Kristallnacht — a Holocaust remembrance

The Holocaust Memorial Committee of Long Island held its annual remembrance of the infamous, Kristallnacht — the night of the broken glass — when Nazism inaugurated its sadistic, pernicious drive to wipe out the Jewish people in Germany and beyond in late 1938.

On that night, 35,000 Jews were rounded up and sent to concentration camps; more than 6,600 synagogues were ransacked and burned; 7,500 Jewish business were destroyed and almost 8 years later the death toll read 6 million Jews murdered; another 5 million people put to death.

Vincent Marmorale, the master of ceremonies for the event at Long

Beach City Hall noted, “Memory is so

important.”

Holocaust survivor Nathan Offen, who lost 50 members of his 
immediate family, also spoke during the ceremony. Offen’s message of courage, endurance and fortitude was delivered to over 100 people, as he described his experiences at 
the Mauthausen death camp.

One of the highlights of the commemoration was a speech by eighth-grader Shoshana Gross, of the Hebrew Academy who is involved in discussing the history of the Holocaust with younger students. Other featured guests during the ceremony included Assemblyman 
Harvey Weisenberg, and Nassau County Legislator Denise Ford. Mona Goodman, vice president of the Long Beach City Council, spoke about how atrocities around the world are often ignored.

Goodman added that in the 21st century, “fanaticism is on the loose, like it was in the 1930s.” — Compiled by Anthony Rifilato