Winnipeg Free Press

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GIANT WAREHOUSE FURNITURE SALE 75 % OFF UP TO SAT 10 – 5 & SUN 12 - 4 SECTIONALS | SOFAS | CHAIRS BEDROOM & DINING FURNITURE ARTWORK | LIGHTING | RUGS E N D S T O D A Y SATURDAY, JANUARY 25, 2025WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM ● A7 NEWS I WORLD Auschwitz survivor calls Musk’s gesture alarming O TTAWA — A 95-year-old Holocaust surviv- or said Friday it’s scary to see things he never thought he would see again — such as a powerful man like Elon Musk using a “German salute.” David Moscovic, who lives in Ottawa, was re- ferring to the tech mogul making a straight-arm gesture similar to a Nazi salute as he addressed the crowd assembled for U.S. President Donald Trump’s inauguration event on Monday. Musk said the gesture was meant to convey to the crowd that his heart “goes out” to them. “I never thought I could see this happen and it’s sad because (Musk) has lots of power. He has lots of input with the president of the United States,” Moscovic said, in an interview. “I would have never thought this would happen in my lifetime and it’s happening. It’s scary what’s happening right now in the United States.” Moscovic also castigated Trump for pardoning more than 1,500 Jan. 6 protesters — including people who had been charged with assaulting po- lice officers — and for saying Canada should be- come the 51st state. “(Trump) doesn’t go to his government to make decisions. He makes the decisions as one person. That’s scary, that’s a dictatorship. The thing is, he told everybody before the election what he’s going to do and they voted for him anyways,” Moscovic said. The Anti-Defamation League, an American Jewish advocacy organization, said Monday that Musk seemed to have made an “awkward ges- ture” and not a Nazi salute. On Thursday, responding to the controversy, Musk posted a series of Nazi puns on X, the social media platform he owns. Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Green- blatt condemned the posts, saying the Holocaust was a “singularly evil event” and “not a joke.” Moscovic joined other speakers in Ottawa on Friday at an event to mark the upcoming 80th an- niversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, one of the most infamous Nazi death camps, on Jan. 27. Moscovic was 14 when he was taken to Ausch- witz along with his mother, father and brother. He’s the only one of the family who survived. In his speech he described being taken to Ausch- witz from his village Konus, now part of Slovakia. Moscovic said after he arrived at the death camp, he saw piles of shoes and clothes and people being placed in two lines. He, his father and broth- er were put in one line, while his mother was made to join another. People in Moscovic’s line were taken to the camp’s barracks and put to work. Moscovic worked as a bricklayer, repairing buildings in the camp damaged by allied bombs. Those in the other line went to the gas chamber. Moscovic told his story in a calm, matter-of- fact tone. He was moved to tears, however, when his granddaughter, Hannah Alberga, delivered a speech on what she learned from her grand- father’s story. “I never knew she was capable of delivering such a beautiful speech. That’s what education does. People learn things,” Moscovic said. Participants in a panel discussion talked about how to keep sharing stories like Moscovic’s as the number of living survivors continues to dwindle. Naomi Azrieli, whose foundation established the Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program, said school programs are essential but they can’t be seen as the end point of Holocaust education. Azrieli said those fighting antisemitism and Holocaust disinformation need to rethink how they push back against lies online. “The best way to fight (antisemitism) is with the same tools. Some of the most effective tools we’ve seen are actually influencers. There are Holocaust survivor influencers. There are people talking about this history in a way that is access- ible and yet respectful,” she said. Non-affiliated Quebec Sen. Marc Gold said a lack of regulation has allowed social media algorithms to create echo chambers for Holocaust denial. “Getting it right, because I’m a free speech guy, is really challenging. But that is a critical com- ponent if we’re going to make any progress for- ward,” Gold said. While Moscovic said he’s worried about the fu- ture, he still enjoys a “beautiful” life in Canada. He said he built a successful plumbing and heat- ing business, was married to his first wife for over 51 years, found love again and is in good health. “I wish my parents could see what I did in my life. That would have been my biggest pleasure,” he said. — The Canadian Press DAVID BAXTER THE ASSOCIATED PRESS David Moscovic (left) says Elon Musk’s salute (right) is something he never thought he’d see again, after being sent to Auschwitz when he was 14-years-old. ;