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On Good Friday, 10 April 1998, the Good Friday Agreement, also known as the Belfast Agreement, It consists of two closely related agreements,the British-Irish Agreement and the Multi-Party Agreement. It led to the establishment of a system of devolved government in Northern Ireland and the creation of many new institutions such as the Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive,…
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A baby shoe and a date— Not a birth date, The date she died. Today 8 April 2023, is the day I cried. Why? I don’t know. I did not know the baby, nor did I know the parents. On 27 March 1944, this baby was murdered. Today I cry. I did not know her,…
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It is quite hard to describe this story because it is a tragedy and a miracle at the same time. It isn’t clear when baby Ruben was born, some sources say he was born on 6 April 1943, while other sources say it was 9 April 1943. On his grave’s headstone, it says 9 April.…
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One of the definitions for music is vocal or instrumental sounds (or both) combined in such a way as to produce beauty of form, harmony and expression of emotion, but it is so much more than that. Music brings hope in times of despair, comfort in times of grief and joy in times of sorrow. Music…
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I do despair at times when I see how many of my fellow Dutch citizens were so willing to help the Nazi regime. I know it is easy (for me) to judge because I was never put in a similar situation. But it is still a puzzle to me that a nation known for its…
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It’s that time of year again when you have to analyze anything you hear or see (as if you shouldn’t always do that) because it could just be a prank or a joke. But where did it all start this fooling of people on April First? Some historians speculate that April Fools’ Day dates back…
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I wish I could tell you the story of Rolf Dirk Ullmann’s long life. I wish I could tell you about all his children and grandchildren, visiting him today for his 80th birthday. But I can’t. I can’t tell you about Rolf’s first experience eating an ice cream or chocolate bar or anything about his…
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Every time I see a picture of a sweet little angel like this, I feel like giving up on the research and reporting on the Holocaust I do. I get an overwhelming feeling of anguish, panic, anger and confusion, and I can feel physical pain. It feels like someone just ripped out my heart. Then…
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Dear Gert Steinmann, I never met you, yet your story has moved me. I am not the only one who has never met you. How could they, you were murdered when you were 6 days old. There are no baby pictures. There are no baby footprints. There are no baby shoes. Six days were all…