Poland in South Africa

During the webinar, there was a discussion on the memory of Jews who lived in Poland before and during World War 2, as well as on Dariusz Popiela and his commitment to keeping the memory of Jews in Poland alive and how the forgotten Jewish cemetery has been restored. The event was aimed not only at educating about the past, about tragic events in the common Polish-Jewish history, but also fighting negative stereotypes about Poland and Poles. The "Centrum" Foundation Rodziny Popiela” was established in 2018 on the initiative of Dariusz Popiela, Olympian, medallist of the World and European Championships, and a long-term representative of Poland in slalom kayaking. The main goal of the Foundation is to implement of the project "People, not numbers" - a personal commemoration of the victims of the Holocaust and the promotion of knowledge and restoration of the memory of national, ethnic and religious minorities living in the territory of Poland in historical and contemporary terms. The Foundation is trying to find the places of tragic events. It obtains archival information and eyewitness accounts, trying to find traces of mass graves in the field, which have so far remained anonymous. The Foundation collaborates with the Foundation “Forgotten” (Zapomniane) to worthily commemorate mass graves. It popularizes knowledge about local residents, publishes their CVs on social media, reaches out to the media, and organizes meetings at schools. An important element of the Foundation's project is the installation of educational boards.

 

Photo: JH&GC