#TogetherWeRemember: What Does "Never Again" Mean to You?

Pittsburgh has made the news for being the site of the worst antisemitic attack in the history of the United States. But it was also the site of one of the greatest interfaith, cross-community responses to violence. What can our community and the rest of the country learn from this example? How do we focus the lens on the problems that persist across identity groups in a city that has shown itself to be stronger than hate?

On April 5, 2020, join us at the August Wilson African American Cultural Center for a day to turn memory and learning into action. The day will include sessions featuring leaders in education, media, faith, and government, followed by a powerful vigil ceremony in honor of Genocide Awareness Month. To celebrate and activate our renewed commitment to honor the victims of violent hatred by looking out for one another, we will host a concluding reception featuring game-changing organizations with which you can immediately take action. Join us as we remember humanity at its worst to demonstrate what Pittsburgh and the United States can be at their best.

Hosted by the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh, this summit will be the official launch of the annual #TogetherWeRemember campaign, a national series of events in Holocaust museums, communities, and schools across the country dedicated to bridging the gap between awareness and action in the fight against hate.

SUMMIT SCHEDULE & AGENDA

1:00 pm – 2:45 pm: Bridging the Gap Between Education and Action: A Workshop for Educators

NICK HABERMAN, founder of the LIGHT Education Initiative and “2019-2020 USHMM Museum Teacher Fellow” will lead a professional development training for educators. The training will focus on the USHMM Guidelines for teaching the Holocaust, along with LIGHT and #TogetherWeRemember’s unique co-curricular pedagogy to apply the lessons of the Holocaust to build resilience and responsiveness to hate in schools, communities, and on social media.

3:00 pm – 4:45 pm: Building Local Resilience to Hate and Polarization: A Workshop for Community Leaders

NICHOLE ARGO BEN-ITZHAK and LAURA LIVINGSTON from Project Over Zero will lead an action-oriented workshop that provides leaders with a forum for reflection and learning on the twin dynamics of hate and polarization – and what leaders can do about them. The workshop will incorporate insights from peace-building to neuroscience to social psychology and will give leaders the opportunity to use these tools and their own community knowledge to push back against growing division and hate. Participants will engage in deep reflection and conversation around these topics and then use these insights to create concrete actions, programs, and strategies for addressing division in the Greater Pittsburgh community.

4:45 pm – 5:30 pm: Community Action Lab I + Refreshments

Enjoy complimentary refreshments while meeting with diverse leaders and community organizations with which you can collaborate and take action.

5:30 pm – 6:45 pm: #TogetherWeRemember Vigil Ceremony

Take part in an interactive, action-oriented vigil program featuring dynamic speakers, performers, and several meaningful surprises. The program will include a name-reading ceremony honoring victims, survivors, and upstanders to identity-based violence throughout history and conclude with a powerful town-hall style dialogue on the meaning of “never again” and ways we can take action to make it a reality.

Featured speakers include: DR. NICHOLE ARGO BEN-ITZHAK from Project Over Zero; SUSAN BRO from the Heather Heyer Foundation; DR. DAVID FREY from the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies at West Point, DR. HEVAL KELLI a Kurdish-American refugee who epitomizes the American Dream, EMMAI ALAQUIVA, an Emmy-award winning filmmaker, and others to be announced.

6:45 pm – 8:00 pm: Community Action Lab II + Refreshments

Enjoy heavy hors d’oeuvres while meeting with diverse leaders and community organizations with which you can collaborate and take action.