To mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, the Hong Kong Holocaust and Tolerance Centre (HKHTC) hosted a compelling event featuring Professor Peter Lantos, Holocaust survivor and author of The Boy Who Didn’t Want to Die and Parallel Lines: A Journey from Childhood to Belsen.

On 19 June 2025, a full audience gathered to hear Peter share his powerful first‑hand account of his family’s survival during the Holocaust, and how those experiences later shaped his distinguished career as a medical scientist and author.

踏入亂世，愛能否跨越界限？
In a world at war, can love transcend borders?

1938年，戰火逼近，一對兄弟逃離納粹迫害，隨近兩萬猶太難民輾轉抵達上海。兩人在陌生的異鄉開展新生活，弟弟卻與上海姑娘萌生一段世俗不容的愛情——一段跨越文化、挑戰命運的愛情故事即將展開！音樂交織歷史，旋律承載情感。《上海！上海！》將打造一場震撼心靈的音樂旅程。

Written by Emmy Award-winning composer Aaron Zigman’s Émigré, this semi-staged production narrates the forbidden love between a Jewish refugee and a Shanghainese girl. Two brothers flee imminent Nazi persecution following Kristallnacht in 1938. They find sanctuary in the distant and unfamiliar city of Shanghai, joining nearly 20,000 other Jewish refugees in rebuilding lives away from their native land. The forbidden love between the younger brother and a Shanghainese girl ends in tragedy.

For everyone who had the opportunity to watch Aaron Zigman’s Émigré with us at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre in spring 2025, we hope you enjoyed the experience. Please click here for the HKPhil trailer of the remarkable performance. 

Local teachers and educators joined us at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) and at the University of Macau in the week of 24 February 2025 for a special educators workshop series titled “Foundational Past: Holocaust Education and Collective Memory in the 21st Century,” presented by Professor Marc van Berkel, the only Chair Professor of Holocaust Studies in the Netherlands.

This important workshop series delved into the current status of Holocaust education in the Netherlands, examining the various aspects of historical content and pedagogical approaches. Professor van Berkel also explored how the Holocaust was processed and represented in key institutions, with a particular focus on the National Holocaust Museum in Amsterdam and the Camp Westerbork National Memorial Centre.

It was wonderful to have different teachers who joined us that week, especially those looking to deepen their understanding of Holocaust education and engage with a critical aspect of collective memory, as well as the vital role of education in shaping our understanding of the past.

As HKHTC’s Special Educational Event Series continues to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Auschwitz’s liberation and the end of World War II, Holocaust survivor Mark Spigelman joined Simon K. Li, HKHTC Executive Director and Senior Fellow at the University of Southern California’s Shoah Foundation, for a series of dialogue events across various schools and college campuses in both Hong Kong and Macau. These sessions engaged primary and secondary school students, as well as university students, in meaningful discussions.

In addition, Rachel Spigelman, the child of Holocaust survivors and accomplished author of Blue Eyes Wide Open, spent time with schoolchildren for a reading and discussion centered on her father’s wartime stories.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the students from our partner schools and colleges for their enthusiastic engagement. Their thoughtful and insightful questions made this month truly memorable as they learned about Professor Spigelman’s story of resilience and survival during wartime.