A letter from survivors

We, the undersigned Holocaust survivors, are the last witnesses to the unspeakable horrors of the Nazi regime.

We are witnesses to the antisemitic propaganda that turned our friends, neighbours and the general public against us in Europe. We remember the six million Jewish lives lost because of this hatred.

On 7 October 2023, we witnessed the horrors of Hamas’ terrorist attacks in Israel and the resulting war, with its terrible loss of life. Since then, we have seen an unprecedented outpouring of antisemitism raging on our streets, on our television screens, on social media and in our universities.

We write this letter now because today marks 85 years since Kristallnacht (The Night of Broken Glass). On 9 November 1938, the Nazi regime murdered Jews and attacked Jewish life, wreaking terror and burning synagogues.

Rather than condemn these atrocities, the world stood by and watched.

Never have we, the survivors of the Holocaust felt the need to make a collective statement such as this until now. Never did we think that we would witness a re-enactment of the senseless and virulent hatred of Jews that we faced in Europe. The actions of Hamas are so familiar, so barbaric, yet instead of condemning this, the response across the globe is a shameful spike in antisemitism.

Our memories and our experiences in ghettos, concentration camps and in hiding – seeing our families and communities vanish – compel us to raise our voices and implore humanity to reject hatred, bigotry and violence. To recognise the agenda of Hamas, condemn it accordingly and call for the immediate release of all hostages – men, women, babies and the elderly.

We cannot allow history to repeat itself.

In the face of adversity, we have learned the importance of resilience, unity, and hope. We believe in the power of education and remembrance to prevent the atrocities of the past from occurring again. Together, we can strive for a world where every individual, regardless of their faith, regardless of their cultural background, can live in peace and security.

Antisemitism is one of the world’s oldest and most contagious viruses. We ask all Australians to denounce the antisemitism and hatred that we see today in our beautiful country and across the globe.

We ask you to stand with us.

Edith B, ACT

Thomas F, ACT

Ralph H, ACT

Ruth Gerson Landau, ACT

Thomas Mautner, ACT

Peter Witting, ACT

David (Desideriu) Z, ACT

 

Diane Armstrong, NSW

Judy Bahar, NSW

Dasia Black Gutman, NSW

Lucy Chladek, NSW

AD, NSW

GD, NSW

Helen Doctors, NSW

Paul Drexler, NSW

Yvonne E, NSW

Anne Erber, NSW

Thomas Fleming, NSW

Sam Goldman, NSW

Roland Gridiger OAM, NSW

John Gruschka, NSW

Richard Haber, NSW

Peter Halas, NSW

Yvonne Halas, NSW

Litzi Lemberg, NSW

Elizabeth Levy, NSW

Maurice Linker, NSW

Jack Meister OAM, NSW

Peter Nash, NSW

Ella Nathan, NSW

David Phillips, NSW

Susie Phillips, NSW

Alice S, NSW

Egon Sonnenschein, NSW

Mark Spigelman, NSW

Joseph Symon, NSW

Mimi (Miryam) Wise, NSW

 

Peter Baruch, Queensland

Prof. Edgar Gold, AM, CM, KC, Queensland

Sue Goldzweig, Queensland

Ron Fresco, Queensland

Stefan Kotzander, Queensland

Dr Peter Kraus, Queensland

Suzi Smeed, Queensland

 

Andrew Steiner, OAM, South Australia

 

Dr. Felix Goldschmied, Tasmania

Gershon Goldsteen, Tasmania

Nina Bassat AM, VIC

Ester Braitberg, VIC

Anonymous, VIC

Szaja Chaskiel OAM, VIC

Wolf Deane, VIC

Anonymous, VIC

Garry Fabian OAM, VIC

Adrian Factor OAM, VIC

Peter Gaspar, VIC

Charles German, VIC

Susan G, VIC

Mordechai Glasman, VIC

Abram Goldberg OAM, VIC

Guta Goldstein, VIC

Bep Gomperts, VIC

Bernadette Gore, VIC

Dita Gould, VIC

Paul Grinwald, VIC

Lusia Haberfeld, VIC

Irmgard (Irma) Hanner OAM, VIC

Rachel Kalman OAM, VIC

Gabrielle Khazam, VIC

Anonymous, VIC

Judy Kolt, VIC

Emma Kranz, VIC

Dr Henryk Kranz, VIC

John Lamovie JP (ret), VIC

Prof Gilah Leder AM, VIC

Dr Jack Leder, VIC

Krysia Lipshutz, VIC

Bella Meylikh, VIC

Cera Newhouse, VIC

Joe Nowoweiski, VIC

Roza, VIC

Louis Roller AM, VIC

Richard Rozen OAM, VIC

Sarah Saaroni OAM, VIC

Anonymous, VIC

Bella S, VIC

Eva Slonim, VIC

Viv Spiegel, VIC

Joe Szwarcberg, VIC

Eva T, VIC

Netty Tepe-Schoemaker, VIC

Edith U, VIC

Jack Unikoski, VIC

Rachel Unikoski, VIC

Dr Paul Valent, VIC

Fay W, VIC

Diana Zelig, VIC

Les Zimmerman, VIC

Rona Zinger, VIC

 

Rebecca Gabbay, WA

Anonymous, WA

Hetty Verolme, WA