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- Media Kit:
- The Tragedy of Slovak Jews
- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
- October 21, 2005
- CONTACT: Jan Stoffer, National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library, 30 - 16th Ave. SW, Cedar Rapids, IA 52404. 319-362-8500 or jan@NCSML.org
- Powerful Holocaust Exhibition Comes to National Czech & Slovak Museum
- Previously Seen at Auschwitz
- CEDAR RAPIDS, IA – The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library, in collaboration with the Museum of the Slovak National Uprising in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia, will open the exhibition, The Tragedy of Slovak Jews, on Friday, November 4, 2005. This powerful exhibit addresses the tragic demise of the Jewish communities in Slovakia, a little known story of the Holocaust. This marks the first time an exhibition will address this topic in the United States.
- Jews were an important part of Slovak culture in 1939 when Hitler’s army entered and occupied all of Czechoslovakia. The country became a divided nation - The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia (controlled solely by the Nazis) and an "independent" Slovak state. Over the next six years, Slovakia deported nearly 60,000 Slovak Jews to concentration camps, where most of them were murdered as part of Hitler’s "Final Solution." In total, 80 percent of Slovak Jews were lost during the Holocaust.
- The Tragedy of Slovak Jews is the first exhibition in the U.S. to focus entirely on the fate of Slovak Jews during World War II. The exhibition focuses on the key milestones of the Slovak story including the acceptance in 1941 of the Jewish Codex, a series of laws and regulations that stripped Slovakia's Jews of their civil rights and means of economic survival. The exhibit chronicles the first wave of deportations (March-October 1942), the origin and activity of working and prison camps, the second wave of deportations in 1944, the resistance movement, participation in the Slovak National Uprising, and the reprisals of the Nazis in 1944 – 1945.
- The Tragedy of Slovak Jews has been on display since 2002 at the Auschwitz – Birkenau State Museum in Auschwitz, Poland. The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library is partnering with the Museum of the Slovak National Uprising in Banská Bystrica, Slovakia, which originally researched and prepared it. The exhibition closes Feb. 26, 2006.
- The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library is the leading United States institution collecting, exhibiting, preserving, and interpreting Czech and Slovak history and culture. The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library is located at 30 16th Avenue SW, Cedar Rapids, IA. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Sunday, noon to 4:00 p.m. For additional information, please call (319) 362-8500 or visit the museum’s web site, www.NCSML.org.
National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library
presents
The Tragedy of Slovak Jews
November 4, 2005 – February 26, 2006
In 1939, Hitler’s army entered and occupied all of Czechoslovakia. The country became a divided nation - The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia (controlled solely by the Nazis) and Slovakia (an "independent" Nazi-affliated state). Over the next six years, Slovakia would deport nearly 60,000 Slovak Jews to concentration camps, where most of them were murdered as part of Hitler’s "Final Solution." In total, almost 80,000 Slovak Jews were lost during the Holocaust.
The first exhibition in the United States of this moving story
The Tragedy of Slovak Jews is the first exhibition in the U.S. to focus entirely on the fate of Slovak Jews during World War II. The exhibition focuses on the key milestones of the Slovak story including the acceptance of the Jewish Codex in 1941, a series of laws and regulations that stripped Slovakia's Jews of their civil rights and means of economic survival. The exhibit chronicles the first wave of deportations (March-October 1942), the origin and activity of working and prison camps, the second wave of deportations in 1944, the resistance movement, participation in the Slovak National Uprising, and the reprisals of the Nazis in 1944 – 1945.
On display at Auschwitz
The Tragedy of Slovak Jews has been on display since 2002 at the Auschwitz – Birkenau State Museum in Auschwitz, Poland. The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library is partnering with the Museum of the Slovak National Uprising in Banská Bystrica, Slovakia, which originally researched and prepared the exhibit, to present this exhibit.
Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Sunday, noon to 4:00 p.m.
The Tragedy of Slovak Jews Program Schedule
SEPTEMBER 2005
Sunday, Sept. 25: Exhibit Opening, Life Long Learning and Gallery Tour. Silent Stones: Jewish Cemeteries in Bohemia and Moravia opens. Meet photographer Lisa Feder and take a personal tour. 2:00 p.m. WFLA Heritage Hall. Free. Sponsored by United Fire Group.
OCTOBER 2005
Sat. & Sun., Oct. 22 – 23: Exploring Czech and Slovak Cinema Series. 2:00 p.m. Heritage Hall. Free. The films this month are Shop on Main Street (Sat.) and Voices of the Children (Sun.). Sponsored by Humanities Iowa.
NOVEMBER 2005
Thursday, Nov. 3: Fall Dinner and Exhibit Premiere. Consul General from the Slovak Republic Ivan Surkoš – keynote speaker. 7:00 p.m. Crowne Plaza. $40.00. Please contact the museum for an invitation.
