On 24.10.2024, the Yiannopoulos Schools organized an event for the presentation of the 2nd volume of the project "AUSHWITZ: The Symbol of the Root of Evil - The Extermination of the Greek Jews", which is the fruit of a comprehensive and penetrating educational program on the Holocaust in which students of his Lyceum participated, under the supervision of their teachers and the Principal of the Lyceum, Mr. Thomas Malamis. (See here more about the book. Volume A here - Volume B here). KISE and the Jewish Museum of Greece collaborated with the school by providing material.
The publication of the book was preceded by a series of many months of educational activities, such as visits to Haidari and Distomo, but also to Nuremberg, culminating in the visit to Auschwitz (video here). Along with schoolwork and the processing of a wealth of historical material, the experiential experience of the visits gave a deeper meaning to the approach to history and the universal messages arising from the Holocaust.
A detailed presentation of the two books that were dedicated to the Holocaust and the Jews of Greece was made by the Principal of the Lyceum, Mr. Thomas Malamis, who referred to the students' work, the contents of the two volumes and the importance of educational activities for nurturing new generation.
The event was framed by an exhibition of the Polish Embassy on Auschwitz, an exhibition by the distinguished photographer René Revach entitled "TEHOM" (Abyss), an exhibition of works by students of the Lauder School of the Israelite Community of Athens, an exhibition of works by students and teachers of the Yiannopoulos schools, experiential workshops for kindergarten and primary school students, recitations of poems and texts by Auschwitz inmates as well as student theatrical performances.
Before the start of the event, groups of students guided the guests to the exhibitions.
The event was attended and addressed by: the Deputy Minister of Immigration and Asylum, Ms. Sofia Voultepsi, the Mayor of Glyfada, Mr. Giorgos Papanikolaou, the Secretary General of Vulnerable Citizens, Mr. Iraklis Moskof, the former Minister, Mr. Thanasis Theocharopoulos, the Secretary General of the Central Jewish Council Greece, Mr. Victor Eliezer, the Director of the Lauder School of the Israelite Community of Athens, Mr. G. Kanellos et al. Also, a message from the Ecumenical Patriarch, Mr. Bartholomew which is also published in the book on the Holocaust.
As the Deputy Minister of Immigration Mrs. Vultepsi pointed out: "today, the danger of forgetting and the leveling of historical memory coexists with the reappearance of the protophasium, which wears a different, innocent face, a smiling mask under which hides the most despicable form of intolerance".
Mrs. Wultepsi referring to the visit of the older students to Auschwitz, "the biggest of the hells of Nazi Germany" pointed out that "these children will never succumb to the so-called 'charm of violence.' They will pass on to the next generation the ideals of democracy and freedom. They came in contact with the real face of Nazism. This process will help them detect the other hidden, beautified faces of proto-fascism, which comes back again and again with a different narrative every time."
For his part, the Mayor of Glyfada expressed his emotion about how the students approached the topic, how they assimilated it and how they conveyed the message of peace.
G.G. of KISE B. Eliezer in his speech emphasized, among other things: "So a visit to Auschwitz is made mainly to teach that a society can easily be led down the path of "absolute evil", where people turn into numbers, indelibly engraved in the arm, when we ourselves do not shield the values of democracy and humanity. Because "ultimate evil" did not start at Auschwitz. It started with hate speech and ended in Auschwitz." That is why educational initiatives, such as that of the Yiannopoulos Schools, and works, such as those of his students published in the book and presented here today, are projects of responsibility and rekindle our hope for the future".
