World Jewish Congress President Ronald S. Lauder delivered a tribute to the late Holocaust survivor and Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel on Thursday evening, at a high-profile awards evening honoring heroes in the global campaign against violent extremism at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. More than a dozen activists, survivors, and witnesses of injustice were honored at the event for their contribution to human rights and justice, with acclaimed journalist Wolf Blitzer serving as master of ceremonies throughout the evening. 
Recalling his visit to Auschwitz with Wiesel more than two decades ago, Lauder said: “To experience Auschwitz through Elie’s eyes changed the way I thought about the Holocaust forever. What I saw that day at Auschwitz was a man not filled with hate or revenge. I saw a man with, perhaps, the saddest eyes I had ever seen and the warmest smile. I also saw a man of great determination to honor the memory of all those who were lost, and at the same time, turn his sadness into a voice for those who could no longer speak.”
“Elie made a commitment to never be indifferent to suffering. Elie Wiesel was many things. He was a survivor, a teacher, a Nobel laureate, a scholar. He was our moral compass, and he was also a mensch. I would not be president of the World Jewish Congress today without Elie’s teaching and his life-long fight against indifference,” Lauder said.
Following his address, Lauder and UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova presented Wiesel’s widow Marion with the Man of Peace Award, in honor of her husband.
Presiding Lauder’s address to Wiesel, Bokova said: “Today, more than ever, I am convinced we need new heroes for the values and freedoms that make us who we are, and we must be inspired by [Wiesel’s] Model. This is why we have gathered, in this place of knowledge and wonder, to stand united in the face of adversity, to raise together the banner for human rights and dignity, against barbarism, against violence, against extremism.”
Rabbi Arthur Schneier, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and Dr. Ali Goma’a, were presented at the event with the Interfaith Leadership for Peace and Understanding Award; the Heroes Award was given to Emmanuel Jal, a South Sudan-born musician; Nadia Morad, a Yazidi refugee from norther Iraq and current UNODC Goodwill ambassador for the dignity of survivors of human trafficking; Nicholas Kristof, New York Times columnist; Abdihafid Yussuf Abdi, Kenyan-born co-founder of Teachers Against Violent Extremism; Turki Al-Dakhlil, leading Arab world journalist and media figure; Serge and Beate Klarsfeld, who have devoted their lives to the pursuit of war-time Nazi criminals; Rochester Institute of Technology students and winners of the International Peer to Peer Challenging Extremism Initiative; and Hafsat Mohammed, founder of the Nigerian NGO Choice for Peace, Gender and Development. Chinese businessman Li Yongjun was given a special recognition award for his devotion to preserving cultural heritage. Among others, the distinguished presenters included Metropolitan Museum of Art President Daniel Weiss, musician Herbie Hancock, and humanitarian philanthropist Meera Gandhi.
