”The Polish Righteous – Recalling Forgotten History” is a project of the Museum of the History of Polish Jews, dedicated to the people who rescued Jews during the Second World War. According to the Talmud, "Whosoever saves a single life, saves the world entire". The Righteous risked their own lives to oppose evil. In this way, they saved us and our humanity. We focus on three main areas: documenting stories of rescue, presenting them on the bilingual Polish-English website www.righteous.pl and undertaking educational projects.
The research covers both Poland and Israel. Interviews with witnesses of history – the rescuers, rescued and witnesses to rescue – are conducted by trained researchers. A meticulous preliminary research precedes these meetings. We use the accounts given after the War, available in the archives of the Jewish Historical Institute and the Yad Vashem Institute in Jerusalem. We also have the invaluable support of the partners of our project: the Polish Society of the Righteous Among the Nations, the Association of “Children of the Holocaust” and the Embassy of Israel in Warsaw.
We systematically collect documents, photos, audio and video recordings. These are edited and published on the project’s website (www.righteous.pl). Through the Internet, we are able to reach a broad public interested in the subject of the Righteous – both in Poland and around the world.
Numerous educational projects have been undertaken, aimed at introducing young people to the subject of the Righteous. We present stories of rescue, teach civic conduct and inspire people to act. We train teachers and educators, encouraging them to use educational materials prepared by us – scenarios of lessons and a virtual exhibition – and made available on our website.
The Website
Our portal (www.righteous.pl) constitutes a constantly growing compendium of information devoted to the Polish Righteous Among the Nations.
The central element of the website is a collection of rescue stories consisting of several hundred texts. They are supplemented with photos, documents, excerpts from audio interviews and fragments of video recordings.
In the section “Educational Programs”, we offer interesting material to all users and provide an account of activities in progress.
The portal also collects other kinds of information connected with the Righteous, as well as references to additional resources: books, film, broadcasts and press articles.
We invite anyone interested in sharing their story or seeking witnesses of past events to publish their letters and accounts in the section “Your stories”.