Photo exhibit examines Bergen-Belsen Displaced Persons Camp

TORONTO, November 5, 2004 -- 'Rebirth After the Holocaust: The Bergen-Belsen Displaced Persons Camp, 1945-1950’ is a travelling photo exhibit which is making a one-month stop at York University to commemorate Holocaust Education Week (Oct. 28 – Nov. 11).

 

The exhibit, which runs November 9 through December 3, will feature numerous archival photos and provide vivid accounts of Jewish strife as well as stories of hope in the aftermath of one of the world’s worst atrocities.

 

Photo: Teen-aged Holocaust survivors departing from
Bergen-Belsen DP Camp for Palestine. (The Josef Rosensaft Bergen-Belsen Archive, Yad Vashem, Israel.)

 

“In April 1945, the Nazi concentration camp Bergen-Belsen was liberated by the British Army. Virtually overnight, the site was transformed into a temporary “home” for Jewish displaced persons who then began the process of connecting with surviving family and friends, fought for self-government, and began new lives after the Holocaust.” explains Prof. Martin Lockshin, Director, Centre for Jewish Studies.

 

“If we are to learn from history, education about the Holocaust is crucial,” says Lockshin. “Such education can be conducted in many ways.  Often it is done by teaching about the horrors of the Holocaust – the unthinkable cruelty, the inhumane behaviour of the perpetrators or the dehumanization of the victims.”

”This exhibit teaches about the Holocaust in a different and complementary way – by showing the way people rebuilt their lives,” he adds “It is a story of the resilience of human beings, of hope and of courage.”

 

The Germans established Bergen-Belsen as a camp during the latter stages of World War II for civilian internees; the site soon advanced into a full-fledged concentration camp.  Located near Hanover, Germany, its inmates suffered unspeakable horrors.  With liberation in April 1945, survivors confronted a second, unrestrained wave of catastrophe – during the first month of freedom, 500 persons died daily from starvation, typhus and deprivation. Nevertheless, survivors began to take steps at restoring their lives. 

 

The Honourable Bernd Busemann, Minister of Culture, Government of Lower Saxony, Germany (Photo), will speak at the official opening on Tuesday, Nov. 9, at 6 p.m.

 

‘Rebirth After the Holocaust’ will be held at The Samuel J. Zacks Gallery, located in Room 109 of Stong College at York University, 4700 Keele Street. A campus map can be found by clicking here.

 

The exhibit is presented by York University’s Centre for Jewish Studies, The Holocaust Centre of Toronto as part of the 24th Annual Holocaust Education Week of the UJA of Greater Toronto.

 

 

-30-

For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact:

Ken Turriff, Media Relations, York University, 416-736-2100, x22086 / kturriff@yorku.ca