Margot Friedländer receives Hermann-Maas Prize for Reconciliation work

Margot Friedländer receives Hermann-Maas Prize for Reconciliation work

An emotional event in Heidelberg: The 103-year-old Holocaust survivor Margot Friedländer and the second-witnesses initiative were awarded the renowned Hermann Maas Prize! In the solemn framework of the Heiliggeistkirche, Friedländer emerged through a moving video message in which she urged to appeal to humanity. The event took place on Sunday and the very old Friedländer is a shining example of courage and reconciliation.

Friedländer, who returned to Germany in 2010 after it was emigrated to the United States, tirelessly committed to the horrors of the Holocaust as a contemporary witness in schools and in communities. As part of the award ceremony, the Evangelical State Bishop Heike Springhart paid homage to its impressive life's work and demanded that the teachings from the past not forget. Your message is clear: "We need your voice!" This conviction is of crucial importance in order to decide the hatred and inhumanity.

second witnesses: an association with meaningful mission

The second-witen initiative, which was also honored with the price, does valuable work to preserve the stories of Holocaust survivors for future generations. In the acceptance speech by the CEO Janika Raisch, responsibility was emphasized to pass on the experiences entrusted to them and to learn from them. "We are committed to a peaceful and plural society," she emphasized, and established the important connection between past and future.

The Hermann Maas Prize, which is awarded every four years, honors extraordinary interreligious commitment and reconciliation work. Named after a pastor of Heidelberg who helped many to flee during National Socialism, the price remains a symbol of hope and the incessant fight against forgetting.