In somber recognition of International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Friday, Google on Thursday launched ‘First Person: Stories of the Holocaust,’ a digital initiative featuring personal accounts from survivors and liberators.
The project is a collaboration between Google Arts & Culture and the USC Shoah Foundation, and includes 32 narrated first-person accounts from Holocaust witnesses, historical documents, and 600 photos. These stories have been recorded and preserved by USC Shoah Foundation’s Visual History Archive, the world’s largest moving image collection of firsthand testimonies of survivors and witnesses of the Holocaust and other genocides.
‘First Person: Stories of the Holocaust’ gives voice to the survivors and liberators by presenting their accounts in a digital format, offering a comprehensive and immersive experience that transports users back in time to witness the atrocities of the Holocaust through the eyes of those who lived through it.
The project comprises six sections: ‘Before the Holocaust,’ ‘Ghettos and Concentration Camps,’ ‘Resistance and Rescue,’ ‘Liberation,’ ‘Aftermath,’ and ‘Memory and Legacy.’ Each section presents powerful and moving accounts from survivors who endured unimaginable horrors and liberators who risked their lives to save others, providing a multifaceted perspective on the Holocaust.
One of the most striking features of ‘First Person: Stories of the Holocaust’ is the use of 360-degree video footage to offer an immersive, first-hand experience of concentration camps. Users can navigate through these virtual environments, witnessing the conditions in which the victims lived and died.
The project also includes a ‘Behind the Scenes’ section where users can learn more about the making of the initiative, the process of collecting and preserving these stories, and the importance of Holocaust remembrance and education.
In addition to the digital platform, ‘First Person: Stories of the Holocaust’ will also be available through an interactive exhibition that will tour globally, bringing these powerful accounts to wider audiences.
Through this initiative, Google and USC Shoah Foundation aim to educate and inspire future generations, ensuring that the memory of the Holocaust remains alive and that its lessons continue to shape the world we live in.
‘First Person: Stories of the Holocaust’ is available now on Google Arts & Culture, and the interactive exhibition is set to tour globally. For more information, visit the official website: https://artsandculture.google.com/project/first-person-stories-of-the-holocaust.
