On the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, 27 January 2016, the Raoul Wallenberg Foundation received a tribute for his educational project “Houses of Life”. The ceremony took place at the LUMSA University, in Rome.
The academic presentation was opened by Dr. Francesco Bonini, dean of the university, who recognized that historical research on World War II will not be complete without the scientific documentation of those places where people risked their lives to save Jews and other minorities persecuted by the Nazis and its allies.
The president paid tribute to the educational mission accomplished by the Raoul Wallenberg Foundation promoting the values of civic courage and solidarity.
Eduardo Eurnekian, Chairman of the Foundation, stated that “Our educational goal is not only the Holocaust but also other conflicts or situations in which many people showed solidarity with the persecuted, as did the Turkish and Kurdish rescuers who stretched a caring hand to protect the lives of Armenians during the 1915 Genocide”.
In a unique attempt to identify and honor the many Turks and Kurds that lent a hand to their Armenian neighbors in one of the darkest periods of mankind, the Raoul Wallenberg Foundation and the Kaloosdian/Mugar Chair at the Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Clark University joined forces in a major research effort under the supervision of Professor Taner Akcam.
The Wallenberg Foundation does the same concerning the Holocaust. Rather than focusing on the evil, our NGO strives to highlight the spirit of solidarity of the women and men who, like Raoul Wallenberg, oftentimes risked their own lives to save others. This is our
duty towards those saviors and, above all, our obligation to the young generations that should be aware of
these role models.
On behalf of the Raoul Wallenberg Foundation Jesus Colina and Silvia Costantini, directors of Aleteia News Agency, and Mr. Paul Warszawski attended the ceremony.
The International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation encouraged to share reliable information on other “houses of life” by writing to: irwf@irwf.org
