Some 300 people attended the second annual Righteous Among Nations Event on November 16 on the campus of the Kehillah Schechter Academy in Norwood, presented by the Israel Arbeiter Gallery of Understanding and in association with American Jewish Committee, Anti-Defamation League New England, Jewish Community Relations Council and Friends of the New England Holocaust Memorial.
Gallery Co-Chairs - Irv Kempner (pictured at left with Alan Dershowitz and Gallery Co-Chair, Gila Kriegel) said, “This program fulfilled our vision to honor the memory of Shoah victims, Holocaust survivors and the righteous citizens who took great personal risk to try and save them. Gila Kriegel said she hoped that partnerships started through initiatives such as this event “will continue to keep Wallenberg’s message alive and make our world one of tolerance and understanding.”
Making Music – A highlight of the evening was a musical presentation by the combined choirs of the German international School of Boston and Kehillah Shechter Academy’s Barbara F. Guzovsky Makhela who sang in English and Hebrew. The students preformed a specially written cantata by Sandi Morgan Dunn, who co-directed the presentation with Lisa Yves Winner.
Keynote Speaker - Alan Dershowitz, Felix Frankfurter Professor at Harvard Law School, author and jurist, said, “Every person must stand up for righteousness, even when it’s politically incorrect. And that takes more courage today than ever before. Pictured at right, Alan Dershowitz signs a coy of his new book, The Trials of Zion, for Jane Taubenfeld Cohen. She referred to Wallenberg’s “selfless humanitarianism, as a true model of tikkun olam for our children.”
Dr. Janos Beer - An aide to Raoul Wallenberg, lights a candle in honor of those who risked their lives to save others during the Holocaust. Looking on is Marika Barnett whose parents were saved by Wallenberg. He said, Raoul Wallenberg “didn’t save people because of their religions, but because they were human beings.”
