In the February issue of the "Oś Oswiecim - People - History - Culture" magazine which is published by the Auschwitz Memorial three pages were given to the participants of our project. The articles in Oś are the first effects of work of the press group. More articles by the participants about the Auschwitz-Buchenwald seminars will be published in April edition, both in Polish and English.
Pokazywanie postów oznaczonych etykietą English. Pokaż wszystkie posty
Pokazywanie postów oznaczonych etykietą English. Pokaż wszystkie posty
sobota, 26 marca 2011
The World visits Auschwitz at the World Café!
Nice little tables, animated discussions. Menus are located at the table-clothes. A pleasing, well-stocked Café. Normal. But on closer inspection there is no normality: Pieces of conversation in English, Polish, Russian, German go through the whole room. The table-cloths are in fact made of paper, the menu doesn't provide any food information, but questions: What impact does the remembrance of World War II have on the formation and development of the national identity? Is it possible to establish a common international culture of remembrance? No coffee, but big discussion.
During the international meeting in Auschwitz the participants took part in a workshop about the culture of remembrance in their countries. The "World Café" connected diverse perspectives and explored questions that matter. People discussed and answered issues in small groups of different nations and different ages.
The main problem of discussion was: how the society and the mass media deals with the culture of remembrance. “After the end of World War II the German national identity broke down. And it has never been recovered since then. There was a feeling of deep shame and fear to show any sign of patriotism. The first time you could see again German flags and hear the hymn was in 2006, when the soccer world championship took place in Germany”, explained a young German. On the paper to make notes about the results of discussion someone noted down: “In order to have an identity, you need to have history. In order to make history you need an identity.” The Israeli guests described that the memory of the Holocaust has a very big effect on the Israeli identity. Many people know someone who survived. Every year there is a national memorial day that effects everybody. And from the Russian visitors you could learn that the victory in the Second World War is the greatest proud of ex-soviet union. Important is that now in Russia and other post soviet union countries historians start to work on the topic of Holocaust, because not every fact about this period is known. In Poland nowadays culture of remembrance is popular – people can talk about it and there is possibility to do something and not to forget. “The knowledge about past makes us built present and future. We can only create our national identity when we remember about past events.”, is the final result.
One interesting question during the evening was: how are topics such as World War II, the National Socialist ideology, and the Holocaust taught in your history classes. Answers were different. In Israel, for example, all these three topics are connected. It is very important to know this theme really good. Everybody must learn it. After few weeks of learning about it there is an exam. Government helps to remember about the Holocaust - every year there is memorial day. In Polish education there is more information about the effects than the causes of World War II. Too little is said about the Nazi period. There are special educational programs for teachers, pupils have to visit memorial places. The topic is taught not only on history classes – also on literature and art classes. Problem with this topic was during the communism period in Poland - different story was at home, different at school. Now it has changed.
In Russia the greatest day is the Soviet Victory Day (9 May). National Socialist ideology, and the Holocaust are examined from a political point of view and it is a really hard question in Russia nowadays. Anniversaries are celebrated, but not in a state school, but in the youth organizations (like NGOs). Young people from Germany are divided. For some of them lessons are interesting. There are movies and radio broadcasts in this topic and, of course, they can read a lot of facts about this period in books. Some of them wants to know more. We can meet a lot of Germans on voluntary program services in different places in Poland, which are associated with Holocaust.
The question, how can forms of remembrance and commemoration that do not serve forces of political and national exploitation be created and developed, shows different possibilities. International dialogue and interviews with surviving witnesses must be documented and archived, for example in the internet. Education and transposition between generations, pluralism and multiplicity are very important. And all that can be triggered during an international discussion over a cup of coffee.
During the international meeting in Auschwitz the participants took part in a workshop about the culture of remembrance in their countries. The "World Café" connected diverse perspectives and explored questions that matter. People discussed and answered issues in small groups of different nations and different ages.
