For centuries, brutality against females in war and genocide has been considered an almost inevitable by-product of conflict. The Holocaust was no exception. Sexual abuse of Jewish women was not part of German genocidal policy, but nevertheless occurred. On Sunday, March 20, 2011, Remember the Women Institute, along with The Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, hosted a panel and speak-out to mark the publication of Sexual Violence against Jewish Women during the Holocaust, which documents the sexual violence against Jewish and other women that has been relegated to the fringes of Holocaust history or even denied.
Now rape is an instrument of mass atrocities worldwide, from Bosnia to Rwanda, the Congo, and Sudan. On the occasion of the release of this revelatory book, this panel spoke about the connections and differences, asking: Can this new understanding of sexual violence during the Holocaust decrease and prevent sexual violence during other genocides?
Panelists included:
- Dr. Elizabeth A. Sackler, Trustee for the Brooklyn Museum, New York City
- Gloria Steinem, Feminist activist and co-founder of the Women’s Media Center
- Sonja M. Hedgepeth, Professor of Foreign Languages and Literature, Middle Tennessee State University
- Rochelle G. Saidel, Founder and director, Remember the Women Institute
- Nava Semel, Novelist, activist, and child of Holocaust survivors
- Maman Jeanne Kasongo L. Ngondo, President and founder of Shalupe Foundation
- Jessica Neuwirth, President of Equality Now