UN 2019 HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE
---------------------------
John Pazmino
NYSkies Astronomy Inc
www.nyskies.org
nyskies@nyskies.org
2019 March 16
Introduction
----------
The United nations for more than a year is opening some of its
meetings and conferences to the public. Then to fore UN activities
were off-limits from public view except by dedicated invite. Readers
recall that for several years I, with some selection of 'civic
figures' received specific invites to certain UN events.
Even tho the UN is more open to public attendance, the events are
hardly grandstanded in the usual news for things-to-do in New York. I
now get these public notices from prior participation or by pass-
alongs. The new features is that they say 'open to the public',
'public is invited', or similar.
I got such a notice in late December 2018 for 'Holocaust
Remembrance' memorial show at the UN. It was a four-day event on
January 28-31, 2019. Because it was open to the public I entered into
the January 2019 NYC Events, the compilation of astronomy and cultural
events for the NYSkies territory.
Holocaust Remembrance
-------------------
Since the 1960s the United Nations observed the World War II
program to annihilate Jewish, and other undesireable, people thruout
the land occupied by the Nazi reich. Some five to seven million Jews
were removed from existence in a network of death camps, largely out
of view from outsiders. The full extent of the effort was revealed
after the reich was demolished and Allied armies sweeped into the
camps, rescued surviving prisoners, and documented the extermination
facilities and methods.
UN remembrance of the Holocaust was an internal event with
specific invites to persons and groups related to the Holocaust. For
the most part these were Jewish benevolent and support orgs.
This year the invite was more open, still of constricted
publicity, by which I learned about it.
Current recognition
-----------------
I took particular note of the invite because in the United States,
apart from those closely affected, the Holocaust is severely
under appreciated. Some media and education circles downplay the Nazi
project, claim thr number of victims is exaggerated, day that
warfighting civilian deaths are included.
The word 'Holocaust at' times bantered as an other term for a
political or social action that discomforts all or some of the
public. This is suggested even for minor discomforts or
inconveniences, was specificly aimed at the affected sector.
Schools commonly neglect the Holocaust in history lessons, or note
that it it was an event special for Jews with no meaning to others.
They miss, showing it was a mass assault on humankind by a
totalitarian regime. it's mentioned as some ethnic event of little
concern to outsiders.
An other practice is to dilute the Holocaust as just one of
routine massacres of enemies, such as in Cambodia, Armenia, sothern
Africa, and, more recently, Red China.
In extreme cases the Holocaust is explained as a trick to, yes,
hypmotize the world into serve the Jews.
Anti-Israel theme
---------------
A parallel syndrome is the hostility and animosity against the
Jewish homeland Issrael. Isra//el is declared a bastard country having
no earthly right to exist. It is a stepchild of Quees. (The UN opened
operations in temporary offices in Queens when it created Isreal.)
Isreal is claimed to occupy land belonging to Palestine, a land
never consolidated into a nation. Palestine was a British territory
now separated into Israel and Jordan.
People favoring Israel are called double-agents with prime
allegiance to Israel. They are also deemed to work for Israel for
compensation, privilege, perks. Or they are siding with the 'Jewish
establishment' who controls American finance, business, media,
education, &c.
In the US some Jewish groups, while supporting Jewish culture,
actively repudiate Israel as part of that culture. Non-Jewish sectors
of American society cite these groups as 'proof' that Israel must be
effecaed from the planet.
Also in the US, substantial elements of our political structure
embed anti-Jewish anti-Israel themes in their planks. Collectively
this theme is named 'antiSemitism', altho Semites inclufe other
eastern Mediterranean peoples besides Jews.
After the UN memorial, in March 2019, the US House of
Representatives issued a resolution that started as a condemnation of
antiSemitism. It was finalized as a diluted weak disapproval of
overall class hate. The House could not cough up the votes for a
definitive antiSemitism position.
The UN events
-----------
The United Nations spread its memorial services over four days,
28-31 January 2019. The events on the 29th were reserved to specific
inviteds. The other three days were open to the public. Several
NYSkiers, from the NYC Events and email notice, were interested in
this show. I planned to attend only the events on the 28th, which
included an all-hands opening service. Myrna Coffino also planned for
the 28th but may sit activities between UN duties she had on the
other days.
January 27, as I learned at the UN from other guests, is the
anniversary date when in 1945 the Russian army broke into the
Auschwitz death camp in Poland. it rescued surviving victims and
documented the extermination methods and facilities. With the 27th
this year being a Sunday, the UN observed the anniversary on the next
weekday the 28th.
The day consisted of an opening address and statements by UN and
national officials, the debut of a Holocaust exhibit in the visitor's
gallery, and a panel discussion of India's role in taking in Holocaust
refugees. There was ample time for a lunch break, wither on campus or
in nearby outside eaateries.