The main problem of discussion was: how the society and the mass media deals with the culture of remembrance. “After the end of World War II the German national identity broke down. And it has never been recovered since then. There was a feeling of deep shame and fear to show any sign of patriotism. The first time you could see again German flags and hear the hymn was in 2006, when the soccer world championship took place in Germany”, explained a young German. On the paper to make notes about the results of discussion someone noted down: “In order to have an identity, you need to have history. In order to make history you need an identity.” The Israeli guests described that the memory of the Holocaust has a very big effect on the Israeli identity. Many people know someone who survived. Every year there is a national memorial day that effects everybody. And from the Russian visitors you could learn that the victory in the Second World War is the greatest proud of ex-soviet union. Important is that now in Russia and other post soviet union countries historians start to work on the topic of Holocaust, because not every fact about this period is known. In Poland nowadays culture of remembrance is popular – people can talk about it and there is possibility to do something and not to forget. “The knowledge about past makes us built present and future. We can only create our national identity when we remember about past events.”, is the final result.
One interesting question during the evening was: how are topics such as World War II, the National Socialist ideology, and the Holocaust taught in your history classes. Answers were different. In Israel, for example, all these three topics are connected. It is very important to know this theme really good. Everybody must learn it. After few weeks of learning about it there is an exam. Government helps to remember about the Holocaust - every year there is memorial day. In Polish education there is more information about the effects than the causes of World War II. Too little is said about the Nazi period. There are special educational programs for teachers, pupils have to visit memorial places. The topic is taught not only on history classes – also on literature and art classes. Problem with this topic was during the communism period in Poland - different story was at home, different at school. Now it has changed.
In Russia the greatest day is the Soviet Victory Day (9 May). National Socialist ideology, and the Holocaust are examined from a political point of view and it is a really hard question in Russia nowadays. Anniversaries are celebrated, but not in a state school, but in the youth organizations (like NGOs). Young people from Germany are divided. For some of them lessons are interesting. There are movies and radio broadcasts in this topic and, of course, they can read a lot of facts about this period in books. Some of them wants to know more. We can meet a lot of Germans on voluntary program services in different places in Poland, which are associated with Holocaust.
The question, how can forms of remembrance and commemoration that do not serve forces of political and national exploitation be created and developed, shows different possibilities. International dialogue and interviews with surviving witnesses must be documented and archived, for example in the internet. Education and transposition between generations, pluralism and multiplicity are very important. And all that can be triggered during an international discussion over a cup of coffee.
Anna Reinhardt
Katarzyna Gasińska
Alina Dąbrowska, a survivor, gives an account of her life
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| Alina and Zosia during the ceremony in Auschwitz on 27 January 2011 |
Together they decided about how the audio programme should be composed which describes her voyage through life. This journey is still continuing and, according to Mrs Alina, in spite of everything it is a beautiful one.
The programme was done in Polish.
Audio programme Alina Dabrowska by mkwprojekt2011_1
Personal accounts by Auschwitz survivors and by a volunteer worker
„You didn't survive in order to live. You have little time, so you must give testimony.” These words by the Polish poet, Zbigniew Herbert, are very close to all the former prisoners, and especially to those who took part in the International Meeting 2011.
Dzielą się oni swoimi przeżyciami, aby ich świadectwo historii przetrwało. Uczestnicy z grupy audio nagrali wiele z tych opowieści. Dzięki Zofii Dłubacz z Lublina zamieszczamy trzy z nich: relację pani Aliny Dąbrowskiej, Zdzisławy Włodarczyk i Krystyny Budnickiej. Czwarte nagranie to wypowiedź Profesora Ulricha Foxa o jego motywacjach do pomagania byłym więźniom, a piąte – dźwiękowa relacja z uroczystosci 66. rocznicy wyzwolenia Auschwitz Birkenau. Wszystkie nagrania są w języku polskim.
