Educational activity at the Evening Secondary School of Komotini in Memory of the Genocide of the Roma

On Wednesday, 12 March 2025, the programme Actions for History, Memory and Culture held a presentation on the historical aspects of the persecution of the Roma and Sinti during the Third Reich and the Second World War, addressed to students of the Evening Secondary School of Komotini. The presentation was delivered by Nikos Kosmidis, PhD Candidate in Architecture (Democritus University of Thrace) and Coordinator of the programme, accompanied by photographic material from his field research in sites of memory—such as execution sites and concentration camps—connected with the genocide of the Roma.

Students learned that remembrance of the persecution of the Roma by the Nazi regime and other fascist governments has been officially recognised through the establishment of an International Roma Holocaust Memorial Day, observed annually on 2 August. This day commemorates the extermination in 1944 of the remaining Roma prisoners in the “Zigeunerlager” (“Gypsy Camp”) of Auschwitz, as it was called by the Nazi authorities.

The discussion also encouraged students to reflect on their own experiences of diversity and respect for difference, as many of them come from Roma backgrounds. The dialogue helped them explore essential questions such as why and how we remember the past, and which parts of history we choose to remember.

The event was part of the school’s educational activities and contributed to the ongoing effort of Actions for History, Memory and Culture to preserve the memory of the extermination of the Jewish communities of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace in Treblinka, where hundreds of Roma were also murdered.

The programme warmly thanks Ms Glykeria Fotiadou, Principal of the school, and Mr Panagiotis Manias, educator, for their invitation.
It also reaffirms its commitment to supporting school communities in organising events and actions that promote historical memory, foster respect for diversity, and strengthen humanistic values in times of violence, war, social insecurity, and historical revisionism.