MILAN – Shoah Memorial, over 300,000 student visits

When the Shoah Memorial in Milan opened, on January 27, 2012, “one of the goals was to get 100,000 students’ visits,” recalls the President of the Shoah Memorial Foundation Roberto Jarach. Eleven years later, he can “proudly say “that those visits have been over 300,000.” Moreover, he adds, “a sold relationship with schools has developed through the years. Teachers, principals and historian have come to recognize the Memorial’s educational value and insert it steadily in their learning paths. This school year, for the third time, we expect to exceed 62,000 students’ visits.”
The Shoah Memorial is set in the underground area of Milan’s Central Railway Station. From here, during the Nazi-fascist persecutions, hundreds of Jews were deported to Auschwitz. With them was Holocaust survivor and Life Senator Liliana Segre, along with her father Alberto. She was among the few to survive that horror, and she is one of the reasons why the Memorial exists. “It is excellent news that many students visit it,” she commented. “This way, the inscription ‘Indifference’ that I strongly wanted at the entry is scratched away a little every day, although I do not believe is going to be canceled if ignorance, hatred, and prejudice remain strong.” Segre said that visiting, locations in our cities “which are physical testimonies of Nazi-fascist and antisemitic hatred is a foundational step: we must proceed on this path, headed to the roots of hatred’s language and thoughts.”
Segre highlighted the importance to widen the participation beyond students. “There is still much to do to appeal to individual visits. Unfortunately, we have seen of decrease in this sector, maybe due to the geopolitical context. We are committed to find new ideas and strengthen the general public’s involvement.”

d.r.