May 16 – 31st 2012
At the David Posnack Jewish Community Center
5850 S. Pine Island Road, Davie, FL 33328
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Rod Wilson, Foundation for California
562-505-5600
Broward County Welcomes the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s World-Renowned
“Courage to Remember” Holocaust Exhibit with Opening Ceremony, May 16
David Posnack Jewish Community Center hosts the exhibit and this special event
As the state of Florida continues to reel from the recent death of Trayvon Martin, as well as a reported increase in anti-Semitic vandalism, harassment and bullying in South Florida’s neighborhoods, schools and college campuses, and Jewish institutions, many are left wondering, how can we best combat the dangerous impact of discrimination and hatred?
The Simon Wiesenthal Center’s “The Courage to Remember: the Holocaust 1933-1945” traveling exhibit strives for just that, empowering generations to resist ignorance and fight discrimination, as it comes to Broward County May 15 through May 31, with a special opening ceremony slated for May 16 at 5:30 p.m. at the David Posnack Jewish Community Center.
“Two decades after we first designed this exhibit, its lesson is still vital to peace at home and abroad,” said Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center. “Its timeless messages reflect the words of Simon Wiesenthal: ‘Hope lives when people remember.’”
“The Courage to Remember: the Holocaust 1933-1945” traveling exhibit, produced by the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s Museum of Tolerance, presented by the Foundation for California, and made possible by a grant from SNCF, has celebrated 20 years of international acclaim and a highly successful tour throughout California and the Southeast. More than 350,000 people have seen the exhibit in California alone.
The exhibit, which is always free and open to the public, features more than 200 exclusive photographs that cannot be seen anywhere else in the world, offering amazing insight into the Holocaust through four distinct themes: Nazi Germany, 1933-1938; Moving Toward the “Final Solution,” 1939-1941; Annihilation in Nazi-occupied Europe, 1941-1945; and Liberation, Building New Lives.
The opening ceremony event for “The Courage to Remember” in Broward County will be held on May 16, 2012 at 5:30 p.m. at the David Posnack Jewish Community Center in Davie (5850 S. Pine Island Road, 33328), featuring guest speakers, Holocaust survivors, elected officials, and representatives from the Simon Wiesenthal Center.
“It may have been more than 75 years since the Holocaust, but violence motivated by race and ethnic background make up more than half of all hate crimes in Florida, and more than 65 percent of anti-religious hate crimes are against Jews, vastly more than any other religious group,” said Linda Medvin, Chair of the Florida Department of Education Commissioner’s Task Force on Holocaust Education.
“Holocaust education and tribute is critical in that it encourages new generations of forward-thinkers. ‘The Courage to Remember’ exhibit teaches tolerance of diversity, respect, and responsibility, and we are proud to host it in Broward County and across South Florida,” Medvin added.
For more information on “The Courage to Remember,” its partners and schedule, and to see photos and videos from opening events, please visit www.couragetoremember.com or follow twitter.com/courageremember.
For more information about the David Posnack Jewish Community Center, please visit www.dpjcc.org or www.facebook.com/dpjcc.
About the Foundation for California:
Incorporated in 1986, the Foundation For California, a non-profit 501(c)3 educational corporation, was established to perform educational programs on issues of importance to the State of California, its local communities and the people of California. Over the past 25 years, the Foundation has hosted conferences on public policy issues, sponsored educational lecture series and unveiled traveling exhibits, bringing the important issues of our society to the forefront of discussion throughout California.
