Holocaust Survivor and Civil Rights Activist Judy Meisel to Speak at Colorado State University

Colorado State University’s 11th annual Holocaust Awareness Week will feature Judy Meisel, a Holocaust survivor and civil rights activist. Meisel will speak at 7 p.m. March 1 in the Lory Student Center Theatre following a showing of her documentary, "Tak For Alt, Survival of the Human Spirit."

While "tak for alt" literally translates to "thanks for everything," the true meaning is much deeper. A more accurate translation is: "With deep and profound gratitude for the bounty and fullness of life."

In "Tak for Alt," Meisel documents her return to Denmark, where she visits the grave of Paula Jensen, the Catholic woman who was a foster mother to Meisel and her sister after they escaped to Denmark from Nazi-occupied Poland. On Jensen’s gravestone are the words, "Tak for alt."

"Judy Meisel’s inspiring film and discussion talks about the capacity each of us has to make a difference in the lives of others," said Hedy Berman, Hillel director at Colorado State. "It’s fitting for our theme of the week, ‘Do Not Stand Idly By.’"

Meisel has shown her film to audiences around the country as part of a lifelong crusade against racism. She became active in the U.S. civil rights movement in the mid 1960s in Philadelphia; her involvement included the March on Washington and a meeting with Martin Luther King Jr.

"I felt that, when others’ rights were trampled on, my Jewish rights were trampled on at the same time," Meisel said of her experience with the civil rights movement.

For more information about Holocaust Awareness Week at Colorado State, contact Hillel at (970) 491-2080 or visit http://csu.hillelcolorado.org.

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