Produced Content
The following is a collection of videos Eli was involved with, that tell stories of resilience and survival from the Holocaust.
The Holocaust was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1939 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe, around two-thirds of Europe's Jewish population.
“If We Never See Each Other Again”
Directed by Naomi Wise
A film based on interviews with Kindertransport survivors from the USC Shoah Foundation. Produced by the International March of the Living to mark the 85th anniversary of the Kindertransport. Premiered on JBS on Jan. 21, 2024
I Am Anne Frank.
To Live and Die with Honor: The Story of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.
2013 marks 70 years since a small band of Jewish fighters launched the heroic Warsaw Ghetto Uprising on April 19, 1943. 13,000 Jews were killed in the ghetto during the uprising - some 6,000 among them were burnt alive or died from other causes. The Germans had planned to liquidate the Warsaw ghetto in three days, but the heroic ghetto fighters held out for more than a month.
Requiem for the Warsaw Ghetto.
The annual March of the Living program brings thousands of young people from around the world each year on Holocaust Remembrance Day to Auschwitz-Birkenau to honour the memory of the victims of the Holocaust and to pledge to build a better world for all humanity.
Lay Down Your Arms.
Musical Work premiered in Auschwitz-Birkenau at March of the Living on Holocaust Remembrance Day To mark the 70th anniversary of the end of WWII in Europe, the March of the Living Children’s Choir and the Habonim Youth Choir, joined by other young people who love singing and yearn for a peaceful world, recorded a special version of the Israeli peace song, “Lay Down Your Arms”, first recorded in Toronto, by the Habonim Youth Choir, in 1992.
Twice Liberated
88-year-old Joe Mandel, a Holocaust survivor originally from Munkacs, Hungary, now living in Toronto, Canada, never shared his Holocaust experiences with anyone until he took part in the 2012 March of the Living. In this moving segment, Joe's return to Eastern Europe yields a most surprising and welcome reunion.
Auschwitz-Birkenau: 70 Years After Liberation..A Warning to Future Generations
On the eve of the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, five Canadian Holocaust survivors who have participated in the March of the Living share their memories and reflections of Auschwitz-Birkenau and the meaning of this important anniversary. Their words are interspersed with images of these same survivors visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau in the last number of years, along with comments from students who accompanied them on the March of the Living.
The film is part of March of the Living Canada's Digital Archives Project.
For more info, click this button
Candles of Kindness
Joseph Gottdenker, a Polish-born Holocaust survivor, and a hidden child during the war, visits his parents’ hometown of Mielec, where he makes a remarkable - and heartwarming - discovery.
Czeslawa & Olga
For most of her life, Ms. Zak had two dreams:
a) to fly on a plane
b) to travel to Israel to meet the people she saved, their children and grandchildren.
On the 2013 March of the Living, in the presence of Czeslawa Zak and with the help of the Jewish Federations of Canada, Ms. Zak was promised her dream would come true. In the summer of 2013, Ms. Zak - 87 years young! - landed in Israel just a few days ago and took part in what must have been one of the most moving journeys of her life.
100,000 Souls: The Legacy of Raoul Wallenberg
By the end of the Second World War, the young architect and businessman Raoul Wallenberg saved the lives of tens of thousands of Hungarian Jews. Some estimates suggest that he saved as many as 100,000 people.
Without a Doubt: The Story of Franciszek Pasławski
Servants of God - Marking the Opening of “The Museum of Poles Saving Jews in World War II”, Markowa, Poland. In honour of martyrs Józef & Wiktoria Ulma of Markowa and many other Righteous Among the Nations who risked their lives to save Jews in Poland during the Holocaust.
The event was held on March 17, 2016, at Congregation Habonim, Toronto and sponsored by the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland. Franciszek Pasławski, at the time of the event, was 93 years of age and was the last man, as far as known, designated as one of the Righteous Among the Nations living in Canada. For many decades he was assisted by The Jewish Foundation for the Righteous (https://jfr.org) an organization that provides financial support to aged and needy non-Jews who rescued Jews during the Holocaust and preserves their legacy through a national education program. He passed away in his sleep in September 2019 at 97 years of age.
