Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria, Oral Histories
User Collection Public
Who has commemorated the Shoah in Victoria, and why? In this collection you’ll find oral histories of key figures in Holocaust commemoration and education in Victoria BC, conducted by Jordan Stanger-Ross for the SSHRC funded Defying Hatred Project.
Photo by Matt Botsford on Unsplash.
Permalink: http://vault.library.uvic.ca/collections/9eb95c6e-87da-44d8-b088-44abe7cb8a55
Collection Details
- Items 7
- Last Updated 2025-02-20
Parent Collections (1)
Works (7)
1. Rick Kool Interview
- Title:
- Rick Kool Interview
- Description:
- Kool explains how he came to the work of Holocaust memorialization through his family history as many members from both sides of his family were killed in the Holocaust and he was the child of a survivor. He also reflects on his educational background in moral philosophy which informs his approach to Holocaust education by focusing on the broader cultural context in which violence occurs without necessarily relying on specific and graphic examples of such violence.
- Subject:
- Holocaust memorials, Holocaust survivors, Jewish Holocaust (1939-1945), Education, and Kool, Rick
- Creator:
- Defying Hatred Project
- Contributor:
- Stanger-Ross, Jordan
- Language:
- eng
- Date Created:
- 2019-05-07/2019-09-18
- Rights Statement:
- In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
- License:
- This item made available for research and private study.
- Resource Type:
- http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text and http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Sound
- Extent:
- 01:26:52
- Alternative Title:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria - Rick Kool Interview
- Geographic Coverage:
- Massachusetts--Boston and British Columbia--Victoria
- Coordinates:
- 48.4359, -123.35155 and 42.35843, -71.05977
- Collection:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria, Oral Histories
- Provider:
- University of Victoria (B.C.). Library
- Genre:
- oral histories (literary genre), transcripts, and sound recordings
- Technical Note:
- Recording by Jordan Stanger Ross. Metadata by Morghan Watson. Additional metadata by KD.
2. Ed Fitch Interview
- Title:
- Ed Fitch Interview
- Description:
- Fitch was raised in a proudly Jewish family in a broader vibrant Jewish community in Montreal. Fitch served in the army after attending a military college and lived in various Canadian cities where he participated in several Holocaust memorials services. He moved to Victoria in 2006 and has since been involved in the Jewish community and attending Holocaust memorial events. Fitch is concerned that current memorializing is shifting away from treating the Holocaust as an exceptional event and recognizing the connection between the Holocaust and Israel - both choices he thinks will have grave consequences.
- Subject:
- Jewish Holocaust (1939-1945), Holocaust memorials, Holocaust survivors, Fitch, Ed, and Education
- Creator:
- Defying Hatred Project
- Contributor:
- Stanger-Ross, Jordan
- Language:
- eng
- Date Created:
- 2019-05-16/2019-09-13
- Rights Statement:
- In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
- License:
- This item made available for research and private study.
- Resource Type:
- http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Sound and http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
- Extent:
- 00:32:21 (Part 02) and 01:01:33 (Part 01)
- Alternative Title:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria - Ed Fitch Interview
- Geographic Coverage:
- Québec--Montréal and British Columbia--Victoria
- Coordinates:
- 48.4359, -123.35155 and 45.50008, -73.68248
- Collection:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria, Oral Histories
- Provider:
- University of Victoria (B.C.). Library
- Genre:
- oral histories (literary genre), transcripts, and sound recordings
- Technical Note:
- Recording by Jordan Stanger Ross. Metadata by Morghan Watson. Additional metadata by KD.
3. Phyllis Senese Interview
- Title:
- Phyllis Senese Interview
- Description:
- Senese learned of the Holocaust quite young and it remained an interest throughout her studies in grade school and university. When she began teaching Canadian history at the University of Victoria in the 1980s she ensured that topics on racism and antiseminitism were included in her classes. She became involved with Holocaust education outside of the university setting in the early 1990s as she often gave talks on the historical context of the Holocaust and worked to organize events with Holocaust survivor Peter Gary. She discusses some of the tensions she witnessed in organizing such as whether the commemoration events should focus solely on the Jewish experience, whether non-Jewish people should be a part of the organizing, and who counted as a survivor.
