What does the future of May 4th and 5th look like? How can we ensure that remembering remains valuable for everyone in the Netherlands? And how can we ensure that the lessons of the past will stay on the radar in the future? Big questions without easy answers.
Peace and freedom are an obviousness to the Dutch. But peace is a shared project to which everyone can and must contribute.
You would think that we are still aware of the atrocities of World War II. However, that is not the case. Research from 2023 shows that 23 percent of young people born since 1980 doubt the persecution of Jews during World War II. It also appears that a third to more than half of them know little about the genocide. Alarming, but also a fact. What are we doing wrong as a society when history fades from memory?
Various foundations in the Netherlands guard the memory of World War II and think about a new form to commemorate it. The question is, can you remember what you have never experienced? Commemorating implies thinking of something you are or were not a part of. Will that be enough to prevent repeating our past mistakes?
Living with war. Traces in generations and society.
Can’t we base commemorating not only on the past but especially on the present or future? Doesn’t commemorating concern the impact of war and what it means to live together in peace? Many companies have to work hard to safeguard peace. What can you as an individual do to maintain peace? For example, our behavior, upbringing, or political choices have a lot of influence.
From commemorating to thinking, perhaps that’s the future. Not 2 minutes of silence to remember what we don’t know, but 2 minutes of silence to think about what we can do for the sake of peace ourselves. So it’s not just about ‘those who have fallen,’ but also about ‘what would I do?’ or ‘what can I do now?’ Hence the question, what can you do for peace?