Mrs Alina Dąbrowska, więźniarka Auschwitz, Ravensbrück i Buchenwald, już przed aresztowaniem wiedziała, czym jest obóz. Mimo to przybycie na miejsce było dla niej szokiem.
Alina Dabrowska by mkwprojekt2011_1
O pierwszych doświadczeniach obozowych z Auschwitz opowiada jedenastoletnia wówczas pani Zdzisława Włodarczyk.
Zdzislawa Wlodarczyk by mkwprojekt2011_1
Podczas powstania w getcie warszawskim pani Krystyna Budnicka przez 9 miesięcy ukrywała się w bunkrze, ktory został wykopany pod piwnicą jej rodzinnej kamienicy.
Krystyna Budnicka by mkwprojekt2011_1
Profesor Ulrich Fox, honorowy współpracownik Maximilian Kolbe Werk, opowiada dlaczego został wolontariuszem i zaczął pomagać byłym więźniom.
Ulrich Fox by mkwprojekt2011_1
Relacja z obchodów 66. rocznicy wyzwolenia obozu Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Auschwitz 66th anniversary liberation by mkwprojekt2011_1
Dzielą się oni swoimi przeżyciami, aby ich świadectwo historii przetrwało. Uczestnicy z grupy audio nagrali wiele z tych opowieści. Dzięki Zofii Dłubacz z Lublina zamieszczamy trzy z nich: relację pani Aliny Dąbrowskiej, Zdzisławy Włodarczyk i Krystyny Budnickiej. Czwarte nagranie to wypowiedź Profesora Ulricha Foxa o jego motywacjach do pomagania byłym więźniom, a piąte – dźwiękowa relacja z uroczystosci 66. rocznicy wyzwolenia Auschwitz Birkenau. Wszystkie nagrania są w języku polskim.
Mrs Alina Dąbrowska, więźniarka Auschwitz, Ravensbrück i Buchenwald, już przed aresztowaniem wiedziała, czym jest obóz. Mimo to przybycie na miejsce było dla niej szokiem.
Alina Dabrowska by mkwprojekt2011_1
O pierwszych doświadczeniach obozowych z Auschwitz opowiada jedenastoletnia wówczas pani Zdzisława Włodarczyk.
Zdzislawa Wlodarczyk by mkwprojekt2011_1
Podczas powstania w getcie warszawskim pani Krystyna Budnicka przez 9 miesięcy ukrywała się w bunkrze, ktory został wykopany pod piwnicą jej rodzinnej kamienicy.
Krystyna Budnicka by mkwprojekt2011_1
Profesor Ulrich Fox, honorowy współpracownik Maximilian Kolbe Werk, opowiada dlaczego został wolontariuszem i zaczął pomagać byłym więźniom.
Ulrich Fox by mkwprojekt2011_1
Relacja z obchodów 66. rocznicy wyzwolenia obozu Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Auschwitz 66th anniversary liberation by mkwprojekt2011_1
czwartek, 24 marca 2011
Каков лагерь смерти глазами ребенка и глазами взрослого человека? What is the death camp in the eyes of a child and the eyes of an adult?
Затаив дыхание, мы, молодые участники проекта Maksimilian-Kolbe-Werk, слушали уникальные истории свидетелей прошлого. Двое выживших, Исаак Сегалис и Василий Володько, делились с нами своими историями. Исаак был в фашистском гетто еще совсем маленьким ребенком, Василий Володько же попал в лагерь смерти уже взрослым парнем. Две разные судьбы, два разных взгляда на ужас, творимый фашистами. Каков же лагерь смерти глазами ребенка и глазами взрослого человека?
We, the young participants of the Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk project, listened to the unique stories of the witnesses of the past. Two survivors, Ischakas Segalis and Vasyl Volodko, shared with us their stories which they had come through. Ischakas was in a Nazi ghetto, when he was a child and Vasyl Volodko was deported to a death camp as an adult man. Two different fates, two different views on the terror made by the Nazis. What is the death camp in the eyes of a child and the eyes of an adult?