Friday, Nov. 4: The Tragedy of Slovak Jews opens.
Saturday, Nov. 5: The Tragedy of Slovak Jews Documentary Film Memories of Concentration Camp Survivors followed by a discussion with Director General Dezider Toth of the Museum of the Slovak National Uprising, Banská Bystrica, Slovakia. 8:00 p.m. WFLA Heritage Hall. Free. Sponsored by Jim Sattler Custom Homes and Humanities Iowa.
Sunday, November 6: Forum: World War II, the Holocaust, and Slovakia. Long before the outbreak of World War II, Adolf Hitler began widespread propaganda, promoting German Nationalism and blaming Jews for Germany’s misfortunes. By the end of the war, millions of Jews living in Nazi-controlled lands had been identified, imprisoned, and exterminated, including 80 percent of Slovakia’s Jews.
This program will explore how and why the citizens in the Nazi state of Slovakia chose nationalism over humanity. Coe College professor Dr. Steve Feller sets the stage with a comprehensive history of the Holocaust. Calvin College professor Dr. Randall Bytwerk explains how Nazi propaganda fed the anti-Semitic attitudes found in Europe before and during World War II. Finally, Paul Strassmann, a Slovak Jew who survived WWII, will share his personal story and what he experienced during some of the darkest days of his homeland. Dr. Feller will moderate discussion following the presentations. 1:00 p.m. WFLA Heritage Hall. Free. Sponsored by Jim Sattler Custom Homes and Humanities Iowa.
Saturday, Nov. 12: Holocaust Teacher Training Workshop. Instructor Judy Bartel, U.S. Holocaust Museum. 8:00 a.m. –3:00 p.m. WFLA Heritage Hall. Reservation required.
Sunday, Nov. 13: Life Long Learning. "How to Talk About the Holocaust" by Judy Bartel. 2:00 p.m. WFLA Heritage Hall. Free. Sponsored by Humanities Iowa.
Thursday, Nov. 17: Learn at Lunch. "Money Used at the Terezin/Theresienstadt Ghetto and other Camps" by Coe professor Dr. Steve Feller. Noon. Heritage Hall. Free. Sponsored by United Fire Group and Humanities Iowa.
JANUARY 2006
Saturday, Jan 21: Exploring Czech and Slovak Cinema. A Prayer for Katarina Horovitzova. 2:00 p.m. WFLA Heritage Hall. Free.
Sunday, Jan 29: Life Long Learning. Dr. Stephen Bloom will talk about anti-Semitic attitudes and discrimination as seen in today’s society. 2:00 p.m. WFLA Heritage Hall. Free.
FEBRUARY 2006
Saturday, Feb. 4: Exploring Czech and Slovak Cinema. Romeo, Juliet, and Darkness. 2:00 p.m. WFLA Heritage Hall. Free.
Sunday, Feb. 12: Author Reading and Discussion. Helen Epstein Where She Came From: A Daughter’s Search for her Mother’s History. Moderated by Julie Englander. 2:00 p.m. WFLA Heritage Hall. Free.
Thursday, Feb. 16: Learn at Lunch. "From Anne Frank to Schindler's List: The Evolution of the Holocaust in Public Memory" by historian Thomas Flagel. Noon. WFLA Heritage Hall. Free.
Thursday, Feb. 16: Evening Lecture at the African-American Historical Museum and Cultural Center of Iowa. Dr. Jeremy Brigham, Kirkwood College and Vice-President of the Linn County United Nations Association, addresses the differences between genocide and ethnic cleansing, specifically as seen in Darfur and Armenia. 7:00 p.m. Free. For more information, call (319) 862-2101.
Sunday, Feb. 26: Genocide Seminar. Dr. Stephen Feinstein leads a presentation and discussion of the history of genocide, and how, and where, it persists today. 2:00 p.m. WFLA Heritage Hall. Free.
Sunday, Feb. 26: The Tragedy of Slovak Jews closes.
- Image Gallery
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Jewish girl from Slovakia, name unknown, deported to Auschwitz Concentration Camp from Bratislava on March 28, 1942. Given camp number 2731. Her subsequent fate is unknown |
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- Exhibit Hours
- November 1 – April 30
- Tuesday – Saturday: 9:30 – 4:00
- Sunday: Noon - 4:00
- Monday: Closed
- Exhibit Admission
- Admission is FREE to members!
- $7.00 for adults, $6.00 for seniors and large groups, $2.00 for children 5-16 years old. Children under 5 with an adult companion are admitted free. All children free on Sundays when accompanied by an adult.
- Reservations are encouraged for groups of ten or more. Call 319-362-8500 to make reservations.
- Accessibility
- The museum is handicapped accessible and has convenient, free parking.
- The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library
- 30 - 16th Avenue SW, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52404-5904
- Phone: 319-362-8500 · Fax: 319-363-2209
- This page was updated July 31, 2007