Global vigil will conclude 30 days of remembrance, education, and activism for Genocide Awareness Month

On Thursday, April 29th, AMEL will participate in a 24-hour online global vigil to honor victims of, and upstanders to, identity-based violence throughout history. Organized by a Coalition led by Together We Remember, the vigil will unite survivors and advocates across borders and generations in an unprecedented effort to counter division, disinformation, and hate in schools, communities, and on social media. It will begin tonight - at 12:01AM ET on Thursday, April 29 - and conclude 24 hours later at 11:59AM ET. AMEL will lead the hour starting at 11am ET on Thursday with a focus on Sudan, Yemen and Syria and the role that young people play in interrupting and preventing atrocities.

“With hate on the rise and a global pandemic keeping us apart, it’s essential that we come together virtually across lines of difference,” says David Fox-Estrin, founder and CEO of Together We Remember and the grandson of four Holocaust survivors. “On April 29th, we intend to demonstrate the diversity and depth of work being done by incredible organizations around the world to make ‘never again’ a reality, once and for all.”

This program is the culminating event of the #TogetherWeRemember Coalition’s annual Genocide Awareness Month campaign - thirty days of remembrance, learning, and action to end identity-based violence, led by museums, schools, NGOs, and communities. The vigil will feature over fifty genocide museums and human rights organizations and travel across twenty-seven countries and dozens of cities, from Hong Kong to Los Angeles. It will begin at 12:01AM ET on Thursday, April 29 and conclude at 11:59AM ET. All 24 hours will stream live on Together We Remember’s Facebook Page and YouTube Channel, where viewers can get involved in a global dialogue and take action to further truth, democracy, and human rights. Attendees are encouraged to register in advance to receive a reminder with the links once the vigil begins.

Beginning at 11:00 am ET (15:00 GMT) on Thursday, AMEL will host 1 hour of the global vigil, highlighting young leaders and activists from across the Middle East and Africa and diaspora and allies in the US. The session will seek to honor victims and survivors of genocide and identity-based violence – past and present – while also offering hope through examples of how young people take action to interrupt and prevent atrocities. The session will feature young leaders and activists from Sudan, Yemen and Syria, as well as poetry, candle lightings and more.

Each hour of the vigil has been carefully curated by genocide education experts and human rights activists responding to ongoing atrocities across the world (see graphic below for list of partners). Attendees will have the opportunity to experience inclusive name-readings, insightful speakers, and inspiring performances designed to turn collective memory into collective action.