Signing up
--------
It seems that each activity was run by its own UN office or
related org. Each event required its own signup. There was no all-in
one process for selecting the desired events from the entire program.
Signing up was a bit fiddly since it was positive that some requested
events could have all seats filled. It could happen that an event was
closed and the guest had to while off time in the public sections of
the UN.
Registration was by sending a simple request email or submitting a
webpage fill-in request form.In my case I quickly got approval for all
three shows on January 28th.
I printed out the approval letters to show if needed at the gate.
Going to the UN
-------------
I took out a personal day for the 28th and set off for the United
Nations from home. I took the subway to Grand Central and walked the
rest of the way. The first show was at 11AM EST. Instructions in the
approval email stated an arrival no later than 10AM .
I arrived at about 9:45AM. Already there was a mob of people
milling around UN agents to get their tickets. I was steered to an
agent according to last name. I showed her my approval letter and
photo ID. She checked her registration list and gave me a ticket for
the first show. I asked about the other two. She assured that tickets
for them are distributed inside by other agents on the visitor's
floor.
In bunches all of us guests passed thru security. I breezed thru
with no gonging. After exitimg from the security shed I seated my
ticket into a convention badge holder I had with me.
General Assembly
--------------
We all flowed into the main floor of the Secretariat building and
lazed around for further instructions. Altho the Holocaust exhibit was
not formally open, we walked around thru it to pass time.
At about 10:30aM agents circulated to direct us to the first show.
I didn't see how they could tell ticket holders from public visitors,
since the UN a short while earlier opened doors for tourists.
I mingled with a slug of guests heading toward stairs leasing to
the General Assembly hall. Ushers on the stairs visually checked for
tickets. I pulled back my coat to expose the badge holder and ticket.
The usher nodded and waved me forward onto the stairs. Most others had
to fumble for their ticket, causing some congestion.
I ws with the earlier wave of guests into the GA hall. We were
sent right onto its main deck, where the UN member countries sit. We
could take any seat, except those with 'reserved' signs.
i suppose the entire UN membership was allowed to this
remembrance, all 192 of them. Form the small portion of 'reserved'
seats in this huge hall, it seems that many countries opted out. I
took a seat about half-way back.
The hall is fully refurbished, with new fixtures and furnishings.
Huge video screen flank the UN shield to echo the podium and display
text and graphics presented by the speaker.
The one lousy feature was the clunky chairs. They were the ones I
sat in else when at the UN. While cozy they had to be skidded into
position. They must be an irritant for UN delegates who must turn to
their aides in the back row of fixed chairs. Previously they could
swivel around and roll closer to the aide. Now they contort or even
get up to speak with the aides.
The presentations were in English. The language button on the
audio panel was disabled. The volume button worked and did help many
guests hear speakers with softer voices. The name panels were blanked
out in the public seats. I didn't see if they have names in the
seating reserved section.
Audience
------
Wave after wave of guests pored into the GA chamber, filling every
seat on the main level and most in the lower galleries. Ushers
directed the arriving guests and groups to the reserved or public
seats, according as their ticket.It seemed that groups of children, of
about the same age, wee school classes under care of their teacher.
Some people wore traditional Jewish dress. Others were in civvies.
I wasn't sure if any one in the reserved section was an actual UN
delegate. They could have been, but from only a small fraction of all
of the UN member nations.
One woman came in after me and sat next to me. It appeared that
this was her first visit to the UN. She struggled with her chair and
examined the audio panel. I and a man on her other side showed her how
to wear the earpiece and work the language and volume buttons. At that
moment I didn't know all discourse will be only in English.
The grand majority of guests were Jewish in some way, with me
being a peripheral participant.
When the meeting was called to order, I figured there about two a
thousand people in the audience. My uncertainty came from not knowing
how deep the upper galleries were. I could see into the first gallery,
with all seats filled.
As yet I didn't see Ms Coffino. If she did attend, she was some
where else in the hall.
Memorial service
--------------
At 11:00AM Under Secretary-General for Communications, Allison
Smale, welcomed the audience to this year's observance. She was MC for
the rest of the morning's event. First address was by His Excelency UN
Secretary-General Ano'nio Guterres. To many in the audience, I felt,
this is the first time ever they were addressed by the UN's top
officer while they were sitting, almost as actual UN delegates, in the
General Assembly.
Guterres gave a history of UN role in forming the nation of
Israel. He recalled the UN's eternal respect for Israel's existence.
He denounced continual efforts to sideline, marginalize, disregard
israel.
He spoke forcefully yet politely, in a diplomat's tone.
Following Guterres were several other UN officials, each in turn
denouncing anti-Israel actions by other countries and parties. No
specific countries were named, but they could be inferred from ambient
attitudes they abundantly display against Israel. Following speakers
also narrated forcefully and diplomaticly.