- Subject:
- Education, Holocaust survivors, Senese, Phyllis, Holocaust memorials, and Jewish Holocaust (1939-1945)
- Creator:
- Defying Hatred Project
- Contributor:
- Stanger-Ross, Jordan
- Language:
- eng
- Date Created:
- 2019-05-22
- Rights Statement:
- In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
- License:
- This item made available for research and private study.
- Resource Type:
- http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Sound and http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
- Extent:
- 00:29:05 (Part 03), 00:59:29 (Part 02), and 01:37:03 (Part 01)
- Alternative Title:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria - Phyllis Senese Interview 1
- Geographic Coverage:
- British Columbia--Victoria
- Coordinates:
- 48.4359, -123.35155
- Collection:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria, Oral Histories
- Provider:
- University of Victoria (B.C.). Library
- Genre:
- sound recordings, oral histories (literary genre), and transcripts
- Technical Note:
- Recording by Jordan Stanger Ross. Metadata by Morghan Watson. Additional metadata by KD.
4. Micha Menczer Interview
- Title:
- Micha Menczer Interview
- Description:
- Menczer explains his family connection to the history as his parents were survivors of a work camp in Bershad. He ended up involved in memorialization work after being introduced to a meeting group for second-generation survivors. His work on Holocaust education and memorializing in Victoria began after he moved there in 2010 where he found there were differing philosophies amongst the groups and people working to memorialize the Holocaust. Ultimately, he and a small team of community members worked to memorialize the Holocaust in a way that acknowledged connection between the persecution of Jewish people and the persecution of other groups of people. Menzcer argues that this approach ensures Jewish people are not depicted solely as victims as he does not want Jewish people to adopt an “us vs. them” view of the world.
- Subject:
- Education, Jewish Holocaust (1939-1945), Menczer, Micha, Holocaust survivors, and Holocaust memorials
- Creator:
- Defying Hatred Project
- Contributor:
- Stanger-Ross, Jordan
- Language:
- eng
- Date Created:
- 2019-07-03/2019-09-03
- Rights Statement:
- In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
- License:
- This item made available for research and private study.
- Resource Type:
- http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text and http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Sound
- Extent:
- 02:02:21
- Alternative Title:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria - Micha Menczer Interview
- Geographic Coverage:
- British Columbia--Victoria and Ontario--Ottawa
- Coordinates:
- 45.41117, -75.69812 and 48.4359, -123.35155
- Collection:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria, Oral Histories
- Provider:
- University of Victoria (B.C.). Library
- Genre:
- transcripts, sound recordings, and oral histories (literary genre)
- Technical Note:
- Recording by Jordan Stanger Ross. Metadata by Morghan Watson. Additional metadata by KD.
5. Victor Reinstein Interview
- Title:
- Victor Reinstein Interview
- Description:
- Reinstein served as a Rabbi in Victoria from 1982 to 1998. During this time he worked to organize events around Kristallnacht remembrance and Yom HaShoah, working with Holocaust survivors such as Willy and Helen Jacobs, Rysia Kraskin, Jack Gardner and Peter Gary. He discusses the contents of his personal files from his time in Victoria which give insight into the planning of the commemorative events. He concludes by sharing his thoughts on common discussions pertaining to Holocaust memorializing such as the role of Israel and the mention of other human rights violations and atrocities.
- Subject:
- Jewish Holocaust (1939-1945), Holocaust survivors, Education, Reinstein, Victor, and Holocaust memorials
- Creator:
- Defying Hatred Project
- Contributor:
- Stanger-Ross, Jordan
- Language:
- eng
- Date Created:
- 2019-08-08/2019-09-09
- Rights Statement:
- In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
- License:
- This item made available for research and private study.
