WARSAW, Poland (Press Release) – The American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, joined the Polish Jewish community on Friday in remembering the at least 340 Jews who were murdered in the Jedwabne Pogrom.
Eighty-five years ago, on July 10, 1941, more than 300 men, women, and children were burned alive in a barn in the Polish town of Jedwabne. As confirmed by Poland’s own Institute of National Remembrance, this horrific crime was carried out by the victims’ Polish neighbors, incited by the occupying Nazi German forces. In recent years, there have been efforts from far-right extremists to deny these facts.
“The Jedwabne Pogrom is a deeply painful memory for the Polish people,” said Agnieszka Markiewicz, Director of AJC’s Shapiro Silverberg Central Europe Institute (CEI). “It is heart-wrenching that less than a century ago such a heinous crime was possible. But with that pain comes a responsibility. The Jedwabne Pogrom is a warning of what can happen when we allow antisemitism and hate to go unchallenged. The movement to deny these crimes is yet another example of why Poland must adopt a national strategy to combat antisemitism. Democratic Poland has already done the hard work of officially recognizing what happened on July 10, 1941. Now, just as the government confronted our difficult past, it is imperative that it takes action against those who would deny and distort history and spread antisemitism. We must preserve the massacre site as a place of mourning and memory and work to combat anti-Jewish hate and rhetoric whenever and wherever it appears.”
Even in the face of an antisemitic movement that seeks to deny the history of the Jedwabne Pogrom and Polish involvement in these crimes, today’s commemoration, organized by the Chief Rabbi of Poland and the Jewish community of Warsaw, was a poignant tribute and moment of prayer for the victims and the community that was lost.
As they did last year, far-right extremists attempted to disrupt this year’s memorial, including by holding a two-day hate-filled rally with speakers known for their antisemitic views and ahistorical propaganda that denies the long-established truth of the massacre perpetrated on July 10, 1941. AJC is grateful to Polish law enforcement who protected the Jewish community and ensured those who came to mourn the victims were able to gather and pray in peace.
In addition to the rally, extremists erected a new display at the site – a large cross bearing an inscription which builds on an installation erected last year, consisting of boulders bearing plaques that deny the historical record, distort the facts, and spread antisemitic falsehoods. Additionally, a few weeks ago, shipping containers were installed on land adjacent to the memorial to create an “information center.” The initiative is led by extreme far-right groups associated with the Movement for the Defense of Poles, an organization known for their antisemitic views and actions.
AJC is grateful to political and diplomatic leaders who stood with the Jewish community at Friday’s ceremony and remains committed to working with these leaders to uphold the truth, preserve the dignity of the victims, and support the local Jewish community. Among the dignitaries in attendance were Minister Wojciech Kolarski and Professor Grzegorz Berendt, representing the President of Poland, Speaker of the Polish Parliament Włodzimierz Czarzasty, Speaker of the Polish Senate Małgorzata Kidawa-Błońska, Members of the Polish Parliament, Israeli Ambassador to Poland Yaakov Finkelstein, and diplomats from several countries including U.S. Department of State Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues Ellen Germain, Chair of Yad Vashem Dani Dayan, Director of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Michaela Küchler, and representatives of churches of different faiths.
AJC was honored to accompany the family of Shmuel Wasserstein, one of the few Jewish survivors of the Pogrom, who was joined by CEI Board Co-Chairs Tom Kahn and Richard Cohen, at this year’s commemoration and in meetings with government leaders in Warsaw. Wasserstein’s account, given to the Jewish Historical Institute in 1945, became one of the earliest and most important eyewitness testimonies documenting the crime. AJC and the Wasserstein family met with government officials, including Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek, to discuss the vital role the Polish state must play to safeguard history, combat Holocaust distortion, and fight antisemitism.
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Preceding provided by the American Jewish Committee.