Since its inception, Gariwo has proposed a new culture of responsibility, tackling the memory of the Shoah and the genocides of the 20th century through the stories of the Righteous. These individuals - namely, those who saved lives in genocides, defended human dignity in dictatorships, tried to prevent the mechanisms of hatred that create the conditions for extreme drift - unequivocally demonstrate that choice is always possible.
Even a few Righteous can save hope and the future because they prove that human beings, even within their fragility, can be the arbiters of their destiny. Starting from extreme evil, we can thus convey an optimistic message: any situation can be overturned if every person takes responsibility, even if the results are not quantifiable or immediate.
Choice is an act of individual freedom that allows every human being to act as a barrier against evil. Hence, re-reading the stories of the Righteous shows the concrete foundations of hope, creating a virtuous path: while the memory of past genocides illuminates the present, a direct relationship with sufferance allows us to better understand what happened yesterday.
Yet, not forgetting is only the first part of "making memory". There is a higher form of redemption that enlivens memory, turning it into an instrument of responsibility: to act in the present to prevent the mechanisms of hatred and dehumanization of human beings from retaking place.
With such an approach, Gariwo promotes the exemplary figures who saved lives during the Holocaust and other genocides of the Twentieth Century, along with more contemporary figures who have worked to rescue migrants at sea or have done their best to protect people during terrorist attacks.
For this reason, we created an Encyclopedia of the Righteous. This encyclopedia is divided into sections, each of which addresses a genocide and a specific theme: the largest container of exemplary stories, it can serve as a moral and educational point of reference.
For Gariwo, the Encyclopedia of the Righteous is the culmination of more than ten years of research, made possible by the commitment of historians, academics, journalists, and collaborators who, together with us, have collected biographies and selected bibliographic and documentary sources, as well as reading and viewing suggestions. A starting point for study and research, the encyclopedia also offers a collection of positive figures that the general public can consult.