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The Shoah Foundation has dedicated itself to collecting testimony from survivors and witnesses of genocides, including the Holocaust, the Rwandan Genocide and the Nanjing Massacre. The institute also announced the establishment of the Center for Advanced Genocide Research late last month.
Even though you cant fix everything on your own, you do what you can Capturing one story on film can make an impact, said Shoah Foundation founder Steven Spielberg of the institutes mission.
Comedian Conan OBrien hosted the star-studded gala, at which singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen performed and actor Liam Neeson was a special guest. Other speakers included USC President C.L. Max Nikias and Shoah Foundation Executive Director Stephen Smith. All the speakers focused on the importance of remembering past tragedies in moving forward.
The purpose of memory is not simply to preserve the past, it is to protect the future, Obama said during his remarks.
Educating younger generations, a main priority of the Shoah Foundation, was also a focus of the night. Prior to the main event, there was a cocktail reception during which guests could both mingle and learn more about the Shoah Foundation through exhibits and a classroom presentation.
One special exhibit was hosted by Ruth Hernández, a 14-year-old high school freshman from Pennsylvania whose video, Voices of Our Journey, was selected as a winner in the Shoah Foundations nationwide IWitness Video Challenge.
We talked a lot about immigration in our video. Many people come to the United States because its the land of opportunities. But people are sent back to their countries, or theyre ripped away from their families, Hernández said of her project.
Hernández and other students who have participated in the IWitness program had an opportunity to see Celina Biniaz, a Holocaust survivor who testified about her story via the Shoah video archives, speak in person at the event.
Biniaz was the youngest worker in Oskar Schindlers factory when she was 13 years old. Schindler saved her, along with his other workers, in a story that has become memorialized in Spielbergs movie Schindlers List.
Oskar Schindler gave me my life, but Steven Spielberg gave me my voice, she said.
After Biniaz spoke about her involvement with the Shoah Foundation, high school teacher Michelle Sadrena Clark discussed using the testimonies to educate her students. After Smith explained the mission of the foundation, OBrien was brought on stage to help lighten the mood.
- See more at: USC Shoah Foundation honors President Obama at annual gala*|*Daily Trojan
Even though you cant fix everything on your own, you do what you can Capturing one story on film can make an impact, said Shoah Foundation founder Steven Spielberg of the institutes mission.
Comedian Conan OBrien hosted the star-studded gala, at which singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen performed and actor Liam Neeson was a special guest. Other speakers included USC President C.L. Max Nikias and Shoah Foundation Executive Director Stephen Smith. All the speakers focused on the importance of remembering past tragedies in moving forward.
The purpose of memory is not simply to preserve the past, it is to protect the future, Obama said during his remarks.
Educating younger generations, a main priority of the Shoah Foundation, was also a focus of the night. Prior to the main event, there was a cocktail reception during which guests could both mingle and learn more about the Shoah Foundation through exhibits and a classroom presentation.
One special exhibit was hosted by Ruth Hernández, a 14-year-old high school freshman from Pennsylvania whose video, Voices of Our Journey, was selected as a winner in the Shoah Foundations nationwide IWitness Video Challenge.
We talked a lot about immigration in our video. Many people come to the United States because its the land of opportunities. But people are sent back to their countries, or theyre ripped away from their families, Hernández said of her project.
Hernández and other students who have participated in the IWitness program had an opportunity to see Celina Biniaz, a Holocaust survivor who testified about her story via the Shoah video archives, speak in person at the event.
Biniaz was the youngest worker in Oskar Schindlers factory when she was 13 years old. Schindler saved her, along with his other workers, in a story that has become memorialized in Spielbergs movie Schindlers List.
Oskar Schindler gave me my life, but Steven Spielberg gave me my voice, she said.
After Biniaz spoke about her involvement with the Shoah Foundation, high school teacher Michelle Sadrena Clark discussed using the testimonies to educate her students. After Smith explained the mission of the foundation, OBrien was brought on stage to help lighten the mood.
- See more at: USC Shoah Foundation honors President Obama at annual gala*|*Daily Trojan
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