On April 19, the Irwin Cotler Fellows embarked on their first trip of the second semester, a day marked by profound historical reflection and a stark transition from the shadows of the past to the unique natural landscapes of the region. The day began at Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center and Israel’s official memorial to the victims of the Shoah. The visit served as a sobering immersion into the systematic destruction of European Jewry and the vital importance of safeguarding the memory of those lost to one of humanity’s darkest chapters.

Following the tour, Prof. Uriya Shavit, the Head of the Institute, led a discussion on the complexities of memory and representation across museums, literature, and cinema. The discussion examined the impact of focusing on the “heroes” of the Shoah versus its victims and analyzed two seminal poems by Dan Pagis: “Written in Pencil in the Sealed Railway-Car” and “Testimony”. Through these texts, the Fellows explored the linguistic challenges of expressing the unimaginable. A key point of the discussion was Pagis’s refusal to provide a composite or sensory picture of the Shoah, instead utilizing sparse biblical metaphors and a protest against the inversion of divine justice.

The discussion was then grounded in personal narrative as Fellow Nancye Kochen shared testimonies regarding her own family’s experiences during the Shoah. Her contribution offered a poignant bridge between historical memory and individual legacy, reminding the group of the living memory carried by the descendants of survivors.

In the afternoon, the fellows traveled toward the Judean Desert for their second stop: Ein Bokek on the shores of the Dead Sea, one of the world’s most magnificent natural wonders. Here, the Cotler fellows had the chance to relax and unwind, floating in the sea, coating themselves in nutrient-rich mud, and enjoying the mountainous desert landscapes at 440 meters below sea level.