UJE announces program to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Babyn Yar

September 2016 will mark the 75th anniversary of the human tragedy that occurred at Babyn Yar, a ravine on the outskirts of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. Like Auschwitz in Poland, Babyn Yar in Ukraine has become a major symbol of the destruction of Europe’s Jews during the Holocaust.

The official commemoration will take place on September 29, 2016 under the auspices of the Ukrainian government. During the week leading up to the commemorative day, the Ukrainian Jewish Encounter, in cooperation with Jewish and Ukrainian civic leaders and with scholars and cultural figures in Ukraine and abroad, will undertake the Babyn Yar Project, which will consist of four distinct programs.

UJE board member Adrian Karatnycky announced the programs during a press conference held at the Ukraine Crisis Media Center in Kyiv on April 25, 2016. These include a youth conference, a public symposium, a memorial space competition and a commemorative concert.

Also present at the briefing were Peter Zalmayev, Board Member of the American Jewish Committee, New York, and Natalia A. Feduschak, UJE’s Director of Communications.