The Holocaust is over. I have no authority to make this bold claim, for if I were to believe it then my background as the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors on my father’s side would be irrelevant, and no Jew directly victimized by the Holocaust would have any increased moral standing in commenting on the place of Holocaust memorial in today’s society.
During last year’s jubilee celebrations of the Jerusalem-Berlin diplomatic relationship, much fanfare was made about economic cooperation, cultural exchanges and academic collaborations, but one topic went little discussed: German- Israeli romantic relations.
Shifting Israel-German discourse away from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the Holocaust and toward the countries’ common values and interests emerged as a new strategy for Israel advocacy at a time when third-generation offspring of the World War II era are distancing themselves from Nazi crimes.
For those seeking a summer weekend in temperatures that are unpredictably mild, or who want to delve into this creative, multicultural city for more than just Germany’s dark past and tortured history, here’s a mini-weekend guide taking you across the city, from west to east:
Puth was only one call – or rather one message – away when a mutual friend introduced me to Puth’s Israeli music director and guitarist, Asaf Rodeh, ahead of his Berlin concert, which happened to coincide with the Eurovision song contest. Rodeh arranged a “meet and greet” with the pop star for us.
