Neumann’s Fight: A Survivor’s Truth
Avigdor Neumann knows what it takes to survive. As a kid, he lived through the Holocaust’s horrors, his arm tattooed with a number that marks the Nazi genocide of six million Jews. Now, he’s standing with Dafna, Ella, and Eitan, kids who faced their own terror when Hamas stormed Israel on October 7, killing 1,200, including 36 children, and snatching 251 hostages, including them. Freed in a November 2023 deal, they carry the weight of weeks in Gaza’s tunnels, where 59 others, like Omri Miran, are still held.
In the video, the kids watch a clip of some online influencer claiming October 7 never happened. Dafna’s eyes tear up, Ella clings to her sister, Eitan looks shell-shocked. Neumann, calm but firm, points to his tattoo and says, “There are things you cannot erase.”
It’s a quiet, crushing answer to denialists, tying the Holocaust’s six million victims to the 1,200 murdered in 2023.
The Campaign: A Call Heard Worldwide
Kicked off for Yom HaShoah, this campaign lands as the world remembers 80 years since Auschwitz’s liberation. By putting Neumann’s story in seven languages, the Civil Advocacy Center - ISRAELI SPIRIT reaches Jewish folks from Brooklyn to Bucharest and places like Germany, where Holocaust history shapes how people think.
Yiddish, almost wiped out by the Nazis, and Russian, big among Israeli immigrants, make it feel personal, while English and German go for a global audience. It’s a direct response to a 360% jump in U.S. antisemitic incidents since October 7, says the Anti-Defamation League.
Eliav Batito, who runs the Headquarters, says it straight: “Since the war started, more people are denying what we went through. Every generation has those who want to destroy us, and some try to erase our past. Saying October 7 didn’t happen is antisemitism, just like denying the Holocaust or other tragedies we’ve faced. Yom HaShoah is the day to make this clear.”
A Voice That Demands Action
Neumann, Dafna, Ella, and Eitan aren’t just sharing stories; they’re telling us to face the truth. As Yom HaShoah 2025 hits, their video is a loud wake-up: antisemitism is still here. Neumann’s tattooed arm and these kids’ bravery demand we listen and act, now.
