A symposium on tattooing as memorial, identity, and legacy

Tattoos have long carried complex meaning in Jewish life—rooted in biblical prohibition, scarred by Holocaust trauma, and now reclaimed by new generations as symbols of remembrance and resilience.

This timely program created for descendants of Holocaust survivors explores how tattoos are being reimagined as deeply personal acts of memory and healing framed by the complexity of this phenomenon in Jewish tradition.

Featuring two powerful short films:

• Tattooed 4 Life (30 minutes) – A moving portrait of a tattoo artist commemorating victims of the Nova Music Festival massacre
• Inked: Our Stories Remarked (23 minutes) – A poignant look at how grandchildren of Holocaust survivors use tattoos to honour loss and legacy

A panel discussion will follow with:

• Dara Bratt, filmmaker (Inked)
• Michelle Rose, film participant and descendant
• Yacov Fruchter, spiritual leader, Beth Tzedec
• Moderated by Michael Fraiman, The CJN

The program includes lunch and small-group reflections, offering space for connection and conversation.

Can pain be transformed into purpose? How do we carry memory in the body and the heart? Join us to explore these questions and more in a gathering of story, symbol, and shared legacy.

The program will conclude with “Sharing Sessions” exclusively for children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors, moderated by mental health care professionals and social workers. There is also an option to join an open discussion session focused on the central themes of the symposium open to everyone.