Margaret’s Legacy Invited to the United Nations

In November 2022, Margaret's Legacy, represented by Dana and David Horwood, had the honour of being invited to the United Nations by the Abraham Global Peace Initiative and Canada’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Bob Rae, to mark the 74th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The event recognized the contribution of Canadian legal scholar John Humphrey, who played a central role in drafting the Declaration following the Second World War. His work helped shape one of the most important international frameworks for protecting human rights.

Walking into UN Headquarters that evening, there was a clear sense of the weight of the space, both historically and in terms of its ongoing relevance.

At the Curved Wall, we were greeted by Avi Benlolo, founder and CEO of the Abraham Global Peace Initiative, who was presenting his exhibition, The Power of One. The exhibit highlights individuals who made significant contributions to humanity, including figures such as Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa, and Mahatma Gandhi. The central idea is straightforward: individual actions can have lasting global impact.

Throughout the evening, we had the opportunity to meet and speak with a number of UN representatives and diplomats, including Bob Rae himself. These conversations were not formal, and were extraordinarily meaningful.

Danna was able to share about the work of Margaret’s Legacy and how we are trying to make Holocaust and antisemitism education more relevant and impactful for today’s audiences. There was genuine interest in the model we are developing, particularly in how it connects historical memory with present-day issues and emerging research on intergenerational trauma.

Events like this serve as a reminder that Holocaust education does not exist in isolation. It connects directly to broader conversations about human rights, responsibility, and how societies respond to injustice.

Being part of that environment, even briefly, reinforced the importance of continuing this work, and of finding ways to bring these conversations into more spaces, both locally and internationally.