POLAND – Earlier this week, a groundbreaking educational mission set off for Poland: a delegation of deaf women, participating in a fully accessible journey through the sites of Jewish heritage and the Holocaust. The entire experience was conducted in sign language, offering participants a powerful and inclusive connection to history.
Four Days Across Poland: From Lublin to Auschwitz
Over the course of four days, the group traveled to Lublin, Majdanek, Kraków, Warsaw, and Auschwitz-Birkenau, tracing the arc of Jewish life and its destruction under the Nazis. The participants learned about the vibrant Jewish communities of pre-war Poland, the machinery of extermination during the Holocaust, acts of Jewish resistance, and moral choices in times of crisis. The journey also touched on contemporary questions of belonging, disability, and inclusion in society—bringing historic memory into direct dialogue with modern values.
An Experience of Depth, Access, and Dignity
Organized with full sign language accessibility, the trip marked one of the few efforts globally to adapt Holocaust education to the deaf community. The initiative ensures that those often excluded from public discourse are empowered to participate in national memory.
“This is an extraordinary delegation of remarkable women,” said Guy Goldstein, a group leader from the Dror Israel youth movement, who guided the mission. “It’s the first time we’ve made a Poland journey fully accessible in sign language. It’s emotional, challenging—and incredibly meaningful.”
Led by the HaMeorer Educational Center
The journey was coordinated by Gal Naor, a professional interpreter who accompanied the group and ensured every participant could engage fully in learning, reflection, and dialogue. The mission was part of a program by HaMeorer Educational Center, founded in 1996 by graduates of the Working and Studying Youth Movement. Inspired by Yosef Haim Brenner’s call for public awakening, the center specializes in dialogue-based educational journeys, value seminars, and teacher training across Israel.
