Emotional commemoration in Munich: Departure of the Nazi victims united

Emotional commemoration in Munich: Departure of the Nazi victims united

On June 19, 2025, numerous descendants traveled from Nazi victims to Munich to jointly celebrate an emotional commemoration of their lost family members. One of the participants was Miriam Oles, who tries to process the past of their ancestors in a very special way. She is the granddaughter of Abraham Schindler, whose fate is exemplary for many Jewish Munichers who were murdered during the Holocaust.

Miriam, who lives in New Jersey today, had traveled together with her family and more than 40 relatives from Israel and the USA. Her parents had born in Munich and many of her relatives were killed by the Nazis. The longing connection to the city and the associated mixed feelings shaped their first visit: "It was a warm greeting, but the challenges to process the past remained," she reported. Together with her family, she put memory signs in the Glockenbachviertel to commemorate the 11 victim of her family, who were part of the over 5,000 Jews who did not survive the Holocaust. Abraham Schindler was deported to the Theresienstadt ghetto in 1943 and murdered there, together with his sister Mina and numerous other relatives.

memory signs in Munich

The city of Munich has launched a valuable initiative with the Memorials that enables relatives to honor the names and fate of killed relatives. These memory signs can be applied for for people who lived in Munich between January 30, 1933 and May 8, 1945 and lost their lives due to National Socialist persecution. The applications are treated individually to create memory of the victims of Nazi rule.

already over 250 plaques and steles can be found in the city that commemorate persecuted and murdered people. The memory signs are not just a tribute to the past; They also enable a kind of healing. Miriam Oles is convinced that the city embodies a modern ranch with this initiative that combines memory culture and humanity.

The meaning of commemoration

Charlotte Knobloch, President of the Israelite Culture Community in Munich, emphasized the importance of these memory signs at the commemoration. They not only serve to remember the injustice, but also to show that the memory of the victims remains active and alive. This appreciation of life, which was lost due to the horrors of the war and the cruelty of the Nazi regime, was also noticeable in the moving words of the same commemorative service, in which some close-up driving via digital transmission from Israel.

Another participant, Bernard Frieder, who is also a descendant of Jewish Munich, has had similar experiences. While he was also confronted with a negative view of Germany, the friendly people in Munich showed him a better one. "It is impressive what the city is doing," he said after visiting the plaques. His impression, like that of many other participants, proves the power of memory that brought people together and serves as a tool for healing.

The memory of the Holocaust and the fate of the victims remains particularly relevant at a time when current conflicts such as the war between Israel and Iran cause the memory of another painful part of the story. The descendants of the victims have once again shown how important it is not to forget the events of the past and to commemorate the deceased with dignity and respect.