Dear HERC Family,

In just a few days, communities like ours around the world will commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day and the 81st anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. On this day and every day, the Nathan and Esther Pelz Holocaust Education Resource Center leads our community and state in educating about this genocide and honoring the memory of the six million Jews murdered in the Holocaust and the millions of other victims of Nazi persecution. As we commemorate this day, it is essential that we teach the Holocaust with clarity and honesty.

Understanding the Jewish identity of the victims is not a detail—it is central to studying why the Holocaust happened and how antisemitism and hatred of all forms, when left unchecked, lead to violence. Learning about how Jews continued to express and reaffirm their identity during the Holocaust through music, art, ritual practices, and education is essential to humanizing and remembering these individuals as people instead of numbers. On that note, we hope that you will consider visiting the exhibition Violins of Hope: Strings of Jewish Resistance and Resilience on its last day this upcoming Sunday, and stay for a meaningful panel discussion by the curatorial team on music and Jewish resilience.

Remembering the Holocaust in 2026 also carries a responsibility for the present. Antisemitism did not end in 1945, especially since reported incidents both in Wisconsin and across the globe are at the highest levels experienced since the Holocaust. To learn the lessons of the Holocaust means to actively challenge hatred, stereotypes, and misinformation whenever they appear, to think critically about what we see, hear, or experience, and to educate ourselves on the root causes and complex societal factors that made the genocide possible.

On this International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we are grateful for the partnership of so many organizations, individuals, and leaders who help make this act of Holocaust remembrance a priority for our community and state.

Samantha Abramson

Executive Director

Wisconsin Legislature: AJR 130 Joint Resolution

Thank you to Representative Lisa Subeck (Assembly District 79) and Senator Jodi Habush Sinykin (Senate District 8) for introducing Assembly Joint Resolution 130 recognizing January 27, 2026 as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Both lawmakers are longtime advocates for Holocaust education in our state, including Wisconsin Act 30 in 2021. Thank you to Lisa, Jodi, and the bipartisan coalition of Wisconsin lawmakers who recognize Holocaust education as essential for our state.

Honoring the Silenced:

A Tribute to Jewish Musicians Lost in the Holocaust



SUNDAY, JANUARY 25

1PM

Jewish Museum Milwaukee

In solemn observance of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, the Nathan and Esther Pelz Holocaust Education Resource Center (HERC) and Jewish Museum Milwaukee invite you to attend a panel discussion for reflection and remembrance, held at the Jewish Museum Milwaukee.

We will pay special tribute to Jewish musicians who were silenced by the Nazi regime—artists whose voices, compositions, and cultural contributions were cut short, yet whose legacies endure. Through story, sound, and reflection, we will explore the lives of these artists, the void their absence left in the world, and the resilience of the human spirit. 

The event will include a special live musical performance from a Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra student, including music from Schindler's List and by Jewish Czech composer Pavel Haas. 

Curator Panelists:

Samantha Abramson

Executive Director, HERC

Molly Dubin

Chief Curator, JMM



Michael Morris

Community Engagement Manager, HERC 



The Violins of Hope exhibit is presented by Jewish Museum Milwaukee, curated in partnership with and educational consulting by the Nathan and Esther Pelz Holocaust Education Resource Center, and is part of the Violins of Hope – Wisconsin Residency hosted by the Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra.

Photo courtesy of Nate Vomhof

MILWAUKEE, Wisconsin– The Daniel M. Hoan Memorial Bridge and several Milwaukee buildings will be lit in yellow on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, in recognition of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, in partnership with Light The Hoan. Bridge lights will turn on 30 minutes before sunset (around 4:30 p.m.) and remain on until 2 a.m. Milwaukee will join other cities nationwide as part of the Light Up America Yellow coalition to illuminate local landmarks in commemoration of the day.

This year’s International Holocaust Remembrance Day marks the 81st anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi killing center and concentration camp, where 1.1 million people were brutally murdered during the Holocaust. The Holocaust was the systematic, state-sponsored persecution and murder of approximately 6 million Jews and millions of others by Nazi Germany and its collaborators during World War II. Adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2005, IHRD is intended to honor the victims of the Holocaust and raise awareness of the dangers of antisemitism and unchecked hate through education. We’re living in a period of rising antisemitism, especially here in the United States. According to the Milwaukee Jewish Federation’s Jewish Community Relations Council, there has been a 459% cumulative increase in reported antisemitic incidents reported in Wisconsin since 2015.

“The Holocaust is the world’s cautionary example of what can happen when antisemitism thrives in any society,” said Samantha Abramson, executive director of the Nathan and Esther Pelz Holocaust Education Resource Center (HERC). “As our state’s leading Holocaust educator, it is our job to ensure that we all remember how, when, and why the Holocaust happened, to amplify the voices of Holocaust survivors, and to provide resources for students and educators to learn this vital history.

The generosity of our community fuels our work and allows us to make a difference.