Shmuel Rosenman

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Shmuel Rosenman ד"ר שמואל רוזנמן is an Israeli educator, a co-founder and chairman of the International March of the Living, a past lecturer at Bar Ilan University's Interdisciplinary Department of Social Sciences, and a former CEO of Kupat Holim Leumit. He lectures at Shaarei Mishpat Umada College in Hod Hasharon.[1]

Early life and education[edit]

Rosenman, the son of European immigrants, was born in Israel, and was raised in Moshav Hemed, a religious moshav in central Israel, founded in 1950 by IDF veterans, who were mostly Holocaust survivors from Czechoslovakia, Poland and Romania. The people who came to the Moshav all spoke different languages, but were connected by their post-war experiences.[2] His mother came to pre-Israel Palestine in 1933 from Poland and his father from Romania in the middle of World War II, after most of his family was murdered in the Shoah.[3][4]

During his time at university, Rosenman focused his studies on education and geography and received his BA in the same two subjects. From 1972 to1977, he spent time as an emissary for the Jewish Agency in Altoona, Pennsylvania.[5] He received a PhD from Pennsylvania State University in Educational Administration in 1977. However, it wasn't until the 1980's, while working for the Tel Aviv Education Department that he watched the nine-hour documentary "Shoah" by director Claude Lanzmann, that his life took a significant turn. In one interview, he admits overhearing a conversation between students, that there was only one chapter on the Holocaust, and that it was being taught as just another chapter of history. When he noted the number of survivors decreasing, soon no one would be left to tell the story.[3] It is noted that Rosenman decided a serious discussion about the Holocaust should be introduced into the education system, and since then he has devoted his life to education and the memory of the Holocaust.[6][2]

March of the Living[edit]

Shmuel Rosenman (third from left) leading the March of the Living out of the gates of Auschwitz in 2012. Photo: Yossi Zeliger

Israeli Likud politician Avraham Hirschson, attorney Baruch Adler, and Rosenman searched for a significant event representing their plan, to introduce young Jews to an emotional and educational experience of the Holocaust. After exploring different possibilities, they concluded that organizing a march from Auschwitz to Birkenau would be the perfect choice. Writer and journalist Meir Uziel proposed the name "March of the Living" to contrast the death marches that were typical at the end of World War II.[2]

Shmuel Rosenman speaking at the March of the Living at the gates of Auschwitz in 2012. Photo: Yossi Zeliger

The March of the Living was founded in 1988, under the leadership of Hirchson, Rosenman, and Adler.[7][8][9] The first March consisted of 1,500 Jewish youth, 50 percent Israelis, and 50% from abroad. Since that time, the March has attracted a more diverse population including large numbers of non-Jewish youth from Poland and Austria.[7][10] Since its inception, almost 300,000 participants – including world leaders, educators, Holocaust survivors and students – have taken part in the program.[11][10][2]

Rosenman has been notably outspoken in his criticism of hate speech and anti-Semitic behaviour. In May 2023, in an article marking 90 years since the Nazi regime began their campaign to burn books in Germany, Rosenman wrote “Online platforms are the new bonfires," when writing about a rise in antisemitism and hate speech. He deemed it “essential that we remain vigilant in our fight against hate speech and discrimination, and work to promote a culture of inclusivity and diversity.”[12] In response to the shooting of two people outside a synagogue on Yom Kippur in Germany in 2019, Rosenman commented “The whole of Europe [needs] to wake up and acknowledge that it is not doing enough to eradicate antisemitism.”[13]

Shmuel Rosenman speaking in Birkenau with Holocaust survivors on stage in 2022. Photo: Yossi Zeliger

In 2019, Rosenman, along with March of the Living President, Phyllis Greenberg Heideman, was listed as one the 50 most influential Jews of the year.[14] That same year Israel's news publication, Maariv published a piece featuring Baruch Adler and Rosenman's involvement in the March over the previous 31 years.[2] It stated the two have marched at the head of the delegation every year since its inception in 1988.

In response to the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, in which some 1200 Israeli citizens and residents were murdered, Rosenman commented on the parallels to the events in the Holocaust, noting that  “ [we were] horrified by the abhorrent stories from Israel, [and] we were reminded that the hatred of the Jews has no expiration date. It changes its form. But its motivation is the same – the annihilation of the Jewish people”.[15][16]

Speaking about this year's upcoming 2024 March of the Living, Rosenman stated "special attention will be paid to fighting antisemitism, with emphasis on the atrocities of October 7. Now we see the [parallel] between the Holocaust and what happened in October.”[17]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "ד"ר שמואל רוזנמן". המרכז האקדמי שערי מדע ומשפט (in Hebrew). 2020-08-09. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  2. ^ a b c d e "מהילדות במושב עד הסוד של אמא באורוגוואי: הסיפור מאחורי "מצעד החיים"". www.maariv.co.il (in Hebrew). 2019-05-03. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
  3. ^ a b "Never again... and again... and again". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2008-04-30. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  4. ^ "Vanguards of the March of the Living". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2019-05-01. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
  5. ^ "Shmuel Rosenman : Positions, Relations and Network - MarketScreener". in.marketscreener.com. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  6. ^ "Holocaust Remembrance Day: Vanguards of the March of the Living". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2019-05-01. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  7. ^ a b Eli, Rubenstein (2015). Witness: Passing the Torch of Holocaust Memory to New Generations. Vol. Liberation 75 Edition. Canada: Second Story Press. pp. 2–4. ISBN 9781772601503.
  8. ^ "Never again... and again... and again". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 30 April 2008. Retrieved 2020-02-06.
  9. ^ "Holocaust Remembrance Day: Vanguards of the March of the Living". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. May 2019. Retrieved 2020-02-06.
  10. ^ a b "The International March of the Living's 35th anniversary - interview". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2023-04-08. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  11. ^ "The importance of the March of the Living - analysis". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2021-09-02. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  12. ^ "Nazi book burnings have taught us to fight against attempts to silence minorities 90 years later". Yahoo News. 2023-05-16. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  13. ^ "World reacts to German attack: Like darkest periods of Jewish history". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2019-10-10. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  14. ^ "50 Influencers 2019". www.jpost.com. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  15. ^ "President Herzog hosts March of the Living Representatives and Kindertransport survivors - International March of the Living". 2024-01-25. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  16. ^ Zikim, Kibbutz (2024-01-25). "Holocaust survivor and 7/10 evacuee: I won't be a refugee in my own country". www.israelnationalnews.com. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
  17. ^ "President's Residence marks 85th anniversary of Kindertransport". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2024-01-24. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
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