#cancelhate
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, May 2, 2024: Today, the Claims Conference launched a new digital campaign, #CancelHate. The campaign features Holocaust survivors reading Holocaust denial posts from across social media platforms. Each post illustrates how Holocaust denial and distortion can not only rewrite history but perpetuate antisemitic tropes and spread hate.
The #CancelHate campaign is a month-long campaign against Holocaust denial and distortion. Starting today, videos from Holocaust survivors around the world will be posted every day for 30 days featuring testimony from a Holocaust survivor disputing Holocaust denial social media posts.
“I survived the Holocaust, but 13 members of my immediate family were murdered because they were Jewish. Holocaust denial on social media isn’t just another post. These things we say matter. Posts that deny the Holocaust are hateful and deny the suffering of millions of people. We must take our words seriously. Our words matter.”
Abe Foxman, Holocaust survivor in the U.S.
“My family was turned out of our home… because we were Jews. My father was forced to scrub the streets and was later arrested for making anti-Nazi comments, yet we were the lucky ones. The 17 members of my family who were murdered were not lucky. The Holocaust did happen.”
Hedi Argent, Holocaust survivor in the U.K.
“I lived through the Holocaust. Six million were murdered. Hate and Holocaust denial have returned to our society today. I am very, very, very sad about this and I am fighting it with all my might and strength. Words matter. Our words are our power.”
Herbert Rubinstein, Holocaust survivor in Germany
“The world is a volatile place right now. Social media offers individuals a place to hide while they spread words of hate. This campaign shows that these are not victimless posts – these mean and vile words deny the first-hand testimony of each and every Holocaust survivor, their suffering and the suffering and often loss of their families.”
Gideon Taylor, President of the Claims Conference
“I could never have imagined a day when Holocaust survivors would be confronting such a tremendous wave of Holocaust denial and distortion, but sadly, that day is here. We all saw what unchecked hatred led to — words of hate and antisemitism led to deportations, gas chambers and crematoria. Holocaust survivors from around the world are participating in this campaign to show that hate will not win.”
Greg Schneider, Executive Vice President of the Claims Conference
A recent study in the United States of Millennials and Gen Z over the age of 18 found that approximately half (49 percent) have seen Holocaust denial or distortion posts on social media or elsewhere online, a sentiment that mirrored the results in other countries. In the U.K., 29 percent of adults saw denial or distortion on social media. These surveys also found that in many countries Holocaust knowledge was waning. In Canada, 22 percent of Millennials and Gen Z were not sure if they had heard of the Holocaust, and in France, 25 percent of Millennials were unsure if they have ever heard of – or have not heard of – the Holocaust. This growing gap in basic knowledge of the Holocaust is leaving younger generations more and more vulnerable to denial and distortion.