The USC Shoah Foundation, USC Casden Institute, and USC Hillel held a panel discussion in honor of International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Join us on April 15 at the Institute of Armenian Studies for an academic lecture on the Armenian Genocide and its related USC holdings by Institute Project Manager Manuk Avedikyan.

On April 21, the Pasadena Armenian Coalition will host a community-wide event at the Pasadena Armenian Genocide Memorial Monument to commemorate the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. The event will pay tribute to the enduring strength and resiliency of the survivors of the 1915 Armenian Genocide, while honoring the memory of the more than 1.5 Million victims who lost their lives 109 years ago. The event will feature survivor testimonies from the Visual History Archive, followed by the keynote speaker, Sedda Antekelian, USC Shoah Foundation Senior Learning and Development Specialist, as well as remarks from Congresswoman Judy Chu. Students from local Armenian schools will recite poems and songs to conclude the event.

Samuel Clowes Huneke, author of the award-winning States of Liberation: Gay Men between Dictatorship and Democracy in Cold War Germany, uncovers stories about queer women during the Third Reich—their treatment in society and opportunities to resist.

In Nazi Germany, the medical field was part of the larger effort to dehumanize anyone who did not conform to the idea of a “healthy German nation.” Dr. Sabine Hildebrandt, who teaches the history of anatomy at Harvard Medical School, scrutinizes the biographies of medical professionals during the Nazi era and restores the histories of victims subjected to coercive medical experimentation both before and after death. Dr. Hildebrandt also considers the legacies of this history for the present, including how to ethically approach work with human remains in historical collections at universities, museums, and historical institutions.

Dr. Justyna Matkowska, postdoctoral researcher at the Adam Mickiewicz University of Poland and adjunct faculty at SUNY, will uncover the stories and struggles of the Roma and Sinti people during World War II, bringing new perspectives to this lesser-known aspect of Holocaust history and informing modern approaches to remembrance

Dr. Milovan Pisarri, research fellow at Belgrade University, lectures on the mechanisms that led to the Roma Genocide in southeastern Europe, the history of anti-Roma racism, and the reasons behind the general lack of interest in the topic.

Dr. Anna Hájková, pioneer of queer Holocaust history, will discuss why including queer narratives is crucial to developing a deeper understanding of Nazi persecution and societal resistance.

Warren Rosenblum, Professor of History at Webster University, St. Louis, will discuss his research on the history of disability during both the Weimar Republic and Third Reich. He will further explore how Nazi conspiratorial theories about antisemitism and persons with disabilities are linked through fear of the “other."

In 1994, the USC Shoah Foundation launched an unprecedented effort to record, preserve, and share the testimonies of Holocaust survivors. Over the past 30 years, we have built a world-class institute anchored in their voices. Today, as Holocaust memory fades and we confront new forces of hatred and antisemitism, the promise we made to survivors 30 years ago demands renewed action. We continue to bear witness for generations to come and hope you will join us with shared purpose and urgency for our Ambassadors for Humanity Gala this fall.

Although antipathy toward Jews and Judaism became a hallmark of medieval Christianity, pinpointing the ancient origins of Christian Anti-Judaism poses challenges. Rabbi Joshua Garroway, PhD, examines the writings of Paul, Justin, Augustine, and other early Christian thinkers to trace the origins of Christian Anti-Judaism.

This event will bring together leading perspectives from researchers, academics and historical archival institutions to explore the pressing challenges and emerging opportunities for building, preserving, and providing access to archives.

The standard narrative of Jews as moneylenders in medieval Europe gained prominence in the 19th and 20th centuries and persists today. How did this myth emerge as a response to modern political antisemitism? Join us on December 5 as Professor Julie Mell, author of The Myth of the Medieval Jewish Moneylender, challenges this narrative. She will explore its origins, revealing that it was not a reflection of social reality in medieval Europe but rather an outgrowth of Christian crusading and economic theology.

Campuses and communities alike have been roiled by intensified antisemitism in the wake of the Hamas assault. The worsening environment shows little evidence of disappearing. What are its roots and what can we do to combat it?

For the inaugural event in the Stanley D. Ginsburg USC Shoah Foundation Lecture Series, Mélanie Péron will explore the work of Hélène Berr, a volunteer at the Union Générale des Israélites de France (UGIF) who sheltered four Jewish children during the occupation of France.

Join us for a talk examining the strategies of concealment described in the USC Shoah Foundation testimonies of Jewish refugees who made the journey to Japan to escape Nazi persecution in the early 1940s.

Join us online for a timely two-part program that brings together leading experts to examine the complex intersection of technologies, digital platforms, and antisemitism.

Join Dr. Sarah Bunin Benor as she discusses the historical events that have led to major changes in the linguistic profile of Jewish communities around the world.