Called by Name (Polish: Zawołani po imieniu) is a project commemorating Poles who were murdered for aiding Jews during World War II established in 2019 and organized by the Pilecki Institute. By the early 2020s, over 50 individuals have been recognized by the project.
The project was initiated by Magdalena Gawin [pl], Deputy Minister of Culture and National Heritage and implemented by the Pilecki Institute.[2] The first monument was erected in Sadowne on March 24, 2019, commemorating the Polish Lubkiewicz family, who were murdered in January 1943 [pl] for baking bread for Jewish women hiding in the vicinity of the Treblinka extermination camp.[2][3] By early 2020s, at least 24 such monuments were erected, honoring a total of 55 people who attempted to save over a hundred of Jews.[4][5] A related exhibition was hosted in Warsaw in October 2020, and various educational activities have also been organized.[5]
The name of the project refers to Zbigniew Herbert's poem Mr. Cogito and its message about the need to precisely count the victims of the Nazi regime.[2]
The project's goal involve actions to commemorate Poles who were murdered for aiding Jews during World War II by creating monuments and other symbols in the public spaces. The primary method is enacting a plaque with an inscription in Polish and English, placed on a stone monument. Some monuments are accompanied by QR codes through which visitors can access further digital information.[2][6]
The project involves collecting information of wartime histories of various individuals, and has been called inspirational with regards to preserving family histories and educating people about World War II and The Holocaust history.[7]
The project and the related exhibition have been interpreted as an implied criticism of the Yad Vashem's Righteous Among the Nations program, as some of the individuals honored with Called by Name status have not received a Righteous status.[5]
The project has been described as one of the better known elements of the history policy of the Law and Justice party.[4][8][9][5]
Some of the individuals recognized by the project include (by date of commemoration):
