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This Wednesday, Thomas and our volunteer Lena accepted the invitation from Beit Theresienstadt and Memos to attend the closing event of the project “From Prague to Prague – In Max Livni’s Footsteps in Czechia, Poland, and Germany.” During the two-week journey, the group, including participants from Israel and Germany, traced the path of Holocaust survivor Max Livni – from Theresienstadt, through Auschwitz, to Kaufering in Bavaria. 

We have published the newest quarterly newsletter, which brings up-to-date information about our activities, projects and events. In this issue, you will learn more about our educational programs, commemorative events, and new publications that contribute to preserving the memory of Holocaust victims and promoting historical awareness in society.

On 24-27 June 2024, the first of three workshops commemorating the Holocaust of the Roma and Sinti took place in Brno. The programme included a visit to the Holocaust Memorial of Roma and Sinti in Hodonín u Kunštátu and the only joint memorial of Jews and Roma located in Brno. The Museum of Romani Culture hosted the workshop. Future workshops will take place in Berlin and Warsaw. The goal of the program is to prepare teachers and museum professionals to work with this topic, and to further educate society. Dana Gabaľová is participating in the workshops on behalf of the Terezín Initiative Institute. She has been working with this topic for a long time, among other endeavors as a curator and co-author of the first version of the exhibition "Lety - The Story of a Forgotten Genocide".

The last two days of this June were dedicated to the project of rescuing and revitalizing the original textile factory of the Löw-Beer family in Brno, known from the story of Oskar Schindler and his wife Emilie, who saved more than 1300 Jews during the Holocaust. A museum and an educational programme centre will be built in the former factory.

On Thursday, 27 June 2024, we gathered at the Academia Literary Café for the launch of Tomáš Kraus' book, which bears witness to our recent past. The book is about life in socialist Czechoslovakia in the second half of the 20th century from the perspective of someone whose parents both survived the Holocaust. What was the cultural and social scene like then?

Many guests attended the launch, including Jiří Drahoš, First Deputy President of the Senate of the Czech Republic, and Tomáš Töpfer, actor, director, scriptwriter, former theatre director and senator.

The book is available in bookstores and online.

June 28^th marks 56 years since the Stonewall Riots. Since 1970, June has been celebrated as Pride Month, and serves to support and celebrate queer folks. It commemorates the riot, which took place in the US, and was a pivotal moment in LGBTQ+ rights movement. It’s a time for remembrance and celebration, and a reminder of the ongoing fight against discrimination and the need for continued progress toward full equality.

At Terezin Initiative Institute, our mission is to remember Holocaust victims, research contemporary documents to return victims their faces and stories, and to leverage the knowledge and understanding acquired to promote tolerance, equality, and help maintain a pluralistic society through education.