Es gilt das gesprochene Wort!
Guten tag ladies and gentlemen. My name is Helga Arndtheim Melmed. I was born in Germany in December of 1927 and I am a survivor of the holocaust. At 98 I have seen alot, the good and the bad; and I have found the best thing is to have freedom. To me, freedom means having choices.
I was deported by force, not by choice, from my home by the nazi soldiers, on behalf of the nazi government. Taken to a different country after being shoved into a cattle car along with my parents and hundreds of others. After traveling for days, without food or water, we were all forced again to get off the train at the Lodz getto in Poland. The people there spoke a different language and the conditions there were not fit for human life. None of this happened by choice, at least not by my choice.
Propaganda, descrimination, persecution, evil and violence became the normal and I had to live with them everyday from the time I was in Kindergarten until the liberation of Bergin-Belsin. By 1945 I was near death from starvation, tuberculosis and typhus. I was 17 and weighed only 20 kilo.
Yet from the nightmare of this tourture I survived. It was hope and love that saved this one life of mine. As a surviving victim, I have a choice; and so, I choose to share with you today this legacy born of suffering and pain, born of the loss of my family and born of dehumanization; with the hope that from this darkness the light of freedom will emerge. A light of peace, hope tolerance and understanding. The light of freedom for all people everywhere!
Democracy tries to bring all of these things to all of her citizens in this country, in the United States and all of the rest of the democratic countries all over the world.
Freedom means many things to many people. To me it means having choices and the ability to choose. Democracy is the vessal that allows us the freedom to choose.
But Democracy is fragile. For it to be all it can be requires things like honesty, trust and decency. There has always been people who will take advantage of that, and it takes courage to stand up for equality. And it takes laws to protect freedom for all. Without laws and especially without accountability, freedom turns into chaos.
That is why I am urgeing everyone to choose wisely. Our choices today will effect the generations to come. Please pay attention to and take part in the process at every level. Educate instead of hate. Hate has no place in a civilized society.
When we all take time to understand ourselves and each other, we can look forward to a future we really want to be a part of. A future where love, respect and decency rule. Afterall, love isn’t only better than hate, love is also stronger than hate.
Your being here today and listening to what i have to say. It gives meaning to my survival, thank you and. . . .
CHOOSE LOVE!
Datum: 6. Mai 2026 ab 12.30 Uhr
Ort: Rathaus, Plenarsaal