Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday commemorated the 80th anniversary of the Bialystok ghetto uprising in Poland, referring to the uprising against Nazi Germany as an act of “bravery.”
In a video statement, Blinken explained how his late stepfather, Samuel Pisar, and his family were sent to different concentration camps after Nazi soldiers shut down the ghetto uprising.
Blinken also noted how Pisar’s father smuggled Jewish children out of the ghetto and weapons into it to help those in his community fight against German forces, and how Helaina, Pisar’s mother, forced him to wear long pants instead of shorts in an effort to make the then-13-year-old Pisar look more like a man so Nazi soldiers would send him to a forced labor camp rather than a death camp.
Blinken’s mother, Judith Pisar, took part in the observances in Bialystok, according to The Associated Press. U.S. Ambassador to Poland Mark Brzezinski also attended the event.
“How are we to understand this uprising eight decades later? I see it as one of countless acts of resistance by Jews in ghettos and Nazi German concentration camps across Europe to reject their dehumanization, to reaffirm their dignity,” Blinken said in his video address. “Acts not of futility, but of bravery.”
Blinken also said in his address that he’s thankful to the city of Bialystok and its officials for recognizing this day, mentioning the importance of teaching the accurate history of the Holocaust in local schools.
“The United States will always be your partner in keeping this history alive,” Blinken said. “We’re taking another step in that effort by working with our Congress to invest $1 million to help create a virtual tour of Auschwitz-Birkenau so that more people who can’t visit can experience the indelible impact of seeing that site.”
“So on this day, I know [Pisar] would be especially moved to see not only his wife and two of his children in Bialystok, but also three of his five grandchildren — Arielle, David, Jeremiah — all doing their part to fulfill the enduring responsibility that, together, we inherit: to make real the command of ‘Never again.'”
It’s been 80 years since the Jewish residents revolted against Nazi rule in Bialystok, just months removed from a similar uprising that was happening in Warsaw, Poland. Both revolts were foiled by Nazi forces, and survivors were then sent to death camps.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.