środa, 23 marca 2011
Beginn des zweiten Projektseminars in Buchenwald // Start of the second project workshop in Buchenwald
(see below for English version of this article)
Die Internationale Begegnung 2011 des Maximilian-Kolbe-Werks zum Thema "Erinnern und Gedenken im Zeitalter des Web 2.0" wird von heute an mit einem fünftägigen Seminar in der Gedenkstätte Buchenwald fortgesetzt. 20 junge Teilnehmer/innen und 5 Zeitzeug/innen haben sich in der Jugendbegegnungsstätte auf dem oberhalb von Weimar gelegenen Ettersberg eingefunden, um an diesem authentischen Schauplatz nationalsozialistischen Terrors über Geschichte und Erinnerung zu reflektieren. Gemeinsam gehen sie der Frage nach, wie Erinnern und Gedenken in Zukunft aussehen können und welche Möglichkeiten die Neuen Medien und Soziale Netzwerke dabei bieten.
Das Seminar in Buchenwald ist der zweite und zugleich letzte Teil der diesjährigen Internationalen Begegnung des Maximilian-Kolbe-Werks. Auftakt war ein einwöchiges Seminar im polnischen Oswiecim (Auschwitz), das Ende Januar anlässlich des 66. Jahrestages der Befreiung von Auschwitz-Birkenau stattfand. In Buchenwald beenden die jungen Teilnehmer/innen nun die Arbeit an ihren Medienprojekten in den Bereichen Audio, Video, Text und Internet. Die Ergebnisse werden zu Abschluss des Seminars am Samstagabend präsentiert und anschließend auf dieser Webseite veröffentlicht.
Der erste Abend in der Jugendbegegnungsstätte auf dem Ettersberg wurde dazu genutzt, einander herzlich zu begrüßen und auch jene Zeitzeug/innen und sonstigen Mitwirkenden willkommen zu heißen, die im Januar noch nicht mit von der Partie gewesen waren. Der zuständige pädagogische Mitarbeiter der Gedenkstätte, Jan Malecha, gab zudem eine kurze Einführung in die Geschichte des Konzentrationslagers während und nach der NS-Zeit.
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The International Meeting 2011 of the Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk on the topic of "Remembering and Commemorating in the Age of Web 2.0" is being continued as of today with a five-day seminar in the Memorial Site at Buchenwald. 20 young participants and five witnesses of history have come together in the youth education centre on the Ettersberg hill above Weimar in order to reflect upon history and memory in this authentic site of Nazi terror. Together they will deal with the question as to what remembering and commemorating may look like in the future, and what possibilities the New Media and Social Networks are offering in this regard.
The event in Buchenwald constitutes the second and last part of this year's International Meeting of the Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk. It began with a one-week seminar in Oswiecim (Auschwitz) in Poland, held in late January on the occasion of the 66th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. In Buchenwald the young participants will conclude the work on their media projects in audio, video and text formats, as well as on internet publishing. The results will be presented at the end of the workshop on Saturday, and published afterwards on the project website.
The opening evening in the youth education centre on the Ettersberg was used by the participants to greet all the familiar faces, and to welcome also those witnesses of history and other people who had not been present in January. Furthermore, the pedagogical assistant of the memorial site in charge of supporting the project, Jan Malecha, provided a short introduction on the history of Buchenwald concentration camp before and after the Nazi time.
Die Internationale Begegnung 2011 des Maximilian-Kolbe-Werks zum Thema "Erinnern und Gedenken im Zeitalter des Web 2.0" wird von heute an mit einem fünftägigen Seminar in der Gedenkstätte Buchenwald fortgesetzt. 20 junge Teilnehmer/innen und 5 Zeitzeug/innen haben sich in der Jugendbegegnungsstätte auf dem oberhalb von Weimar gelegenen Ettersberg eingefunden, um an diesem authentischen Schauplatz nationalsozialistischen Terrors über Geschichte und Erinnerung zu reflektieren. Gemeinsam gehen sie der Frage nach, wie Erinnern und Gedenken in Zukunft aussehen können und welche Möglichkeiten die Neuen Medien und Soziale Netzwerke dabei bieten.
