The team of the 'NEVER AGAIN' Association has been working tirelessly on global and local challenges of xenophobia, discrimination, hatred and extremism. In the last days, members of the Warsaw-based anti-racist organization have actively taken part in several important initiatives on international, national, and grass-roots levels.
On 1-3
November, Adam Kuczynski represented 'NEVER AGAIN' at the
international seminar 'United for Equality' organized in Paris by
Maisons des Potes, focusing on the rise of the far right across
Europe.
On 1-4 November, Natalia Sineaeva-Pankowska (a 'NEVER AGAIN' member and a Rotary Peace Fellow) participated in the 'Lessons and Legacies of the Holocaust' conference held at Washington University in St. Louis (USA) as a panelist on the topic of 'Forgetting the Holocaust in the global era of remembrance'. The biannual international conference is the premier intellectual gathering in Holocaust studies.
On 6 November,
a public meeting about cooperation and solidarity with Polish
anti-racists was held at Leith Community Education Centre in
Edinburgh (organized by the Stand Up To Racism Scotland coalition)
and the 'NEVER AGAIN' Association was represented by Witold
Liliental.
On 10
November, an inclusive celebration of the centenary of Polish
independence takes place in Hamilton (Canada), reaching out to
Jewish, Muslim and other communities. The event, organized by members
of the Polish-Canadian community and supported by the 'NEVER AGAIN'
Association, is among a number of activities in the run-up to
Poland's Independence Day (11 November). In the last years, the
national holiday was dominated by a large far-right march organized
in the streets of Warsaw by extremist groups. Another such march is
expected to take place on 11 November 2018, with the participation of
islamophobic, antisemitic and neo-fascist groups from all over
Europe.
Throughout
November, 'NEVER AGAIN' organizes and supports initiatives promoting
an inclusive approach to Polish identity, challenging the growth of
ethno-nationalism through a social media campaign using a 'Poland for
All' hashtag, a literary competition for young people and grass-roots
activities including a series of rock concerts under the headline
'Music Against Racism', some of them linked with the commemoration of
the anniversary of the Kristallnacht pogrom (9 November 1938).
For example, on 2 and 3 November, the well-known Polish band Dezerter
played concerts with the 'Music Against Racism' theme in Malbork and
Ostróda. On 3 November, a special 'Music Against Racism' show took
place in Warsaw, featuring bands such as Human Rights, Uliczny
Opryszek and RHL Ensemble, a new band formed by the legendary bard
Janusz Reichel. 'NEVER AGAIN' activist Izabela Glowacka prepared and
coordinated the promotion of anti-racist messages at the event.
On
9 November, Polish and Belorussian rock bands play under the 'Music
Against Racism' banner at a festival co-organized in cooperation with
'NEVER AGAIN' by the local Museum and Belarussian Cultural Centre in Hajnowka.
On
the same day, 'NEVER AGAIN' supports a conference entitled 'Stop hate
speech' taking place in Zagorow with the participation of Bartlomiej
Grzanka, director of the Kulmhof Death Camp Museum in Chelmno, and
law enforcement representatives. A series of presentations and
workshops takes place in local schools using materials provided by
the 'NEVER AGAIN' Association.
On 12
November, the Warsaw Jewish Film Festival starts in Warsaw, also with
the support of the 'NEVER AGAIN' Association. This year's edition of
the festival has a special significance in the context of an
unprecedented wave of antisemitic
statements in Polish media and politics which swept the country
earlier this year.
The ‘NEVER
AGAIN’ Association was founded in 1996 by Marcin Kornak (who passed
away in 2014). ‘NEVER AGAIN’ has campaigned against racism and
xenophobia, for peace, intercultural dialogue and human rights both
in Poland and internationally.
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