und Denker, March 23, 2023
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In this podcast episode, Dr. Andrea Despot, CEO of the EVZ Foundation, talks to Morgenpost Editor-in-Chief Christine Richter. The subject areas are the history of compensation payments to forced laborers and the EVZ Foundation's commitment to combating antisemitism. In the course of the discussion, it becomes clear which challenges the German culture of remembrance is currently having to address and what living memory can look like today.
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Listen to the episode now
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TAGESSCHAU
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Broadcast, March 22, 2023, 8 p.m.
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The report talks about the 90th anniversary of the first deportations to the Dachau concentration camp, which was commemorated by relatives and politicians on site. It also highlights the exhibition "Auftakt des Terrors" [Prelude to Terror], funded by the EVZ Foundation, which can currently be visited nationwide. The historian Björn Mensing says the exhibition shows the model character of the Dachau concentration camp for the system of concentration camps that came later. According to historical eyewitness Ernst Grube, the exhibition outlines the path from democracy to dictatorship. The report also addresses the lack of funding that threatens the continued existence of the memorial and learning site.
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Watch now
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DEUTSCHLANDFUNK
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Campus Karriere, February 21, 2023
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The program, amongst other things, highlights and discusses the key findings of the EVZ-funded MEMO Youth Study from a variety of perspectives. Both the scientist involved in the study, Professor Jonas Rees from Bielefeld University, and adolescents and young adults have their say. There is a mismatch in a generation that is largely committed and interested, but which also has systematic gaps in knowledge of historical facts.
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Listen to the show now
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APRIL 12, HAMBURG
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Play: Rom*nja City Reloaded [Roma City Reloaded]
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The Rom*nja in Power theater collective comes to Hamburg with the play "Rom*nja City Reloaded", funded by the EVZ Foundation! The opening of the 11th KRASS Festival focuses on the story of Rita Prigmore and her twin sister Rolanda. The two twin sisters were victims of National Socialist persecution and abused by doctors for racial experiments. The play is a confrontation with the past that at the same time manages not to diminish Roma and Sinti narratives to suffering and oppression.
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Secure your tickets now
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APRIL 18/19, BERLIN
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Conference: The Transformative Potential of Transitional Justice
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Wars and human rights violations are destroying social cohesion in many regions of the world, leaving deep social wounds and undermining people's trust in state institutions. Transitional justice (TJ) plays a central role in the recognition of injustice and suffering. It can help pave the way from violence to peace, democracy as well as the rule of law. The conference was initiated by the Berghof Foundation as part of the Global Hub for Transitional Justice network. Together with more than 60 experts from around the world, the EVZ Foundation will also shed light on the transformative potential of transitional justice and share experiences from its own work: What are the limits of transitional justice? How can we prevent escalations of violence? What feminist or other approaches help in practice to overcome exclusionary power structures? What role do young people play in this area? And how can marginalized victim groups become part of the culture(s) of remembrance in majority societies?
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Find out more about Transitional Justice now
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MAY 15 to 17, BERLIN
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World Roma Congress
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Roma Center e.V. is organizing the World Roma Congress 2023 in Berlin from May 15 to 17 in cooperation with numerous other Roma organizations. The last such congress of Sinti and Roma self-organizations from around the world took place over 40 years ago. With its funding, the EVZ Foundation supports the networking, strengthening and structural development of migrant Roma organizations in Germany – the first day of the congress will be devoted primarily to this topic. Other topics include remembrance, resistance, anti-racism work and visions for the future of the Sinti and Roma communities. Some events are open to the public and are also streamed.
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Register now
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NEWSLETTER 05/2023 |
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| Our next edition will be published at the beginning of May! |
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You will receive the next newsletter on the Education Agenda NS-Injustice at the beginning of Mai: We report on the launch of various new projects, the commemoration of the 90th anniversary of the 1933 book burnings, and the deadly forced labor in Karya, Greece. |
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| All editions at a glance |
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Stiftung Erinnerung,
Verantwortung und Zukunft
Friedrichstraße 200
10117 Berlin, Germany
T +49 (30) 25 92 97-0
F +49 (30) 25 92 97-11
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Responsible:
Dr. Andrea Despot
Editorial:
Hanna Komornitzyk, Katrin Kowark, Thomas Stein, Sophie Ziegler
Image Credits:
ERRC, Roman Kroke, Elke Hartmann, Valentyn Kuzan, Dana Verstak |
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The editorial team welcomes your opinion on the newsletter and will be happy to answer any questions. We also help with any issues you might encounter: newsletter@stiftung-evz.de
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| © Stiftung Erinnerung, Verantwortung und Zukunft, 2023 |
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