The exhibit is titled “They Risked Their Lives – Poles Who Saved Jews during the Holocaust”. It has been sponsored by Poland’s Consulate General in Chicago and it is being co-presented at the Thompson Center thanks to cooperation between the Polish Consul General Paulina Kapuscinska and the Office of Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner.
“This exhibit’s mission is to teach about the virtues of courage and self-sacrifice. It shows how a single person’s life choices can change history for entire generations of people” said Consul General Kapuscinska.
This exhibit commemorates the Polish Righteous Among the Nations, who demonstrated extraordinary courage and risked their own lives – and the lives of their families – to rescue Jewish men, women and children from extermination by the Nazis. The exhibit is a tribute to the rescuers who by saving a single life saved entire generations.
Polish citizens were the only people in the entire Nazi-occupied territory who were punished by death for helping Jewish people. Over 20,000 people worldwide have been honored by the State of Israel as the Righteous Among the Nations for saving Jewish lives from the Holocaust, and nearly than 6,500 were Polish citizens, the highest number from any country.
The exhibit will be displayed for the week of May 18-22 and is located in the Ground Level Atrium of the James R. Thompson Center, 100 W. Randolph Street, Chicago.
Andrew Mikolajczyk