And so the mist begins to clear and the soul begins to settle. The Nazi Holocaust, whilst a long time ago, has dominated the psyche of my family ever since. This is the same for millions across the world and we all still try and make sense of it. Under the Nazis, my grand-parents were hunted and bludgeoned by those who decided that Jews, along with other minority groups, had no right to live on this planet. I, like many, was shaped by their stories of what they experienced here. So, two years ago, along with many other grandchildren, we decided to make something good come out of something bad. Its by far the most ambitious campaign Ive been lucky to be involved in - but damn, is it good for the soul. We are now getting closer to the anti-war performances and activism programmes on the 70 anniversary (2015) across the world in symbolic places that have come out of this programme. Young people in Dresden, Coventry, Jerusalem, Berlin, New York, Bucharest, Gaza, London, Cracow and many more are now bringing this project to life. This may be the last generation in history to have real-life conversations with people who experienced the war first hand and their experience needs to be shared for action against war today. As the programme builds, how do we continue to make sense of a tragic past and build hope for the future? By starting with a thanks or three. [nb. this list is not exhaustive!] Huge thanks to the Karl Kaffkas family + all the Dresden bombing descendants and Masako Izumi + Hiroshima atomic bomb survivors and descendants Ive met who shared the importance of grieving when society doesnt allow; the first generation survivors such as Ruth Barnett, who continue to inspire us grandchildren of the war as we develop the training programmes for the coming year; the honesty and humility of descendants of Nazis across Germany and Europe who have shared their story and joined the struggle for justice today; the many LGBTQI rights campaigners Ive met bringing to life the double-doomed nature of being a concentration camp inmate; the families of Roma-Sinti, mental health, African, Intelligensia, communists and everyone who campaigns on their behalf for their rightful place in history; Poppy Kohnerova, Ryan Harvey and all the other great activists I know fighting for justice for veterans of current unjust wars; Muna Dajani, Bilal Ahmed, Samarendra Das, Zunaid Moolla, Dee Ree, Daniel Renwick Jules Barry, Sukant Chandan, Michael Franke, Safaa Daoud, Evan Sedgwick-Jell and so many other friends confronting white supremacy and neo-colonialism for the victims of the victims of the Holocaust in Palestine and beyond; Francesca Ter-Berg and all the other creative musicians bringing the soul of the campaign to life with their klezmer, gypsy and folk music magic; Alexandra Molano-Avilan, Vacuum Cleaner, Clare Roderick and all my other friends campaigning to put mental health issues rightly to the top of the political agenda - and not at the bottom of the pile as they have been since the war; all my inspirations challenging the daily oppressions of living in a tyrannical institutionally unjust society - such as Cathy McCormack, Hanski Ing, Koos Couvée Samhuinn Watt and so many more - whether thats through racist stop and search methods or fuel poverty and mass surveillance; Alastair McIntosh, Josee NonStuffmeredith, Tilly Tillytilly, Uma Drragon, Miriam Rose and all the other wizards in my life who provoke an understanding of humour as a healing mechanism; Sophie Taverner, Kat Craig, Mike Schwarz and all the other radical lawyers Im lucky to know fighting to enshrine legal justice for the people and keep the integrity of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (born from the Holocaust) alive; all the drag kings + queens, cabaret dancers, gender-benders + queer performers and activists who continuously kick back against hetero-normative oppression and keep the soul of the Weimar era jiggling and stomping; all my dear friends who have listened, laughed, cried + helped shape the campaign together for the coming year, let me sleep on your floors whilst travelling continues and listened to me cry about Holocaust trauma whilst we were supposed to be partying for my birthday! Last but certainly not least my family for sharing their painful past and revealing so much to me about how humanity can hurt so much - but how hope must always combat fear. The Holocaust was a horrific event. Still though, many grandchildren today find that our historical memory of it is often too obsessed with commemorating death, at the expense of celebrating life. The Holocaust was a systematic slaughter of human beings, but it shouldnt destroy our ability to feel and experience one another and fuse our politics with a celebration of humanity. The only way forward after the Holocaust is to hear your own heart beat in the backdrop of such death. That means abandoning blind faith, and using our cultural inheritance to fight against the epidemic of melancholy in the world around us and making sure that injustices should always be confronted. All our grandparents who have shared their history and for all the grandchildren who take it forward - your struggle s certainly not in vein. Thank you. Watch this space! And if you want to be kept up to date with everything - either sign your name here, email neveragaineverever@gmail or sign up to Nie Wieder - Never Again Ever - neveragainever.org XXX
Posted on: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 15:09:07 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015