André Schmitz, President of the Friends of the Berlin State Library, presented Éric de Rothschild, co-founder of the Aladdin Project, with the Max Herrmann Prize during a ceremony held on May 15, 2024, at the Berlin State Library. The event was attended by Achim Bonte, General Director of the Library; Armin Laschet, former Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia, President of the Abraham Accords Institute in Germany, and member of the Bundestag; as well as a delegation from the Aladdin Project including Yves Kugelmann, President of Aladdin Project Europe, and Abe Radkin, Executive Director.

Numerous international figures from the diplomatic, academic, and civil society sectors also participated in the event, including: His Excellency François Delattre, Ambassador of France to Germany; His Excellency Ahmed Waheeb Maaz Ahmed Alattar, Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to Germany; Bakhriddin Aslanov, diplomatic attaché of the Embassy of Uzbekistan; Julien Acquatella, head of the Berlin branch of the CIVS; Judith Epstein, President of the Society for the Promotion of Jewish Culture and Traditions; and Gabriele Appel, National Director of the Jerusalem Foundation in Germany.

The Max Herrmann Prize was awarded to the Aladdin Project for its efforts in the field of intercultural dialogue as a tool to combat hatred, through its online Library which provides books on the Holocaust in Arabic and Persian.

Achim Bonte, General Director of the Berlin State Library, emphasized in his speech that the lessons learned from the books in this library are an important contribution to ensuring that the forces of reason and dialogue do not wane, especially at this moment when “we are facing the unacceptable rise of anti-Semitism and intolerance.”

André Schmitz, President of the Friends of the Berlin State Library, thanked the Aladdin Project for its actions in favor of intercultural and interreligious dialogue. For him, the books of the Aladdin Project are a “collective call to conscience and vigilance addressed to each reader.” He then drew a parallel between Max Herrmann and the Aladdin Project, both of which are “driven by the hope that education and knowledge can support the forces of reason and dialogue.” He concluded his remarks by urging not to abandon this hope, even in the face of the deepest abysses of humanity.

Éric de Rothschild also expressed his thanks to the Friends of the Berlin State Library for awarding the Aladdin Project the prestigious Max Herrmann Prize. After recalling the missions of the Aladdin Project, he pointed out that, according to some, the fight against hatred and intolerance is a lost cause, but that if we allow ourselves to be won over by defeatism, then we will let hatred win. He concluded his speech with these words: “In this war against hatred, ignorance and extremism, our strategic weapon remains education, the written word and books.”

Finally, Armin Laschet also stressed the importance of education as an “antidote to hatred”. He went on to emphasize the need for actions such as those carried out by the Aladdin Project and by his own organization, the Abraham Accords Institute in Germany. In his view, the current context, which is leading towards a retreat into communitarianism, should be seen as “an additional challenge that urges us to take ever greater action in favor of intercultural dialogue and education in the knowledge of others.”

 

Photo 1 : Éric de Rothschild, co-founder of the Aladdin Project, receives the Max Herrmann Prize from André Schmitz, President of the Friends of the Berlin State Library

Photo 2 : Speech by Éric de Rothschild

Photo 3 : Armin Laschet, President of the Abraham Accords Institute in Germany, Member of the German Bundestag