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| Die Teilnehmer/innen der Begegnung versammeln sich im Seminarraum - und sogar die Maximilian-Kolbe-Taube (im Vordergrund auf dem Fußboden) ist wieder dabei |
Das Seminar in Buchenwald ist der zweite und zugleich letzte Teil der diesjährigen Internationalen Begegnung des Maximilian-Kolbe-Werks. Auftakt war ein einwöchiges Seminar im polnischen Oswiecim (Auschwitz), das Ende Januar anlässlich des 66. Jahrestages der Befreiung von Auschwitz-Birkenau stattfand. In Buchenwald beenden die jungen Teilnehmer/innen nun die Arbeit an ihren Medienprojekten in den Bereichen Audio, Video, Text und Internet. Die Ergebnisse werden zu Abschluss des Seminars am Samstagabend präsentiert und anschließend auf dieser Webseite veröffentlicht.
 |
| I. Zegalis aus Litauen nahm bereits am ersten Teil der Begegnung in Auschwitz teil |
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| Jan Malecha von der Gedenkstätte erläutert die Geschichte Buchenwalds anhand historischer Photographien |
The event in Buchenwald constitutes the second and last part of this year's International Meeting of the Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk. It began with a one-week seminar in Oswiecim (Auschwitz) in Poland, held in late January on the occasion of the 66th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. In Buchenwald the young participants will conclude the work on their media projects in audio, video and text formats, as well as on internet publishing. The results will be presented at the end of the workshop on Saturday, and published afterwards on the project website.
The opening evening in the youth education centre on the Ettersberg was used by the participants to greet all the familiar faces, and to welcome also those witnesses of history and other people who had not been present in January. Furthermore, the pedagogical assistant of the memorial site in charge of supporting the project, Jan Malecha, provided a short introduction on the history of Buchenwald concentration camp before and after the Nazi time.
środa, 23 lutego 2011
Interview with Tal from Israel about visiting Auschwitz memorial site
Tal works in the Ghetto Fighters' House Museum in the Kibbutz Lohamei Haghetaot. She has visited the State Museum Auschwitz three times, each time in a different setting. In the interview, Tal speaks about the implications of these differences for the way how she, as an individual, is dealing with memory and commemoration. She points out how the multi-national character of the International Meeting 2011, and the diverse composition of the group, are opening up new perspectives. Other issues which are raised in the interview are the importance of authentic places for remembering and commemorating and the (limited) possibilities which web 2.0 is offering for educational work.
2011-01-27 Interview Tal by mkwprojekt2011_1
The direct link to the MP3 file of the interview is to be found at: http://soundcloud.com/mkwprojekt2011_1/interview-tal. It can be directly accessed and downloaded from there.
czwartek, 10 lutego 2011
Me ... a Human Being in Auschwitz? // Ich... ein Mensch in Auschwitz?
How do you start to answer something, if you don’t believe in your answers? How do you ask something, if you don’t know the questions? How do you write something, if your sentences are missing?
How do I feel, after my visit to Auschwitz? I was asked this question a couple of times, but how should I be able to answer, if I, Mustafa Jakupov, have so many doubts and questions in my head after my visit at this “tourist attraction”… Indeed I choose a word such as attraction, because many people treat it as such “After the terror, tourists came …” I saw so many people, young and old, running around with their cameras; so many pictures have been taken. But have the lessons been learned and also taken with our mental camera for storage and “flattering” in front of our friends? Yet I think it is wrong to generalize and judge people, since everyone has its own motives for visiting Auschwitz.
I was today at Auschwitz as a human being, not as a Macedonian or Roma. I went there to learn why one human was hurting another human being. I went to learn about WHY? Because, that is the only question and answer I got.
