“Their stories mean a lot to the children”

“It doesn’t matter how old you are, you can always stand up against antisemitism and discrimination,” says Alina Jagel, who follows this creed not only in her private life, but also as part of the Zweitzeugen group. “Zweitzeugen” is a combination of the German word “Zeitzeuge”, meaning “contemporary witness” and “zweit”, meaning “second”. The 21-year-old organises workshops for the group in which she teaches children and young people about the Holocaust. As its name suggests, the Zweitzeugen philosophy involves handing on testimonies and stories of survival from those who witnessed the Holocaust at first hand. As there are very few Holocaust survivors who can still recount their experiences, the Zweitzeugen preserve their memories by passing them on themselves.

The Zweitzeugen association hands down memories

Jagel first found out about Zweitzeugen six months ago in a university course on antisemitism in football. The idea caught her attention and a part-time job was available in the association. She applied and got the job. Since then she has worked with many children and young people and can even make the most of her passion for football. This is thanks to the fact that the Zweitzeugen don’t just work with schools. They also work with several Bundesliga football academies, drawing on football’s public profile as a way of reaching boys and girls. And they listen attentively when Jagel tells them the stories of survivors. “The children understand what those people went through and their stories mean a lot to them,” she said. One experience moved her particularly deeply, she says: “One girl thanked me after the workshop that it had included women’s stories of survival. She said it gave her a lot of strength to hear about the lives of strong women.”

and that’s the effect which Jagel hopes to achieve. “That’s why we translate the stories of survival into the daily lives of the young people. What restrictions did they face back then?”Jagel doesn’t set out to teach historical facts about the Holocaust in the same way they are taught in history lessons at school, so she spends several hours each week preparing for the workshops, on top of her studies in social sciences at the University of Bochum. “I like doing it because the work puts down such deep roots and it feels good to be actively involved,” she says. Her work for Zweitzeugen and her interactions with young people also influence her private live. Alina is more confident talking about discrimination and antisemitism, “Particularly in situations where I probably wouldn’t have dared to in the past,” she says, and of course she shares the stories of Holocaust survivors with her family and friends.