Kristallnacht, or the Night of Broken Glass, was a state-sponsored wave of violent attacks against the Jewish people throughout Nazi Germany and Austria on November 9–10, 1938. It is also called a pogrom, which is an organized massacre.
Synagogues were burned, Jewish-owned businesses were vandalized and looted, and thousands of Jews were arrested and sent to concentration camps. The shattered glass that littered the streets gave the event its name and marked a grim turning point in Nazi persecution, transitioning from discrimination to organized violence that would lead to the Holocaust.
Each November, the Alabama Holocaust Education Center holds a teacher workshop and public Kristallnacht Commemoration in partnership with the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) to remember this pivotal moment in history and honor those who suffered. The program often features a Holocaust Scholar who focuses on an important part of Holocaust history.
