2026 Holocaust Remembrance and Education
A portrait of Emanuel Rosenthal, age two, and his brother, Avram, age five in the Kovno ghetto, Lithuania, February 1944. They wear distinctive badges imposed by the Nazis as a way to identify and isolate Jews. The little boys’ uncle, Shraga Wainer, had asked fellow ghetto prisoner, George Kadish to photograph the boys. Weeks later, both children were murdered in the "Children's Action” of 27-28 March, when German troops and former Soviet soldiers, most of whom previously had been Prisoners of War, seized all children under the age of 12, the sick and the elderly in the ghetto. The 1,300 victims were shot at the Ninth Fort or deported to an unknown site where they were killed. Wainer and Kadish survived the Holocaust. After the war, Kadish gave a copy of the photograph to Wainer in the Landsberg displaced persons camp. The photograph endures, reflecting an uncle’s love and an insistence on preserving humanity against the antisemitic efforts to erase it. Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Shraga Wainer.
Theme: Holocaust Remembrance for Dignity and Human Rights
The theme, “Holocaust Remembrance for Dignity and Human Rights” will guide United Nations Holocaust remembrance and education in 2026. Remembrance dignifies the victims and survivors of the Holocaust. It keeps alive their memories of the communities and traditions and loved ones the Nazis sought to erase. The Holocaust warns us of the deadly consequences of antisemitism and hatred, dehumanization and apathy left unchallenged. Over eighty years after the Holocaust, we witness daily assaults on our fellow global citizens. Antisemitism and hatred surge. Denial and distortion of the Holocaust persist. Remembrance of the Holocaust defies denial and distortion, rejects falsehoods, confronts hatred, and insists on the humanity of the victims. The defence of universal rights is essential for sustainable peace and lies at the heart of the United Nations. In remembering the victims of the Holocaust, we affirm our shared humanity and pledge to defend the dignity and human rights of all.
Calendar of Events
January | February
15 January - 20 February 2026
Exhibition: Between Life and Death: Stories of Rescue during the Holocaust
Visitors' Lobby, United Nations Headquarters
The exhibition brings together the stories of survivors and rescuers and explores the complexity of human relationships during the Holocaust, specifically during the Second World War. The exhibition includes testimonies from thirteen European countries and includes the actions of diplomats in eleven countries. The exhibition provides a glimpse of the broader historical context to deepen an understanding of the very different local possibilities for survival and rescue efforts.
The exhibition was curated by the European Network Remembrance and Solidarity (ENRS), in cooperation with the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw and the Silent Heroes Memorial Center in Berlin.
15 January - 8 February 2026
Exhibition: Holocaust Remembrance - A Commitment to Truth
Visitors' Lobby, United Nations Headquarters
Through survivor testimony and photographs, this exhibition documents the systematic persecution and destruction of Jewish families, communities, and traditions by the Nazis and their collaborators. The exhibition bears witness to the suffering of Roma and Sinti, and of other groups targeted by racist hatred and supremacist ideology. The exhibition illustrates the courage of victims to resist dehumanization and those who tried to help.
The exhibition was curated by the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme, United Nations Department of Global Communications.
Exhibition: Lest We Forget
Visitors' Lobby, United Nations Headquarters
This exhibition provides glimpses of moments of kindness and compassion, of life enjoyed, and of the intimate connections that existed in Jewish families and communities before the Holocaust. The photographs stand as stark evidence of the deep and terrible loss and destruction wrought by the Nazis and their racist collaborators during the Holocaust, in their attempt to destroy all trace of Jewish life, tradition, communities, homes, families and individuals. The photographs reflect the humanity of the victims of the Holocaust, and underline the scale of the destruction of the Nazis and their racist collaborators. The photographs remind us of our common humanity, and our responsibility to defend the right of all to live with dignity and in peace.
The exhibition was curated by the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme, United Nations Department of Global Communications.
The exhibitions are free and open to the public. No registration is required. Please visit UN Exhibits for visitor instructions.
Tuesday, 27 January 2026
Film Screening and Discussion: The Last Ones of Auschwitz
By invitation only
This 70-minute documentary presents the powerful testimonies of Holocaust survivors, with a special focus on those who survived Auschwitz. The documentary brings together 28 of the very last witnesses of this camp. The film traces the harrowing journey of the survivors and presents their perspective on the present.
Thursday, 29 January 2026
Holocaust Remembrance Today - A Living Responsibility: A Panel Discussion in Conjunction with the Exhibition Between Life and Death. Stories of Rescue During the Holocaust at the United Nations
7:00 p.m. EST, YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, 15 W 16th Street, New York, NY 10011
Holocaust survivor El?bieta Ficowska and historians Jay Winter, Daniel Blatman and Mordecai Paldiel will explore how Holocaust remembrance has evolved, how stories of rescuers and survivors can be shared with younger generations, and how challenges such as disinformation, artificial intelligence, and fading living memory can be addressed. Jayashri Wyatt, Chief, Education Outreach Section at United Nations Department of Global Communications, moderates the discussion.
The discussion is jointly organized by the European Network Remembrance and Solidarity (ENRS), YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, the Center for Jewish History, together with the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme. It is supported by the Sousa Mendes Foundation.