Commemorating October 7th: An Evening of Remembrance and Resolve at the Museum of Tolerance
By Gedaliah Blum – Heartland Initiative
In the heart of Jerusalem, in the yet-to-open Museum of Tolerance, I joined dozens of European Parliament members and their staff for an evening unlike any other. This gathering, organized by ELNET (the European Leaders Network), marked the one-year anniversary of the October 7th Hamas Massacre against the Jewish people. Here, European dignitaries and leaders came together to confront the enduring impact of anti-Semitism, paying homage to those lost and strengthening their resolve to protect the values that underpin our civilization. I extend my deepest thanks to Rawan Osman—a Syrian-born, Lebanese-raised peace activist now living in Germany—whose invitation enabled me to take part in this powerful evening of remembrance and reflection.
The night began with a private tour of the museum’s exhibits, a poignant experience as the museum itself has yet to open to the public. Leading us through these powerful displays, David Ha’ivri painted a vivid picture of the brutality of Hamas’s actions and the bravery of those who stood in defiance. His descriptions were raw, unfiltered, and hauntingly detailed. The exhibits we saw did not flinch from showing the stark realities of October 7th. They reminded us that history is neither distant nor impersonal but is made up of individual lives and devastating losses. The courage and resilience of those who faced such unimaginable violence were palpable, underscoring the human cost of hatred.
After the tour, we gathered in the auditorium to watch Tragic Awakening, a film produced by the Aseret Organization and directed by Rabbi Shalom Schwartz and Rabbi Raphael Shore. This documentary is not a simple recounting of anti-Semitism’s historical trajectory; it is a profound dissection of how Jew-hatred has evolved, morphing to fit the prejudices of each age while retaining a single, corrosive core. The film argues that anti-Semitism is not just another form of bigotry—it is a unique ideology that transcends eras and geographies, adapting to new social climates with a chilling tenacity.
The documentary’s power lies in its refusal to simplify a complex issue. Through interviews and narrative arcs, the film unveils anti-Semitism’s historical roots and modern incarnations. It explores how anti-Semitism has shaped civilizations, both ancient and modern, often acting as a societal barometer. In medieval Europe, Jews were demonized as “Christ-killers”; in Nazi Germany, they became the ultimate racial scapegoats; today, anti-Semitism takes the form of anti-Zionism, casting Israel as an oppressive regime and charging it with genocidal ambitions. As Rabbi Shore remarks in the film, “Anti-Semitism is not like other prejudices. It has longevity, intensity, and universality.” Tragic Awakening demonstrates that this virulent hatred, despite its many faces, retains the same destructive potential.
One of the most striking sections of the film focuses on Rawan Osman’s own story. Raised in Lebanon, where anti-Semitic views were woven into daily life, she recounts how she was taught to despise Jews. But after moving to Europe, she visited Auschwitz, and the horrors of the Holocaust became real to her for the first time. This moment of reckoning shattered the narratives she had grown up with. Her visit to Auschwitz serves as a turning point, both for her personally and within the film, as it underscores the power of truth to break through even the most deeply ingrained prejudices. Rawan’s story underscores a central theme of the film: that anti-Semitism is not merely prejudice but a strategic tool wielded by regimes and ideologies that despise the values of human dignity, justice, and freedom.
The documentary delves further into anti-Semitism as an ideological weapon, wielded by authoritarian regimes that seek to erode the foundations of Liberal Western Civilization. Tragic Awakening is relentless in its exploration of how anti-Semitism functions as a societal illness, with roots that go back to antiquity but symptoms that manifest anew in every era. The film highlights that anti-Semitism is, in fact, a measure of a society’s moral decay. By using the Jews as scapegoats, authoritarian regimes have historically justified their own brutality. This was true in medieval pogroms, under Nazi Germany, and, as the film argues, it remains true today in the narratives propagated by radical Islamist groups and far-left ideologies alike.
The film’s chilling analysis of Adolf Hitler’s beliefs drives this point home. Hitler, it argues, did not view the Jews as a physical threat. Instead, he saw them as a moral and spiritual menace, one that directly opposed his vision of a world governed by raw power and the survival of the fittest. Hitler recognized the values the Jewish people had brought into the world—values of compassion, justice, and universal moral law—and he despised them for it. Tragic Awakening suggests that this battle, waged against the ethical legacy of Sinai, is far from over. Today, those who attack the Jewish people, often through attacks on Israel, are likewise attacking the ethical and moral framework that sustains Western Civilization.
Tragic Awakening makes a compelling case that anti-Semitism is not merely a problem for the Jewish people—it is a threat to the moral and ethical foundations of Western Civilization itself. For those aligned with the Heartland Initiative, the film’s message is a resounding call to action. Our work, which focuses on building understanding, promoting justice, and fostering mutual respect, is deeply intertwined with the fight against anti-Semitism. This evening, filled with stories of loss, courage, and resilience, was a stark reminder that combating Jew-hatred is about defending the very soul of civilization.
The evening continued with a reception hosted by ELNET CEO Dr. Emmanuel Navon, who introduced Jon and Rachel Goldberg-Polin, the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was kidnapped and later executed by Hamas. Rachel spoke first, sharing memories of her son and reminding the audience that Hersh was a real person, not a mere statistic. Jon followed with a tone of frustration, challenging the delegation to take decisive action. He made clear that this call to action was not for Hersh, whose fate was tragically sealed, but for the more than 100 hostages who remain in captivity. His words resonated, driving home the immediacy of the situation and the urgency required from world leaders.
The final speaker was a 20-year-old immigrant from Brazil, a survivor of the Nova Festival attack. She recounted the chilling moment when celebration turned to horror, as rockets forced her and others into an overcrowded shelter. She spoke of hearing footsteps, Arabic voices, the sound of gas grenades, and the gunfire that followed. Of the 40 people in that shelter, only 10 emerged alive. Her story, delivered with raw emotion, was a testament to the senseless cruelty of the attack and the deep scars left in its wake.
As we left the museum, the weight of the evening lingered, a powerful reminder of the challenges we face. In the words of Rabbi Shore, “The hate that begins with Jews never ends with Jews.” As this gathering of European leaders and Israeli advocates made clear, we must rise to meet this challenge together. The stakes could not be higher, and the time to act is now.