By Jessica Lewis, News Editor

Living in a time of hatred and racially motivated violence does not seem to be within the popular consciousness of people in this country and of time period. Students were able to hear first-person accounts of people who’ve experienced these ordeals when survivors of the Rwandan Genocide and the Holocaust came to speak at the University on Monday, March 8. 

“We wanted to bring the speakers [Eugenie Mukeshimana and David Gewirtzman] to educate the campus and community about genocides in history, specifically the Holocaust and Rwanda,” Ben Ring, the Jewish Student Life Coordinator said. “We wanted to give people an opportunity to see that, despite the hatred and bigotry they experienced, they can still share their story. We are all a part of one big human family that’s needs to look out for each other…every one needs to help create a world free of bigotry and hatred.”

Mukeshimana and Gewirtzman spoke of their stories of survival on behalf of Hofstra Hillel, the Office of New Student Programs and Organizations, and the Office of Multicultural and International Student Programs.

“We had these two speakers so people can have the chance to learn about what you don’t learn about in books…it is different from reading a book, with speakers it is so much more personal,” said Senior Genocide Fellow Nhaomie Douyon.

Mukeshimana shared her story of escaping the Rwandan Genocide against the Tutsis in 1994, but wanted to stress that she was not exposed solely to Rwanda in a state of violence. “Rwanda is known usually because of the genocide that took place almost 16 years ago, but the Rwanda that you know from that time is not the Rwanda that I know,” Mukeshimana said. “I have very good memories of my childhood just growing up in a regular family. You have neighbors that you really love, and the kids that I used to play with when I was young, and the family, which is a very important part of your life when you grow up in a place like Rwanda.”

Eight months pregnant, Mukeshimana still managed to escape death. However, her husband was not as lucky. Separated during the genocide, Mukeshimana’s husband was killed before he reached safety

Though she survived, she lost everything except her child, with whom she came to the United States in 2001. “When you survive a genocide there are so many things you have to worry about you are given a second chance at life, and you are trying to rebuild your life,” Mukeshimana concluded.

Gewirtzman stepped up to the podium next, inviting the audience to share in his story of survival. “68 years ago in a small town in eastern Europe in Poland [Losice]…my Hebrew teacher gathered his young students and this is what he said, ‘the world has abandoned us we are doomed and very few of us, if any, will survive the war that is in store for us, but if by miracle one of you does survive please remember you have a mission an obligation to tell the world of what happened here it will not help us anymore however indeed it may help the future generations,'” he stated.

Gewirtzman explained to the audience that it was a very difficult process: sticking together with his family, all of them trying to survive. There were several times when he could have easily be captured and killed.

Gewirtzman shared the memories he had of building a small hidden room in his home with his family. This room’s purpose was to hide from the Nazis. This room would prove its significance after the Nazis ordered all the residents of the town to pack a bag with clothes so they would be taken to work. Gewirtzman warned his father that this would not be a good idea, and this warning became all too true when the residents of Losice that trusted the Nazis were shot instead.

Through many more struggles, Gewirtzman, like Mukeshimana, made it to the United States, and began a new life.

“The story of genocides were horrifying- hearing about the deceit by formerly close friends and how hate can transform humans into beasts,” said Junior Connie Campos. “What hit the hardest was knowing that we are the last generation to hear from holocaust survivors, and to have been in the physical presence of such amazing people.”

Fellows in the University’s Genocide Program pose with speakers Eugenie Mukashimana and David Gewirtzman in the Student Center Theater on Monday. (Jessica Lewis/The Chronicle)