The ever-growing incidents of anti-Semitic attacks on both sides of the Atlantic have had many looking over their shoulders in recent months, but the devastating Pittsburgh synagogue massacre that left eleven people brutally slaughtered has evoked images of Nazi Germany like never before. Seeing innocent people murdered in cold blood in their place of worship simply because they were Jews is a horrific reminder that we cannot let the Holocaust be forgotten and that it is crucial to teach the younger generation about racial tolerance while empowering them to change the world by promoting harmony and positivity.
An all new star-studded music video shot in Warsaw with footage of the POLIN Museum of Jewish History aims to bring that message home, showing that educating our children is the key to acceptance, the first step towards eradicating hatred and racial bias. Featuring the legendary Dudu Fisher, the son of a Holocaust survivor, Israeli superstar Gad Elbaz, Saul Dreier of the Holocaust Survivor Band and more than 80 Polish children of all religions, Change the World offers a much needed message of hope at a time when so many are still grieving the Pittsburgh bloodbath that has left the world reeling.
“We are living in a world filled with political rhetoric, hate and antagonism, all created by adults and the time has come to say enough,” said Daniel Finkelman, producer and director of Change the World. “The time has come to for us to start a new chapter, so that our children can live in a new world, one that is filled with acceptance and tolerance.”
Banishing the chaos and animosity that breed anti-Semitism is crucial, explained Cecelia Margules, who wrote both the music and the lyrics for Change the World, in addition to serving as the video’s executive producer along with Arie Taykan and Sylvia Kahana.
“In a world that so often is filled with darkness, we need to find the light that gives our world its beauty and its purpose,” said Margules. “It is the purity and innocence of the children that will guide us in that direction, helping us to change the world so that peace and brotherhood can reign supreme once again.”
Dreier, a Holocaust survivor who was whipped with a belt by infamous SS commander Amon Goeth, celebrated his 94th birthday while filming in Warsaw. Sharing the occasion with friends and a group of children on Polish soil was an uplifting and emotional experience, one that demonstrated that positive relationships and tolerance can be a reality. Those sentiments come alive in Change the World, which was co-directed by Aharon Orian, with line production and concept written by Chaya Greenberg.
“Why did I go back to Poland?” mused Dreier. “Because I believe in the children. And I believe that they are the key to ending anti-Semitism and making sure that what happened in my childhood should never happen again.”