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Today we
commemorate the memory of the six million Jews who were exterminated by
the Nazis, among them 67.000
Greek Jews who were persecuted and deported from their homeland to the
death camps solely because of their religion. History teaches us that
this crime was not a momentary aberration, but the result of systematic
hate rhetoric, state-sponsored propaganda, and society’s tolerance of
inhumanity.
Yet today we
see that antisemitism is once again present, manifesting itself in new forms and under
different guises. It is no longer “latent”; it no longer lurks beneath
the surface or teeters at the margins. Goebbels-style propaganda has been
replaced by revisionism, disinformation, and the demonization of Jews as
a social and national collective. This propaganda spreads uncontrollably,
primarily through social media, and often under the auspices of states
and international factors. This is not alarmism; it is—regrettably—a
reality. Silence and indifference are a disastrous strategy.
Education has a
duty to safeguard historical memory and to pass on knowledge. For this reason, we welcome the
new step toward the creation of the Holocaust Museum of Greece in
Thessaloniki, marked by the signing of the contract for the commencement
of its construction, as well as the progress made toward the
redevelopment of Eleftherias Square into a Memorial Park of Thessaloniki.
These are national projects which, once completed, will serve the
universal and multi-layered essence of the concept of MEMORY.
Memory is not
only an act of tribute; it is a promise of responsibility and
vigilance, so that
humanity will never again experience another Holocaust. For, as Primo
Levi said, “The Holocaust happened; therefore, it can happen again.”
Athens, January 27, 2026
Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece
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