The celebration of the National Day of Remembrance of Poles Rescuing Jews under German Occupation - Toruń, 24 March 2021

It is because of the initiatives such as the Remembrance Chapel that the lie won’t last and the truth will prevail

— said President of the Institute of National Remembrance Jarosław Szarek at the ceremony of unveiling the plaques with 26 names of Poles who died saving Jews.

On 24 March, in the Toruń Sanctuary of Blessed Virgin Mary, part of the celebration of the National Day of Remembrance of Poles Rescuing Jews under German Occupation took place. The event was organized by the Toruń School of Social and Media Culture, the John Paul II „Remembrance and Identity” Institute, and the Office for War Veterans and Victims of Oppression. The high point of the celebrations was the unveiling and consecration of plaques bearing 26 names of Poles who died saving Jews, placed in the Remembrance Chapel.

In his speech, President of the Institute of National Remembrance Jarosław Szarek, pointed out that despite the cruelty of the German occupiers, murdering innocent people, there were Poles who chose good over evil and attempted to save their neighbors:

These people gave their lives to remain faithful to the Commandment of Love. They knew they could be killed for what they did … From the autumn of 1941, aiding Jews was punishable with death; let us look at the dates, let us see when these people died: 1942, 1943, 1944, even 1945. That means several months of fear and anxiety … yet, with their lives, they attested to the universal truth that evil, no matter what power stands behind it, will never defeat the intrinsic good of a man

— said Jarosław Szarek at the ceremony.

Apart from the Institute’s President, the ceremony hosted by Director of Radio Maryja Father Tadeusz Rydzyk, was attended by Head of the Office for War Veterans and Victims of Oppression Jan Józef Kasprzyk, Government Plenipotentiary for the Polish Diaspora and Poles Abroad, Secretary of State Jan Dziedziczak, and Sebastian Piątkowski, PhD, DSc, of the IPN.

Source: IPN