I have learned that 23,000 Roma were brought to Auschwitz and 21,000 of them perished. I still hear one sentence that will always remain in my mind:”…consciousness was invented by Jews …” A sentence read by our guide to our group, a sentence written by Adolf Hitler himself. With this sentence a man, a human being tried to justify the murders he ordered for all these helpless people, who were unfortunate to end up in this place. But he also tried to cheer up the humans who conducted this slaughter. Many people before me tried to analyze these words, but there still is not any justification for that what was done. And never will be!
My impression of this visit was that my Humanity has been challenged. Questions as what is a human and what makes us human appeared in my mind, but also questions such as: “do we deserve to call ourselves human, after the terror we cause to another”, “are we human, because we feel emotions, such as love, anger, envy, lust” or “do we become human, if we master our emotions and prevent them of doing harm to others?
I recommend a visit in this important historical place to everyone – to test their humanity by asking themselves these questions. Not only to treat this place as an attraction, but also to learn from it … And if you are able to help the people who work to preserve this important historical site, something that is valuable for our human history, do it!
Mustafa Jakupov
Mustafa Jakupov
czwartek, 3 lutego 2011
Interview with Dorota about the memory of Auschwitz in Poland
On January 27, 2011, just before the beginning of the commemorative ceremony in Auschwitz-Birkenau, Sebastian conducted an interview with Dorota (25), a Polish participant in the International Meeting 2011. The interview is in two languages: the questions were posed in English, and the answers given in Polish. It deals with the significance of Auschwitz-Birkenau for herself and in Polish culture and collective memory, as well as the differences in commemorative practices depending on the specific circumstances of a visit. The topic of web 2.0 and its potential for future practices of remembering and commemorating Nazi crimes in Europe is only touched briefly before the beginning of the ceremony.
2011-01-27 Interview-Dorota by mkwprojekt2011_1
The direct link to the MP3 file of the interview is to be found at: http://soundcloud.com/mkwprojekt2011_1/interview-dorota. It can be directly accessed and downloaded from there.
2011-01-27 Interview-Dorota by mkwprojekt2011_1
The direct link to the MP3 file of the interview is to be found at: http://soundcloud.com/mkwprojekt2011_1/interview-dorota. It can be directly accessed and downloaded from there.
poniedziałek, 31 stycznia 2011
A documentary video of the exhibition "Negatives of Memory. Labyrinths" in Oswiecim-Harmeze
A second video clip has been sent in today by the video group of our International Meeting "Remembering and Commemorating in the Age of Web 2.0". It captures the atmosphere of the visit to the exhibition "Negatives of Memory. Labyrinths" ("Klisze pamieci. Labirynty") by the late artist and former prisoner of Auschwitz concentration camp, Marian Kolodziej. The visit took place on 24 January 2011, and on the video you can see all the different people participating in the project: young people, old survivors of the camps and ghettos, and organisers.
Here it is:
Again, many thanks to the film crew for preparing this wonderful material and sharing it with us!
Here it is:
Again, many thanks to the film crew for preparing this wonderful material and sharing it with us!
Erster Video-Clip über Besuch in Auschwitz-Birkenau // First video clip about visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau
The video group has published a first project that they produced during part 1 of the International Meeting 2011 in Oswiecim. It is a short documentary clip about the visit to the State Museum in Auschwitz and Birkenau on 25 January 2011, two days before the 66th anniversary of the camp's liberation. It is without words, and the images speak for themselves. The soundtrack to the clip may not be audible in all countries due to copyright restrictions.
A great "Thank you!", or better, "Dzieki!" to Adam and Michal and their crew for producing this interesting material and making it available so soon. We are all looking forward to what will come next!
A great "Thank you!", or better, "Dzieki!" to Adam and Michal and their crew for producing this interesting material and making it available so soon. We are all looking forward to what will come next!
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