B’nai B’rith International observed Holocaust Remembrance Day
with its annual program “Unto Every Person There is a Name,” now
in its 24th year. B’nai B’rith is the official North American
sponsor of the program under the auspices of Yad Vashem,
Israel’s official Holocaust Museum and research center in
Jerusalem. Participants read the names of the victims of the
Shoah, noting where and when they were born and where and when
they were murdered by the Nazis. The ceremonies occur on the
27th day of the month of Nissan on the Jewish calendar. These
observances honor more victims each year, as more names are
collected in an international database maintained by Yad Vashem.
An international committee convened by Yad Vashem suggests a
theme each year. This year’s Yom Hashoah theme was “Defiance and
Rebellion During the Holocaust: 70 Years Since the Warsaw Ghetto
Uprising.” Alan Schneider, director of the B’nai B’rith World
Center in Jerusalem, serves on the committee on behalf of B’nai
B’rith. “Unto Every Person Ther