Video: For Yom Hashoah, watch this inspiring program honoring the Warsaw Ghetto fighters
The event featured a talk by Julia Mintz, whose directing has focused on narratives of resistance against unimaginable odds

Members of the audience lay flowers on the plaque commemorating the ghetto fighters and the six million Jews murdered by the Nazis Photo by the Congress for Jewish Culture
As people gather on May 5 and 6 to commemorate the 6 million Jews murdered by the Nazis, those who can’t attend a Yom Hashoah event in person can now view a moving program that took place two weeks ago, April 19, in New York City.
At this year’s event, the guest speaker was film writer, producer and director Julia Mintz, whose work focuses on narratives of bravery and resistance against unimaginable odds.
The program, organized and performed by the descendants of Holocaust survivors and sponsored by the Congress for Jewish Culture, was conducted in Riverside Park on the site of a plaque called Der Shteyn (The Stone), placed there by the New York City government as part of a plan to build a future memorial there for the Jews who fought the Nazis during the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising on April 19, 1943.
Although the monument project was never carried through, Holocaust survivors, their families and other Jews have been gathering there every year to share memoirs of the uprising, read poetry and sing moving songs written both during and after the Holocaust. At the end the entire audience rises for the singing of the Partisan Hymn, which was written by Hirsh Glik, a 19-year-old in Vilna, under the inspiration of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.
Hello, fellow Forward reader! I’m Joel Brown, a Forward reader and supporter for more than 15 years, and currently the chair of the board of directors.
I’m an avid Forward reader because it ticks so many of my essential boxes: excellent journalism, Jewish focus and diverse viewpoints. In today’s political climate, what I most appreciate is the Forward’s independence — made possible by the generosity of its membership.
The Forward is committed to bringing you unbiased, nuanced Jewish news. From my position as board chair, I see an exciting future as we expand our position as the definitive independent voice of contemporary American Judaism.
That’s why I’m paying it Forward, by matching $36,000 of reader gifts. It’s an investment in the Forward’s newsroom, to continue telling the American Jewish story with truth and independence.
— Joel Brown, Forward board chair
