Back Марш на живите Bulgarian Pochod živých Czech Marsch der Lebenden German Marche des Vivants French מצעד החיים HE Az Élet Menete Hungarian Marsz Żywych Polish Марш живых Russian Марш живих Ukrainian
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| Native name | Marsz Żywych (Polish), מצעד החיים (Hebrew) |
|---|---|
| Date | March or April annually |
| Location | Auschwitz-Birkenau, Poland |
| Type | March |
| Theme | The Holocaust |
| Cause | Holocaust remembrance and education |
| Participants | Students, Holocaust survivors, dignitaries |
| Website | https://motl.org |
The March of the Living (Hebrew: מצעד החיים, Mits'ad HaKhayim; Polish: Marsz Żywych) is an annual educational program which brings students from around the world to Poland, where they explore the remnants of the Holocaust. On Holocaust Memorial Day observed in the Jewish calendar (Yom HaShoah), thousands of participants march silently from Auschwitz to Birkenau.
The March of the Living was founded in 1988, under the leadership of Israeli Likud politician Abraham Hirchson, Shmuel Rosenman, and Israeli attorney Baruch Adler, a child of a Holocaust survivor who was hidden by one of the Righteous Among the Nations.[1][2][3] Adler travelled to Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1986 to set the groundwork for the first March of the Living, and also to search for his mother’s rescuer (but could not make contact until the fall of Communism, after 1989).[4]
Speaking about the founding of the March of the Living, Adler paid to tribute to values he learned from his mother and her rescuer. “We believe that our children and grandchildren will continue carrying the torch of identification with the values of loyalty, courage, perseverance and faith in life, and hope that goodness will prevail. This message is well understood, perhaps more than anyone else, by the organizers and participants of the March of the Living."[4]
Since its inception, almost 300,000 participants – including world leaders, educators, Holocaust survivors and students – have taken part in the program.[5][6]
- ^ Rubenstein, Eli (2015). Witness: Passing the Torch of Holocaust Memory to New Generations. Liberation 75 Edition. Canada: Second Story Press. pp. 2–4. ISBN 978-1-77260-150-3.
- ^ "Holocaust Remembrance Day: Vanguards of the March of the Living". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 1 May 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ "Never again... and again... and again". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 30 April 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ a b "A survivor's story". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 27 April 2016. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
- ^ "The importance of the March of the Living – analysis". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2 September 2021. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ "The International March of the Living's 35th anniversary – interview". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 8 April 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2024.