Invitation Appeal to II. and III. Generation of Survivors

Dear Friends and Partners of ESLI,

One of the goals of the European Shoah Legacy Institute under my leadership is to actively engage members of the Second- and Third-Generation Survivors in our efforts aiming for at least partial redress of so far unresolved and still painful wrongs committed by the malevolent Nazi and Fascist regimes during World War II, be it in the sphere of social welfare of survivors or in the sphere of their property rights.
Today, with time relentlessly running ahead, you, the children and grandchildren are becoming the only witnesses of the Shoah and World War II in general, albeit in an indirect manner, because you do know, firsthand, what happened to your parents and grandparents, you know how their human rights were violated and to what extent their existence had been influenced by what had transpired in that tragic period of European history - not to mention the fact that your own existence bears certain consequences of those dreadful circumstances as well.

Your communication of your parents´ and grandparents´ experiences during WWII may be the first impulse for ESLI to mediate help to needy survivors still living in our midst, since many of them are already too weak to effectively resolve their distress. Communications from you will be publicized (in an anonymized manner, if you wish) in order to raise the awareness of the broader public to this issue, but also for the purposes of lobbying for needed political action with responsible state authorities with the aim of changing legislation in favor of those who have suffered material and other losses.

A brief notice sent to generations@shoahlegacy.org  may lead to alleviation of individual distress but also will contribute in more general terms to our campaign for the promotion of the rights of Shoah survivors and other victims of WWII atrocities.

Sincerely yours,

Jaroslav Šonka

Director of ESLI