ROSENSTRASSE 80TH ANNIVERSARY COMMEMORATION
KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY AMY GUTMANN
"We gather here today to celebrate the women of the Rosenstrasse who, through their example of collective nonviolent action, won the release of 1,800 Jewish Berliners in 1943. Eighty years later, the actions of the women of the Rosenstrasse still light the way for those seeking justice and peace throughout the world." - Amy Gutmann
An Eightieth Commemoration of the Rosenstrasse Protest was held at the Marienkirche (Berlin-Mitte) on March 6, 2023. The keynote address was given by U.S. Ambassador Amy Gutmann, ringing with admiration for the success of the women who by protesting and refusing to divorce rescued their Jewish husbands. Speaking next was Charlotte Knobloch, former president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany. She was followed by the much acclaimed journalist, essayist, and novelist Eva Menasse. The program concluded with a dramatic reading, directed by Gregorij H. von Leïtis, founder of Elysium Between Two Continents, from the German translation of Resistance of the Heart by Nathan Stoltzfus.
Read the Full Keynote Address Here: https://rb.gy/hog3p
GARIWO HONORS ROSENSTRASSE
In 2020, on Europe’s “Day of the Righteous” of March 6, The Garden of the Righteous Worldwide (GARIWO), in concert with the city of Milan and the Union of Italian Jewish Communities, dedicated its annual commemoration to the women of the Rosenstrasse Protest. On Berlin’s Rosenstrasse in February and March of 1943, these noisy protesters rescued their husbands from Gestapo procedures to murder them. The Rosenstrasse Protest was one of a long succession of acts of defiance against the Nazi state and German society. The Nazi practice was to deport any Jewish marriage partner whose non-Jewish mate agreed to divorce. But for the entire duration of Hitler’s rule, the overwhelming majority of these non-Jews refused to separate themselves from their Jewish family members and the fate of the Jews. As a result, approximately 11,150 of the about 11,359 Germans the Nazis defined as “full Jews” who survived without being deported or going into hiding were married to non-Jews.
In the spring of 2020, The Garden of the Righteous Worldwide (GARIWO) dedicated the annual celebration of Europe’s “Day of the Righteous” to the women of the Rosenstrasse, in concert with the city of Milan and the Union of Italian Jewish Communities. On Rosenstrasse in February and March of 1943, these noisy protesters rescued their husbands from Gestapo procedures to murder them. The Nazi practice was to deport any Jewish marriage partner whose non-Jewish mate agreed to divorce.
The Rosenstrasse Protest was one of a long succession of acts of defiance against threats and seductions of the Nazi state and German society. For the entire duration of Hitler’s rule, the overwhelming majority of these non-Jews refused to separate themselves from their Jewish family members and the fate of the Jews. As a result, 11,150 of the 11,359 Germans the Nazis defined as “full Jews” who survived without being deported or going into hiding were married to non-Jews.
RESISTANCE OF THE HEART
On February 14th, 2021, Dr. Nathan Stoltzfus, Dr. Mordecai Paldiel, and Ruth Wiseman spoke at a special event, “Resistance of the Heart,” a special program on the Rosenstrasse Protest, hosted by the Sousa Mendes Foundation. Check out the recorded event here!