On Holocaust Remembrance Day, JVP descendants of survivors call for an end to the Israeli government’s genocide of Palestinians

We, descendants of Holocaust survivors, call on the world on this Holocaust Remembrance Day to join us in working to end the Israeli government’s genocide against the Palestinian people, enabled and supported by the US government.  

The Israeli government has made very clear its intent to destroy Palestinian life in Gaza. To justify this horrific violence, the Israeli government has shamelessly manipulated Holocaust trauma. As descendants, we are outraged that the memory of our ancestors is being used to justify the same kind of horror being inflicted on others. We cry out against this genocidal assault: Not in our name!

As descendants, we recognize that genocide makes no one safer. We are not alone in our trauma, and we have a collective duty to prevent others from experiencing similar harm. Instead of ignoring the key lesson of the Holocaust — that Never Again means never again for anyone — and manipulating our trauma to support a genocidal war, we choose to invest in Jewish values like tzedek tzedek tirdof (justice, justice you shall pursue), and tikkun olam (repairing the world) right here and now, where we are. 

Collectively, we determine what the legacy of Holocaust memory will be. We can weaponize our pain and inscribe the names of our ancestors on the funding bills and bombs that are the instruments of genocide. Or, we can carry our ancestors’ memories in actions that unite and protect us all. We choose the latter: free Palestine!

– Jewish Voice for Peace members who are descendants of Holocaust survivors