Commemorative ceremony Leperiben: Two days honoring the memory of Holocaust victims of Romani origin in Prague
The ARA ART organization is holding its sixth annual commemorative ceremony called Leperiben: My nezapomínáme [We Do Not Forget] to honor the memory of the Holocaust and its Romani victims. The two-day program will run on 1 and 2 August 2024 in Prague, Czech Republic.
On Thursday, 1 August at 17:00 there will be a screening of the 2007 documentary film “Ma Bisteren” [Never Forget] at the ARTIVIST_LAB Galerie in the Hybernská Street campus of Charles University. The documentary maps the persecution of Romani people during the Second World War in Slovakia through the authentic testimonies of survivors.
After the screening there will be a discussion with the ethnographer and historian Zuzana Kumanová. The film will also be available to view there on Friday, 2 August between 15:00 and 18:00, when it will be screened multiple times.
The main point of the program will be on Friday, 2 August at 19:00, the traditional commemorative ceremony in the park at Karlovo náměstí [Charles Square]. This year the actor and singer Marsell Bendig will tell the story of an eyewitness to this history onstage.
Live musical accompaniment will be provided by the Josef Šenki Band, which will perform together with Mária Bikárová, Marcell Bendig and Ladislav Demeter. The names of the Romani victims of the Holocaust will be read aloud from the Book of the Dead by non-Romani and Romani figures from public life.
The aim of the event is to honor the memory of the Holocaust and its Romani victims and to raise awareness about this tragic chapter in history. The program is open to the public free of charge.
