WPBS Honors Yom HaShoah with Holocaust-Themed Programming in April 2025
Apr 14, 2025 11:31AM ● By Nicole Petrus
WATERTOWN, NY (April 8, 2025) – In observance of Yom HaShoah, the Day of (remembrance of) the Holocaust, WPBS invites viewers to reflect on the profound impact of the Holocaust and the ongoing fight against anti Semitism. Marked on the 27 of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar, it falls annually between the end of Passover and commemorates the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, a courageous stand by Jewish resistance fighters against the Nazi regime in 1943.
To honor this somber occasion, WPBS is offering a selection of powerful and thought-provoking programming throughout April, providing an opportunity to pause, remember, and educate future generations on the lessons of this dark chapter in history. Programming includes:
Simon Schama: The Holocaust, 80 Years On (April 22 at 9 pm) On the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the last concentration camps, historian Sir Simon Schama examines the Holocaust as a European-wide crime, not just a Nazi obsession. In his most personal film, Schama visits mass killing sites in Lithuania, his mother's homeland, and the Netherlands, where fewer Jews survived than in any other Western occupied country. He also reflects on his first visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau. Throughout, Schama highlights acts of resistance and the efforts of ordinary Jews to document the atrocities. Featuring an interview with 98-year-old survivor Marian Turski, as well as the voices of younger generations determined to ensure the Holocaust is never forgotten, the film also asks profound questions about what the Holocaust means now.
Stories of Survival: Final Transports (April 24 at 7 pm) In the summer of 1944, at the height of the deportation of Hungarian Jews, Magda Brown and George Brent arrived as teenagers to the notorious Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. Through Magda and George's eyes, the episode "Final Transports" portrays the human aspects of survival, resistance, chance and luck in the face of Nazi tyranny.
Stories of Survival: Childhood Lost (April 24 at 7:30 pm) Within hours of the Nazi invasion and occupation of Western Europe, George Mueller and Steen Metz, had their childhoods engulfed by war. Their innocence lost as prejudice and persecution spread, “Childhood Lost” details their gripping fight for survival within the Nazi camp system, and the endurable spirit of family, courage, and hope.
The Cure for Hate (April 27 at 11:30 am) In the Jewish tradition, T'shuvah means "return" and describes the return to God and our fellow human beings made possible through repentance for our wrongs. Tony McAleer, a former skinhead and Holocaust denier, became a founding member of Life After Hate, an anti-hate activist group. The Cure for Hate documents his personal journey of atonement to Auschwitz-Birkenau while exploring the conditions that allowed for the rise of fascism in 1930s Europe. It also sheds light on how men get into and out of violent extremist groups and serves as a timely cautionary tale that underscores the dangers of allowing hate to be left unchecked.
Letters From BRNO (April 27 at 12:30 pm) The powerful story of parental love and unspeakable sacrifice during the Holocaust. In an expansive 45-year search for clues to her mother’s hidden past, a daughter uncovers the tragic fate of her grandparents through their letters written during the brutal Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia.
The Man Who Saved 669 Children (April 27 at 1:30 pm) He never considered himself a hero, yet on the eve of World War II Nicholas Winton became The Man Who Saved 669 Children. Winton, a young London banker, was on the verge of departing for a skiing vacation on Christmas 1938 when a friend called him from Prague asking for help. In the Czechoslovakian capital, Winton sets up an extraordinary rescue operation for Jewish children threatened by the Nazis. From his hotel room, he organizes the departure of trains to England and becomes a forger when he lacks authorizations and visas. His efforts allowed 669 children to board eight trains and make their way to London to find host families, new lives, and hope.
Defying the Nazis: The Sharps War (April 27 at 2:30 pm) Join an American couple's courageous mission in 1939 to help refugees escape Nazi-occupied Europe. Over the course of two years, the pair will risk their lives so that hundreds can live in freedom. A new film by Ken Burns and Artemis Joukowsky.
My Survivor (April 27 at 4 pm) Who will tell the story of the Holocaust when the last survivor is gone? My Survivor documents the life-changing experiences of some of the 500 University of Miami students who forge intimate relationships with Holocaust survivors through an innovative internship program. Building powerful intergenerational bonds, students listen to survivors' first-hand accounts and come to embrace their cause to preserve the memory and lessons of the Holocaust.
WPBS can be streamed live on any internet-connected device in the Northern New York service area at wpbstv.org or with the WPBS app. Additionally, WPBS is available for live streaming with these services in the United States: Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, Local Now, DirectTV Stream, and Amazon Freevee.
LEARNING RESOURCES
PBS News Hour Classroom has curated a collection of lesson plans and activities designed to provide teachers with rich and meaningful resources on the Holocaust, engaging lesson plans and information to help students take steps to move forward without forgetting the past. To view the Holocaust Day of Remembrance learning resources, visit: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/classroom/lesson-plans/2025/01/holocaust-day-of remembrance-lesson-plans-and-activities.
