Rosita Steenbeek to give Loe de Jong lecture in 2027
Author Rosita Steenbeek will give the second annual Loe de Jong lecture on remembrance on 31 March 2027, at a national conference on Holocaust education.
Steenbeek wrote the family novel Rose, een familie in oorlogstijd (Rose, a family in wartime, 2015), about her grandmother and the fate of her Jewish family during the Second World War. Her lecture is an initiative of the National Coordinator for Combating Antisemitism (NCAB) and closes the annual Werkconferentie Holocausteducatie, a conference on Holocaust education.
National Coordinator Eddo Verdoner said the NCAB is delighted she accepted. “Given her literary work and personal history, we expect her contribution to give a fine and interesting treatment to the theme of remembrance,” he said. He added that the theme becomes more relevant the further the past recedes.
Remembrance means to me that the murdered stay with us. We owe them that.Rosita Steenbeek
Steenbeek said knowledge of the past is fundamental to understanding the present. It helps us see the risks when indifference and dehumanisation spread, she said, and it is an honour for her to give the lecture.
The lecture is named after Loe de Jong (1914–2005), who headed the Rijksinstituut voor Oorlogsdocumentatie, now the NIOD, from 1945. His work Het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden in de Tweede Wereldoorlog (1969–1994) laid the foundation for Dutch writing on the Second World War. Marcel Möring gave an unnamed first lecture in 2025. Adriaan van Dis gave the first official one in 2026.
The conference is one of the actions in the national plan to strengthen Holocaust education. In January the NCAB starts the fourth edition of its campaign “Leer over de Holocaust” (Learn about the Holocaust), leading up to International Holocaust Memorial Day on 27 January.
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NCAB (Nationaal Coördinator Antisemitismebestrijding)
The National Coordinator for Combating Antisemitism is a government post in the Netherlands that coordinates the national government's efforts against antisemitism. The coordinator works with ministries, local authorities and civil society organisations, and initiates activities such as public lectures and educational programmes. It matters because it is the central point for national policy and initiatives on antisemitism.
Werkconferentie Holocausteducatie
The Werkconferentie Holocausteducatie is the Dutch annual working conference on Holocaust education, aimed at people who teach about or work on the Holocaust, such as teachers and education professionals. It brings together practitioners to share knowledge and discuss how the Holocaust is taught in schools and other settings. It is an established yearly event in the Dutch education calendar.