Dara Bratt and Michelle Rose: Tattoos, The Evolution of Holocaust Remembrance

The real question isn't simply whether Judaism prohibits tattoos. We know the Torah speaks against them. Holocaust survivors imprisoned at Auschwitz II-Birkenau did not choose their tattooed numbers — they were an act of degradation and dehumanization. But what happens when descendants of Holocaust survivors choose to use that traditionally prohibited practice as an act of sacred remembrance? Is this a break with tradition, or an attempt to fulfill one of Judaism's greatest commandments: Zachor— to remember?

In this powerful episode of TO BE CONTINUED..., Rabbi Jeff Salkin sits down with award-winning documentary filmmaker Dara Bratt and third-generation Holocaust descendant Michelle Ekstein Rose to explore one of the most unexpected and moving expressions of Holocaust remembrance today: commemorative tattoos. Dara shares the story behind her acclaimed short documentary Inked: Our Stories Remarked, which follows children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors who have chosen to etch their family's Holocaust legacy onto their bodies. Michelle opens up with her grandmother Anita Ekstein's extraordinary story of survival in Nazi-occupied Poland, and the deeply personal tattoos she carries in her grandmother's and her great-grandfather's honor. Together, they challenge us to ask what it truly means to remember, to reclaim, and to pass a legacy forward, and whether something some consider religiously prohibitive can become an act of devotion. This is an episode about "ink", identity, resilience, and the evolving ways each generation carries the legacy of the Holocaust. It will spur conversations; it will stay with you long after you listen.

Michelle Rose is a third-generation descendant of four Holocaust survivors and a passionate community activist dedicated to Holocaust remembrance, education, and justice. Raised with the stories of her grandparents woven into the fabric of her identity, Michelle was particularly shaped by her grandmother Anita Ekstein, a prominent Holocaust educator and survivor who escaped Nazi persecution through extraordinary acts of courage and kindness from righteous gentiles. Michelle lives in Toronto, Canada with her husband and two young sons.

Dara Bratt is an award-winning director and film producer whose work has screened at prestigious festivals around the world, including Tribeca, SXSW, and the Abu Dhabi International Film Festival. Known for shining a light on extraordinary and unconventional stories, Dara was drawn to the pow