Holocaust survivors and descendants commemorate Kristallnacht
'I remember my heart sinking and body trembling': survivor Manfred Goldberg gives eyewitness account of 1938 pogrom
The Association of Jewish Refugees (AJR) has held its annual Kristallnacht service to mark the anniversary of the 1938 pogrom.
The terrifying events across Nazi-occupied Germany and Europe 9 and 10 November 1938 proved to be a pivotal turning point in Nazi persecution of the Jews – from economic, political, and social exclusion to physical violence, including beatings, incarceration, and murder.
The gathering of 150 guests at Belsize Square Synagogue on Thursday 7 November heard the powerful testimony of Manfred Goldberg, a survivor of several Nazi concentration camps and an eyewitness to the November pogrom. The service was officiated by Rabbi Gabriel Botnik and Cantor Dr Paul Heller.
Manfred Goldberg recalled: “It was a nationwide orgy of smashing, breaking and burning of property belonging to Jews… Most of the shops still in Jewish ownership had a brown-shirted SA man posted outside to stop non-Jewish Germans buying from Jewish shops.
“During Kristallnacht every shop that was known as Jewish was attacked, ransacked, looted, and many of them were set on fire. I remember my heart-sinking and body trembling, witnessing my local synagogue up in smoke – it was just a heap of rubble.”
During the proceedings, six AJR Holocaust survivors, refugees and descendants lit memorials in a candle lighting ceremony and memorial prayer. Also speaking were sisters Hilary Hodsman and Gillian Field, who shared the story of their parents, Ingrid and Henry Wuga, who experienced Nazi oppression and rebuilt their lives in Great Britain.
Guests of honour included the UK envoy for Holocaust and Post Holocaust Issues, Lord Pickles and representatives from the German, Austrian, Lithuanian Embassies in London.
AJR chief executive Michael Newman said: “The terrifying testimony we’ve heard today, underscores in the rawest sense, how society and humanity can crumble. It is vital, on the anniversary of the November pogroms, that we collectively remember all those whose lives were changed forever during that fateful night and to educate people about where antisemitism unchallenged can lead.”
To find out more about AJR, click here
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
