Spread the Light: Commemorating 87 Years Since Kristallnacht

This 9th November 2025 marks the 87th anniversary of Kristallnacht, the ‘Night of Broken Glass’ — a 1938 pogrom against Jews across Nazi Germany and Austria.

This night remains one of the most chilling turning points in history, marking a brutal escalation in the Nazi regime’s persecution of Jews. Synagogues were destroyed, homes and businesses ransacked, sacred books burned, and thousands of Jews arrested and murdered.

Kristallnacht was not only an assault on people — it was an attempt to extinguish the Jewish body, soul and spirit. Over the course of those horrific nights, the Nazis desecrated synagogues, torched holy texts, and ravaged Jewish institutions in their efforts to erase Jewish faith, culture, and identity. They sought not only to murder individuals but to obliterate Jewish heritage itself.

In this campaign of devastation, countless religious and cultural institutions were damaged, and books and artworks that epitomised the Jewish spirit were destroyed.

Today, as antisemitism once again rises worldwide, Yad Vashem in Israel invites communities everywhere to come together on the night of 9th November 2025 for a special initiative to mark the November Pogrom — the ‘Spread the Light’ campaign.

Yad Vashem calls upon synagogues, cultural centres, schools, and community buildings across the world to leave their lights on overnight, illuminating the darkness in a powerful act of remembrance and resilience.

The glow radiating from these lights will serve as a declaration: Nazi Germany failed. The Jewish spirit — its culture, faith, and creativity — endured and continues to shine brightly. By joining the Spread the Light initiative, we affirm the unbreakable thread of Jewish continuity and the shared responsibility to remember, to educate, and to stand united against hate.

Above all, the light we spread together will symbolise solidarity — a tribute to the world that was lost, a remembrance of those who perished, and a beacon of hope for the future.

Will you be joining the “Spread the Light” initiative this 9th November?

Kristallnacht photo © USHMM