We heard from representatives of the United States, Israel, the US
Holocaust Memorial Museum, Jewish benevolent societies. Their comments
were more vigorous and less polite about global antisemitism.
The nongovernment speakers were particularly direct, sounding like
exhortations and rallying. These speakers expanded from remembering
the Holocaust to agitating against current, sometime formally
organized, attacks against Jews and Israel. These included personal
assaults, intimidations, military/terror strikes.
The speakers noted softer attacks like regulations and policies. A
recent example, not specificly stated, is the ban in Belgium of kosher
killing for meat. The animal by this new rule must first be 'stunned',
a practice not allowed in kosher handling of animals.
After each speaker we all gave hearty applause. For the more flat-
out statements we all gave standing applause. This was claps in synch,
in European style.
Holocaust survivors
-----------------
A couple presenters were survivors or rescuers of the Holocaust.
Their accounts were, uh, tragic. One point they reminded about was
that survivors today are not all upper-seniors. The Nazis rounded up
children, even babies, for eradication.. They were among the rescued
victims and grew up into active seniors. To the uninitiated they look
'too young' to come from the Holocaust.
Some now live in countries where antisemitism is sprouting. They
compared the situation now with the early Nazi era. The scheme is
similar: blame society's problems on the Jews. The solution is to get
rid of the Jews.
At the start the campaign is run by private parties outside of the
government, such as news media, stores, colleges. This level of
antisemitism is ignored or denied by public authorities. It can
progress to formal acceptance or tolerance of antisemitism.
In the late phases the state embarks on physical actions to
suppress Jews, such as withdrawing social benefits, imposing legal
restrictions, confiscating property and assets. The ultimate phase is
the way of Nazis and.Communists.
The standing applause for these presenters was extra vigorous.
One segment of the show was a Hebrew song. We all stood to sing
it. I stood quietly, not knowing the song. After a few rounds, i
caught a repetitive phrase which I mounthed out.
Photography
---------
I advise readers to take pictures from available light, no flash,
for indoor activities. Today's digital cameras don't need flash as
routinely as chemocameras because the sensor chip is ten and more
times responsive to ambient light then chemical emulsions. And the no-
flash pictures more represent the actual scene.
For the UN events, a camera flash could be mistaken for a gunshot
flash, calling for response from security forces. generally enough
ambient lighting to generate a good image.
All during the program in the General Assembly there were rampant
flashes from cameras. There was no request or instruction against
flashes and there were no alarms ignited.
For comparison I took one picture with and without flash. The no-
flash image was just fine with only the house lights to illuminate the
scene. The flash picture was too dark. Only close foreground parts
were lighted by the flash.
Please do stick with the flash-off advice for interior pictures.
Even if flash is allowed, or not specificly prohibited, pictures come
out far more realistic with just the exiting illumination in the
scene.
Exit from General Assembly
------------------------
The morning show ended at quite 1:00PM. We were released for the
next event. All thousand and more of us flowed out of the chamber,
down stairs, and spread into the visitors floor. I looked around for
Myrna, not finding her at all in the mob of guests now blended with
tourist already on the floor.
I asked at the info booth about a ticket for the exhibit
dedication and the afternoon panel. After inspecting my papers the
booth agent told me there are agents roaming around with the other
tickets.
I found one from seeing a woman with a clipboard and thick
envelope. She checked my ID card and event letter, then gave me the
ticket for the afternoon panel. I asked about one for the exhibit
event. There isn't one. She pointed to an roped-off alcove and said i
can just join in.
I slipped the new ticket into my badge holder and went to the
alcove to hear the dedication. The space was roped off but by standing
next to the ropes I heard everything clearly. After a moment I lost
interest and strolled away.
Suddenly I spotted Ms Coffino in the crowd at the dedication
alcove. She, in turn, spotted me. Then after we stayed together for he
rest of the day. She already had her afternoon ticket, so we figured
to do lunch to fill the time until the panel.
As it turned out, I and Myrna didn't notice any other NYSkiers,
altho several said they were attending. Either they were lost in the
crowds or they went to events on other days.
Lunch
---
I knew that seeing Myrna at this event would be a stroke of luck,
and it was. I planned to do lunch at the Vienna Cafe', where UN
tourists take meals. It is more of a snack bar, but for the one day
that would be enough for me. I can hold out until I get home for a
full supper.
Myrna, in addition to the event passes, had her separate badge for
her other work at UN offices. It allows open movement in many
nonpublic parts of the campus.
She offered to go to an internal lunchroom that's quiet and has
full food and drink service. She asked at a UN guard for this
cafeteria. The guard at first balked. I sensed he didn't want to let
on to all the people swarming around us that this cafeteria is open to
any one.
