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WE COMMEMORATE
You cannot help but learn more as you take the world into your hands. Take it up reverently, for it is an old piece of clay, with millions of thumbprints on it.
– John Updike
Nanjing Massacre Commemorative Day
Sunday, December 13, 2020
On December 13, 1937 the Japanese Imperial Army invaded and conquered Nanjing, then Capital of China and was merciless to both civilians and captured soldiers, inflicting an estimated death toll of 300,000 in six weeks. It is estimated 20,000 – 80,000 women, including children and the elderly, were raped during the occupation of Nanjing. Most were immediately killed after the rape occurred.
Mass murders and torture were commonplace during the Nanjing Massacre, entire families were erased, and city blocks were burned to the ground. Bodies were burned, many thrown into mass graves, or tossed into the Yangtze River turning it red. The Nanjing Massacre is often referred to as the Rape of Nanjing, a testament to the cruelest forms of inhumanity at the same time there were those who provided humanity in the face of intense fear and terror.
The Nanjing Massacre is a confirmation of how war yields brutal acts of violence, death, and sufferings. We need to remember the victims and the history, not the hatred. For this reason, in 2017 the Government of Ontario passed motion 66, declaring December 13 as Nanjing Massacre Commemorative Day to remember and honour the victims and families of the Nanjing Massacre and to uphold humanity, reconciliation, and peace.
As we remember Nanjing, we remember all victims of all massacres.
80th Anniversary of the Nanjing Massacre Commemorative Concert
Wednesday, December 13, 2017
80 years ago, on December 13, 1937, Imperial Japanese forced captured China's capital, Nanjing, in a 6-week campaign with over 200,00 causalities and the rape of tens of thousands of women. To keep alive the memories of the victims and survivors, we solemnly commemorated the anniversary of this event in the spirit of future peace and reconciliation. The evening featured music from the Canadian Sinfonietta and the Canadian Sinfonietta Youth Orchestra, conducted by Mr. Tak Lai, as well as a poem titled Praying for Peace, and a keynote speech from Dr. Hung Cheng, author of Nanjing Never Cries.
75th Anniversary of the Nanjing Massacre, December 2012
In commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the Nanjing Massacre, ALPHA Education hosted an event at OISE, University of Toronto to pay tribute to the victims of the atrocity, and to promote awareness of the historical event in the community. Over 400 people attended including Ms. Tamaki Matsuoka, decades-long researcher, author and film maker of the Nanjing Massacre, and a survivor.