On February 25, the February strike will be commemorated on the Jonas Daniël Meijerplein. On that same day in 1941, Amsterdam workers laid down their tools en masse in protest against the Nazi terror that their Jewish fellow citizens had to endure. It was the largest uprising against the Nazi regime and the persecution of Jews organized by ordinary people in occupied Europe.

This year, on February 25 2024, a far-right led government is in the making and fascist rhetoric can be heard almost daily through public media. Although the official commemoration service calls for ‘vigilance’, the revival of the far-right and fascism is barely mentioned. In fact, a blind eye is turned: the chairman of the House of Representatives – Martin Bosma of the PVV – will come to lay a wreath.

It is very important that the February strike is commemorated every year. But commemoration is only useful if we learn from history. That is why Mokum Against Fascism is organizing a protest against the far-right on February 25 with a special approach. We will meet at 1:30 PM at the Noordermarkt and visit relevant places in the city as we walk towards Jonas Daniël Meijerplein. Using stories, poems and music, we tell the story of the February strike, draw its lessons into the present and build joint resistance against the far-right!

We end our march by joining the regular commemoration service to make sure that these sentiments will be strongly represented there as well.