Open the Circle celebrates and shares the stories of everyday people who help promote tolerance and cross-cultural understanding by shining a light on history — especially the lives and struggles of ordinary people. What are the threads that bind us together? What are the fears that push us apart? Knowing is the beginning of understanding and accepting.
This Wall Brings People Together
Students at this Berlin elementary school, built on the site of a synagogue, have been building a wall for the past two decades. It delivers a powerful message about community.
A Nazi Legacy, A Life Giving Back
Hilde Schramm has spent her adult life fighting racism and intolerance. And she doesn’t shy from her family history as the daughter of an infamous Nazi leader.
Students Reaching Students
When a handful of ninth graders from Berlin met Rolf Joseph in 2003, they were inspired by his harrowing tales of surviving the Holocaust. So inspired that they wrote a popular book about his life. Today the Joseph Group helps students educate each other on Jewish history.
“I Speak for Those Who Cannot Speak”
Margot Friedländer’s autobiography details her struggles as a Jew hiding in Berlin during World War II. Now 96, she speaks powerfully about the events that shaped her life and their relevance today.
Using Stories to Fight Bigotry
A good story can touch us. Hans-Dieter Graf, his wife Martina, and his sister Gabriele Graf, write books and tell stories that shed a light on our shared history.
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