Documentary film »Memory is Our Homeland«

»Memory is Our Homeland« (2019, 90 min.) is a documentary film charting the lost story of Polish refugees in Africa from 1942 to 1952 - a journey that brought a group of children through Siberia, Iran, India, and East Africa, to new lives in Montreal, Sheffield, and across the global Polish diaspora.

It follows the story of Kazia Kolodziej (née Gerech), the grandmother of the filmmaker Jonathan Kołodziej Durand, and other Polish refugees, as they meditate on the meaning of memory, identity, and homeland. Grappling with memories of a traumatic exile in the Soviet Union, followed by an adolescence full of discovery in a Polish refugee camp near the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro, we see how these women’s lives have been shaped by early years fraught with insecurity and change.

Following the screening of the English-language documentary, there will be a discussion between the director, Jonathan Kołodziej Durand, and Dr. Eliana Hadjisavvas from the Birkbeck Institute for the Study of Antisemitism, London. Prof. Dr. Jörg Deventer from the Dubnow Institute, Leipzig, will give the opening address.

The film screening is taking place as part of the annual conference »The Age of Humanitarianism,« but can also be attended independently of the conference. Registration via the registration form is required by 2 December 2026 at the latest. Please note that seating is limited. Bags and IDs may be checked at the entrance.

To attend the annual conference, you must register separately by email. Further information on this can be found here.