Monday, 3 March 2025, 7:00 p.m. EST
Center for Jewish History, 15 W 16th Street, New York, NY 10011
Here Lived through tracing the story of the Stolpersteine (stumbling stones), focuses on the families impacted by the Nazis during the Holocaust and the generational trauma that atrocity precipitates. The Stolpersteine, crafted by conceptual artist Gunter Demnig are concrete blocks topped with polished brass plates that are hand stamped with the names and fates of victims of the Holocaust. These handmade stones are laid into the pavement in front of the last voluntarily chosen residence of those murdered by the Nazis. On 23 May 2023, Gunter Demnig layed the 100,000th Stolperstein. Today, Stolpersteine have been placed in 30 countries across Europe.
Documenting this extraordinary tale of resilience, remembrance, Here Lived is a timely and moving testament to the enduring power of human compassion and solidarity. Dr. Gavriel Rosenfeld, President of the Center for Jewish History and Her Excellency Ms. Lise Gregoire-van Haaren, Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the United Nations will deliver remarks. The screening of the documentary will be followed by a discussion with producer and director Jane Wells, historian, General Director of The Jewish Cultural Quarter and Professor of Jewish Book History at the University of Amsterdam, Emile Schrijver and producer Ulrika Citron, moderated by Tracey Petersen, Manager of the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme.
The screening of Here Lived: The Stolpersteine Story is organized by the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme, together with the Center for Jewish History, as part of the film series Holocaust History on Film: Anne Frank and Beyond in connection with .
Speakers
Her Excellency Ms. Lise Gregoire-van Haaren is the Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the United Nations in New York. Prior to this, from August 2019 to August 2024, she served as Director responsible for European Union affairs at the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as Deputy Director-General for European Cooperation. From 2016 to 2019 she was the first woman Ambassador - Deputy Permanent Representative - of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the United Nations in New York and one of two Ambassadors representing the Kingdom in the UN Security Council (2018). Before joining the Permanent Mission in New York, Mrs. Gregoire-van Haaren was Head of the Political Affairs Department in the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague, a post she held since 2013. From 2009 to 2013, she was Counsellor (Acting) at the Permanent Representation of the Netherlands to the European Union in Brussels.
Ulrika Citron, Producer of the film, is the grandchild of Dutch Holocaust victims and the daughter of a hidden child. She was born and raised in Sweden, but has lived and worked in the United States for the last 30 years. In the film, Ulrika journeys to the Netherlands to honour her family and reclaim her Jewish identity.
Emile Schrijver is the General Director of The Jewish Cultural Quarter and Professor of Jewish Book History at the University of Amsterdam. A world-renowned expert on Jewish history, Professor Schrijver will reflect on the horrors faced by Jewish people during the Nazi occupation, and his role in the initiative to place 733 stones in his hometown of Haarlem.
Jane Wells, an Emmy-Award nominated filmmaker and activist, is the director and producer of HERE LIVED. Ms. Wells is the daughter of Sidney Bernstein, who was responsible for documenting the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps for the Allies in the Second World War. Her father¡¯s history led her to build her own legacy as a filmmaker focused on telling the stories of survivors of crimes against humanity. Over more than 15 years, Wells has produced 50 short films and documentaries. These have been featured in international film festivals, including Sundance, SXSW, Thessaloniki International Film Festival, and Human Rights Watch Film Festival. The films have been recognized by distinguished media outlets including the New York Times, The Huffington Post, CNN, and the BBC.