2nd-Generation Holocaust Survivor Reveals Why Acknowledging International Holocaust Remembrance Day Is More Important Than Ever
Ellen Korman Mains, author of the #1 Amazon bestselling memoir Buried Rivers, says Jan. 27 should be a day to redouble our efforts to end genocide.
BOULDER, Colo., Jan. 10, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- This year, second-generation Holocaust survivor and bestselling memoirist Ellen Korman Mains will mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Jan. 27 at the site of the infamous Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland. Mains is making the trip, one of many she has taken to ensure that the world does not forget the murder of over six million Jews who were killed in concentration camps and mass graves during World War II.
Mains says, "It's important to commemorate such events, not only to remember the dead, but to combat ignorance of the past and to remind ourselves that genocides and mass violence are continuing."
As proof, Mains cites a recent study by the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany; among other things, the study found that two-thirds of American millennials could not identify what Auschwitz is and 22 percent had not even heard of the Holocaust. Adults who participated in the survey did not fare much better. Seven out of ten Americans said fewer people seem to care about the Holocaust than they used to and 58 percent believed that another Holocaust could happen. Furthermore, only about 20 percent of Americans have visited a Holocaust museum, according to the survey.
Mains says, "Since the Holocaust was perpetrated and allowed to take place by 'ordinary people' not so different from ourselves, it's important to look at the inner roots of genocide, and how we can help prevent them from spreading."
In her new book, Buried Rivers: A Spiritual Journey into the Holocaust (West Lake Books), Mains, whose mother survived Auschwitz, explores her family's lost history and the question of "basic goodness" while journeying through Poland and Germany, where she felt the souls of the dead seeking resolution of this question.
In an interview she can talk about:
- Being at Auschwitz on January 27
- What compels her to make frequent trips to Poland
- What we can do to understand and help end genocide
- Being both a Buddhist and a Jew
Praise for Buried Rivers
"A rich prose journey into the author's ancestral homeland where she unearths her Jewish family's trauma legacy. . . A beautiful and important memoir that uplifts as much as it compels." — Rabbi Tirzah Firestone, Ph.D., author of Wounds into Wisdom: Healing Intergenerational Jewish Trauma
"A compelling personal spiritual journey that crosses religious boundaries in order to tackle some of the deepest mysteries of life and death." — Zvi Ish-Shalom, Ph.D., author of The Kedumah Experience: The Primordial Torah
"By shedding light on something so dark, she demonstrates that healing, opportunity, and magic can emerge from the densest suffering." — Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel, author of The Power of an Open Question and The Logic of Faith
About the author
The daughter of Polish-born Jews who survived the Holocaust, Ellen Korman Mains has led meditation retreats in both North America and Europe, and speaks to groups on the subject of ancestral connection and inherited trauma. Trained in several body-mind disciplines, she works with individuals to deepen compassionate self-awareness. A citizen of Canada, where she was born, the USA, and Poland, she lives mainly in Boulder, Colo., but spends extended periods of time in Poland teaching, promoting dialog, and connecting with her heritage.
Attention media: While in Poland Mains will be accessible through Skype, Zoom and Facetime
Contact: Ellen Korman Mains, (720) 292-4520; [email protected], www.EllenKormanMains.com
SOURCE Ellen Korman Mains
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