Welcome
Minister of State for Europe Roth to present new publication in a series on the persecution and murder of European Jews from 1933 to 1945
On Thursday (22 June), Minister of State for Europe Michael Roth will present the 14th volume in the series documenting the persecution and murder of European Jews between 1933 and 1945.
Minister of State Roth said:
This book project is a moving contribution to coming to terms with the crimes committed against European Jews. Particularly invaluable are the authenticity and original voice of these documents, which have been painstakingly researched and prepared and many of which are published here for the first time. The publication brings together original texts from various perspectives and is another key building block in the critical exploration of the past and the commemoration of the victims, enabling us to foster reconciliation and assume responsibility for a better future.
Yugoslavia, Greece and Albania were occupied in 1941, and their territories were divided between the Germans and their allies, which, until 1943, primarily included Fascist Italy. After Mussolini’s fall from power, German units assumed control of all occupied areas. This new volume contains 350 original sources which document Germany’s expansion in the southern Balkans and the existential threat this posed to the Jewish communities there. Most Jews in Italy and Albania managed to hide until the end of the war. However, the Jewish population of Yugoslavia and Greece was almost entirely annihilated.
Minister of State Roth will welcome guests to the event. Wolfgang Schieder of Cologne University will make introductory remarks. Thereafter actress Anette Daugardt will read from the source materials. The reading will be followed by a discussion between the editors of the volume – Sara Berger, Erwin Lewin, Sanela Schmid and Maria Vassilikou – and the project coordinator Susanne Heim. The discussion will be chaired by Stefan Reinecke of the taz newspaper.
The event is being organised by the Institute of Contemporary History Munich-Berlin (IfZ) and the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg in collaboration with the Federal Foreign Office and the De Gruyter publishing house.