He asked us to stay off to one side. When his area was
momentarily free of visitors he waved us into a hallway. From there
Myrna knew the way to the lunchroom.
It was the 'terrace lunchroom' with the view of East River and
Roosevelt island. The terrace was closed due to the chilly air of end
January.
We filled our plates with assorted items from the hot bins and
took soft drinks from a cold cabinet. At the paypoint I earned
apparently just the normal lower-then-outside price, altho the clerk
noticed my event pass around my neck. I was OK with that.
We took a table next to the terrace for the view and whiled away
the time until the panel event.
Afternoon panel
-------------
Myrna and I threaded our way to the room with the panel
discussion. It was about India's reception of Holocaust escapees. The
meeting room was, compared to the General Assembly chamber, a plain
bland large classroom. it did, like i suppose all other meeting rooms,
have the standard UN furniture: curved rows of tables, name and audio
panels, heavy clunky chairs. The room had about sixty seats.
Te stage was close enough to most sats to skip using the audio
panel. we heard every thing comfortably with the room's general
amplification. The stage was echoed on two large flat display boards,
left and right, for easier viewing.
All dialog was in English. There was no need to play with the
language button on the audio panel.
India and the Holocaust
--------------------
Americans usually associate the Holocaust with the flight and
rescue of Jews into the United States.The US mainland was almost
wholly free of warfighting during World war II and was a welcoming
haven for the hews.
Americans generally do not know that Jews were taken in by several
other countries outside the warzones. Among these was India. India was
supporting the UK, as part of its empire, by supplying materials, such
clothing, field equipment, tools. The UK opened India to receive the
Jews who escaped eastward thru Egypt and Palestine, other British
colonies. They were taken by ship from the Red Sea to India.
The afternoon panel, starting at 3:00PM, was a discussion among
several officials from India and from B'nai Brith. The latter is the
oldest society for Jewish well-being in the US, dating from the 4880s.
It worked with UK and India governments for rescuing Jews from the
Nazis. The number of refugees relocating to India was a few thousand,
taken in with welcome and care. Today there are several centers of
Jewish culture in India, mostly in the larger cities.
India won independence in the late 1940s when the UK started to
shed most of its colonial holdings. It developed into a democratic
republic, the largest in the world. It looks after the civil and human
rights of all of its people, including Jews. Most of the Jews from the
war stayed in India as permanent residents and citizens.
India still welcomes Jews, this time those fleeing life-threats
from radical Islamic countries. This threat seems to be part of their
volcanic hatred of Israel.
The discussion, with Q&A from the audience, ended at quite 4:30PM.
many in the audience went to the stage for more questions and dialog.
Others, like Ms Coffino and me, left the room. There was an evening
event, which Myrna and I passed up, that some audience stayed on or
near campus to attend. We two set off for home.
We walked to the bus stop on 42nd Street feeling a bit tired. We
rode the bus to Grand Central where Murna got off to catch her train
home. I stayed on to Ti,es Square for my train to Brooklyn.
Conclusion
--------
In ordinary life in the US the UN is perceived as a nest of Jew-
hating countries, all fixing to bulldoze Israel into the Mediterranean
Sea. There ARE such countries, some within a hour's drive from
Jerusalem. And these nations DO exert substantial influence on the
UN's concerns in the Middle East.
Recall that Israel is about the size of New Jersey. if you
Imagine Fort Lee as the Golan Heights; Newark, Tel Aviv; Camden, Gaza
Strip; Cape May, Elat; Trenton, Jerusalem. Keep this overlay of Israel
on New Jersey in mind when Hamas shoots rockets into Tel Aviv. They
are fired from Camden into Newark.
In some countries today thee is a rising hostility against Jews,
as if Jews ar the cause or means of their social and economic
problems. In severe instances the Jews represent capitalism, the arch
enemy of socialism and communism.
It COULD have happened that the memorial was staged by these
antisemitic countries. The whole show COULD have been a massive trash-
out of the Jews and Israel.
It wasn't.
The entire day emphasized the accepting, recognizing, rolerating,
protecting Jews as one class of oppressed peoples. The setting, in the
global parliament of the General Assembly, demonstrated that there is
a strong aggressive pushback against anti-Jewish and anti-Israel
programs around the world. I admit that to a large extent the show was
preaching to the choir, an audience already devoted to Israel and
Jews.
While I am not Jewish I have many Jewish associates, friends,
colleagues. One and all they are good folk who want to live quietly
with others. Jews do not convert or conquer other people into their
faith. And they do not abrogate other faiths and cultures from their
lifes.
I think this is the first time the UN Holocaust remembrance was
open to the general public, not only for dedicated publics concerned
with the Holocaust. If you had the notion that the United Nations is a
giatt antisemitic caldera, come to the UN remembrance next year.