The music is from André Rieu performing the Love theme from Romeo and Juliet, taken from the DVD "André Rieu - Romantic Moments."
Canadian March of the Living Choir & Eli Rubenstein
at the Polish Consulate
The event was held to honour Peter Jassem, marking his decade-long chairmanship of the Polish-Jewish Heritage Foundation of Canada.
Every year, on Holocaust Remembrance Day, thousands of students march from Auschwitz to Birkenau, honouring the memories of six million Jews and so many other innocent people murdered in the Holocaust. The students then travel to Israel, where they celebrate Israel's Independence Day a week later. The choir sang “Eli, Eli,” “What Will Become of All the Memories,” and “Lay Down Your Arms.”
The event was held on Oct. 18, 2012, at the Polish Consulate in Toronto, Canada.
Nazi Germany’s War Against the Jews: Responding to Implacable Hatred Without Losing Our Humanity
Eli Rubenstein, National Director, March of the Living Canada, delivered this lecture on International Holocaust Remembrance Day Sunday, January 27, 2019, at Library and Archives Canada, in Ottawa, Ontario.
At his talk, Library and Archives Canada displayed a recent acquisition of a rare book once belonging to Adolf Hitler, that compiled population statistics on Jewish communities in Canada and the US - who presumably would also be targeted for genocide if Nazi Germany were to occupy North America.
Kindred Strangers:Matylda Liro & Michael Bulik
Two grandchildren of Yad Vashem's Righteous Among the Nations, Matylda Liro, a Polish journalist in the United States, and Michael Bulik, who operates a Mississauga bakery, were honoured at Congregation Habonim in Toronto.
They were presented with awards by the March of the Living for their grandparents' heroism during the Holocaust. Anita Ekstein and Sally Wasserman, who were both saved by Polish Righteous Gentiles during the Holocaust era, presented the awards.
Eli Rubenstein, national director of March of the Living of Canada, said "although the Holocaust is a story of how humanity can descend to the ultimate depths of almost unimaginable cruelty, yet there is another story which also must be told.
7 Days of Remembrance and Hope
7 Days of Remembrance and Hope (2009). This documentary follows the 2009 journey of 60 Canadian university students of diverse backgrounds on the March of Remembrance and Hope, as they visit the former Nazi German death camps in occupied Poland as well as other historic sites in the country. The March of Remembrance and Hope program is designed for university students of all religions and backgrounds. This program, founded in 2001, takes place in May and includes a two-day trip to Germany before the five-day Poland portion of the trip.
The purpose of the March of Remembrance and Hope is to teach students of different religious and ethnic backgrounds about the dangers of intolerance through the study of the Holocaust and other WWII genocides and to promote better relations among people of diverse cultures.
CBC Interview
CBC Interview with Eli Rubenstein, Jan. 27, 2019, International Holocaust Remembrance Day, in Ottawa, Ontario, concerning the results of the recent
survey by the Azrieli Foundation and the Claims Conference on the level of
Holocaust knowledge in Canada.
Eli’s Tribute Video
On May 8, 2018, March of the Living celebrated its 30th anniversary by honouring Holocaust survivors who participated in the March since 1988 and its National Director, Eli Rubenstein, for his 30 years of service. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was the keynote speaker at the event. He thanked the survivors for their courage and contributions to Canada. He reaffirmed his government’s commitment to apologize for turning away the MS St. Louis from Canadian shores almost 80 years ago. Over 100 Canadian Holocaust survivors have taken part in the March of the Living since its inception, with almost half of them from Toronto. March of the Living Scholarship funds were set up in the names of each Toronto survivor and in honour of Eli Rubenstein to ensure the program's future viability.