70 Years Since Warsaw Uprising

By COLlive reporter

It was the largest single revolt by Jews during World War II.

The 70th anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising, a major operation by the Polish resistance Home Army to liberate the city from Nazi Germany, will be marked at the 2013 National Jewish Retreat.

Planned for August 6 – August 11 at The Hilton in Alexandria, VA, the retreat will “honor the memory of the young Jewish heroes who chose to live and die with honor and pride against all odds,” organizers said.

Calling it the story of defiance that must never be forgotten, organizers from the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute said they will relive the events of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising through the eyes of a survivor.

Holocaust survivor Estelle Laughlin who hid with her family in an underground bunker during the the Warsaw ghetto uprising but were eventually captured and deported.

She will tell how German forces intended to liquidate the ghetto on April 19, 1943, but were stunned when faced with an armed uprising from Jewish fighters.

The symposium, moderated by Dr. Michael Ackerman and Rabbi Levi Klein, will also examine the fascinating historical, philosophical, Halachic and social perspective of the resistance which fought for 63 days with little outside support.

Speakers will be:

Dr. Miriam Isaacs who has been the Visiting Associate Professor of Yiddish at the University of Maryland, College Park since 1995 and has been teaching on Holocaust and post-Holocaust literature.

Dr. Ann Millin, historian and special assistant to the director of the leadership programs in the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s National Institute for Holocaust Education in Washington, D.C.,

Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, a talented teacher, writer and orator, and Executive Vice President, Emeritus of the Orthodox Union (OU).

VIDEO: Promo

For more info, visit jretreat.com or call 877.JRETREAT