- Resource Type:
- http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Sound and http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
- Extent:
- 1:28:44 (Part 02) and 02:01:38 (Part 01)
- Alternative Title:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria - Victor Reinstein Interview
- Geographic Coverage:
- British Columbia--Victoria
- Coordinates:
- 48.4359, -123.35155
- Collection:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria, Oral Histories
- Provider:
- University of Victoria (B.C.). Library
- Genre:
- oral histories (literary genre), sound recordings, and transcripts
- Technical Note:
- Recording by Jordan Stanger Ross. Metadata by Morghan Watson. Additional metadata by KD.
6. John Sitwell Interview
- Title:
- John Sitwell Interview
- Description:
- Sitwell was born in Uzbekistan during his parents’ escape from Poland to Israel fleeing the Nazis. He lost much of his family to the Holocaust and his immediate family were early refugees to arrive in Israel where he spent the first few years of his life. He moved to Victoria in 1968 and has been involved in the Victoria Jewish Community since. He helped with the planning of commemorative events but struggled with newer organizing decisions such as eliminating the singing of Hatikvah from the event due to contemporary politics surrounding the Israeli government. Sitwell reflects that resistance to including mention of Israel is increasingly common which is an issue for Sitwell as he believes Israel and being Jewish are inseparably linked.
- Subject:
- Jewish Holocaust (1939-1945), Education, Holocaust memorials, Sitwell, John, and Holocaust survivors
- Creator:
- Defying Hatred Project
- Contributor:
- Stanger-Ross, Jordan
- Language:
- eng
- Date Created:
- 2019-11-13
- Rights Statement:
- In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
- License:
- This item made available for research and private study.
- Resource Type:
- http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Sound and http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
- Extent:
- 00:42:53 (Part 01) and 00:57:35 (Part 02)
- Alternative Title:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria - John Sitwell Interview
- Geographic Coverage:
- British Columbia--Victoria
- Coordinates:
- 48.4359, -123.35155
- Collection:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria, Oral Histories
- Provider:
- University of Victoria (B.C.). Library
- Genre:
- sound recordings, oral histories (literary genre), and transcripts
- Technical Note:
- Recording by Jordan Stanger Ross. Metadata by Morghan Watson. Additional metadata by KD.
7. Elisheva Gray Interview
- Title:
- Elisheva Gray Interview
- Description:
- Gray felt compelled to be involved in Holocaust memorialization following some impactful Holocaust education she received during her teenage years. She worked with her close friend Gidi Nahshon, a second-generation survivor whose family was from Bardejov. Beginning in 2014, Gray -along with several community members- helped found the Victoria Shoah Project which took over organizing Holocaust commemorative events each year. The Project aimed to create dynamic, intergenerational events that focused on personal stories of the Holocaust and applying the lessons of history to contemporary issues.
- Subject:
- Gray, Elisheva, Holocaust survivors, Holocaust memorials, Education, and Jewish Holocaust (1939-1945)
- Creator:
- Defying Hatred Project
- Contributor:
- Stanger-Ross, Jordan
- Language:
- eng
- Date Created:
- 2019-12-10
- Rights Statement:
- In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
- License:
- This item made available for research and private study.
- Resource Type:
- http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Sound and http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
- Extent:
- 00:57:13
- Alternative Title:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria - Elisheva Gray Interview
- Geographic Coverage:
- British Columbia--Victoria and Slovakia--Bardejov
- Coordinates:
- 49.29175, 21.27271 and 48.4359, -123.35155
- Collection:
- Remembering the Holocaust in Victoria, Oral Histories
- Provider:
- University of Victoria (B.C.). Library
- Genre:
- sound recordings, oral histories (literary genre), and transcripts
- Technical Note:
- Recording by Jordan Stanger Ross. Metadata by Morghan Watson. Additional metadata by KD.