In memory and remembrance of the victims of the pogrom night
Mayor asks Chemnitz residents to take part in commemorative event - wreath-laying ceremony on 9 November, 11 a.m., at the stele on Stephanplatz
To commemorate and remember the Jewish citizens of Chemnitz who were victims of the fascist pogrom night on 9 November 1938 or who were murdered in the following years during the fascist tyranny, the City of Chemnitz will hold a memorial event on Sunday, 9 November 2014 at 11 am at the stele on Stephanplatz.
Mayor Barbara Ludwig is asking citizens to take part in the event as a committed sign of active remembrance and at the same time to set an example against terror and violence today.
The commemoration will open at 11 a.m. at the stele with a wreath-laying ceremony and a commemorative speech by Lord Mayor Barbara Ludwig. The choir of the Jewish Community of Chemnitz will accompany the commemorative event with music. After the choir sings "Es brennt...", Jakov Pertovsky, Rabbi of the Jewish Community of Chemnitz since October 2014, will recite Psalm 130. Dr Ruth Röcher, Chairwoman of the Jewish Community of Chemnitz, will then address words of remembrance to the participants of the event. The commemoration will end with the song "We live forever" performed by the choir and the Kaddish, the traditional prayer for the dead, by the rabbi.
Background: The famous Chemnitz Synagogue stood on Stephanplatz, the traditional location of the annual commemoration event organised by the City of Chemnitz together with the Chemnitz Jewish Community, until it was destroyed in the pogrom night of 1938. The new house of worship of the Jewish community of Chemnitz was consecrated on 24 May 2002 on the Kapellenberg at Stollberger Straße 28. In 2010, the Jewish community of Chemnitz celebrated its 125th anniversary. Before the persecution and murder by the National Socialists, around 3,500 people of Jewish faith lived in Chemnitz in 1933. There are currently 600 members of the Chemnitz Jewish community.
Please note: In order to be able to hold the memorial service at the stele on Stephanplatz in a dignified and quiet setting appropriate to the occasion, i.e. In order to be able to hold the memorial service at Stephanplatz in an overall dignified and peaceful setting, i.e. without traffic noise from the main roads directly adjacent to the memorial site, Reichsstraße will be fully closed to traffic on Sunday morning from 10.30 a.m. in the section between Zwickauer Straße and Weststraße. Road users are asked for their consideration and understanding. The commemorative event will end at around 11.45 a.m. - the road section will be operationally reopened after the event has finished.
Further events to commemorate and remember the pogrom night
The Evangelical Forum Chemnitz would like to draw attention to the following events in Chemnitz on 9 November 2014, which are also supported by the City of Chemnitz:
Sunday, 9 November, 9:30 am, Stadt- und Marktkirche St. Jakobi:
Thematic church service to commemorate the pogrom night.
The project is funded as part of the Local Action Plan for Democracy, Tolerance and a Cosmopolitan Chemnitz.
Sunday, 9 November, 12 noon, stele at Stephanplatz:
Stumbling stone tour to commemorate the pogrom night with historian Dr Jürgen Nitsche: 90-minute walk to five stumbling stones in Chemnitz city centre; participation is free of charge.
The project is funded as part of the Local Action Plan for Democracy, Tolerance and a Cosmopolitan Chemnitz.
Sunday, 9 November, 5 pm, St. Mark's Church:
Concert on the day of remembrance of the pogrom night: Zion speaks... "Israelis Brünnlein" (1623) by Johann Hermann Schein (1586-1630) - a collection of sacred madrigals for five voices and basso continuo based on texts from the Old Testament - admission 15 euros, concessions 8 euros.
The contact person for these three events is Dorothee Morgenstern, Evangelisches Forum, Theaterstraße 25, 09111 Chemnitz, call 371 40056-12.