April 15, 2025 — Philadelphia
Tova Friedman is a walking miracle.
That’s the only way to accurately describe someone who avoided death in the Auschwitz gas chambers not once, but twice, when she was a little girl.
Today, she shares her story – through the help of her grandson – on TikTok, where she has 570,000 followers who hear her talk about the dangers of unchecked antisemitism.
On March 30, TikTok Tova, as she is now known, shared with a rapt crowd at the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History that the hate that almost sealed her fate more than 80 years ago has not faded.
She is spreading that message now because there is no time to waste. Tova is 84, among the youngest of Holocaust survivors still with us. When she went to Auschwitz for the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz in 2020 there were more than 100 survivors there. When she returned this year for the 80th anniversary, to give the keynote address, fewer than 20 survivors were there.
Tova tells her story because she feels she has to, while she still can.
In one of her TikTok videos she raises her arm to explain why Jews received tattooed numbers at Auschwitz – it is easier to kill a number than a person. Indeed, numbers mattered to the Nazis. The second time Tova was supposed to go to the gas chamber, she was spared because her number wasn’t on the list of those scheduled to be exterminated that day.
When Tova speaks, we must all listen, for her words – and lessons – are needed even more today as we grapple with rising levels of antisemitism in this country, which has only spread and grown since the October 7 attacks.
The numbers from American Jewish Committee’s State of Antisemitism in America 2024 Report illustrate the depth of the problem.
Key findings include:
- Nearly six in 10 American Jews (56%) report altering their behavior in the past 12 months out of fear of antisemitism.
- One-third (33%) of American Jews say they were a target of an antisemitic incident in person or online in the past 12 months.
- Nearly three-quarters of American Jews (73%) say Jews are less secure in the U.S. than a year ago.
However, there is some positive news:
- Seven in 10 U.S. adults recognize antisemitism is a problem in this country.
- One-third of U.S. adults have spoken out against antisemitism.
- Eighty-five percent of both American Jews and U.S. adults believe the statement "Israel has no right to exist" is antisemitic.
That is why Tova's efforts matter more than ever. The sooner our children and grandchildren hear these messages the better. And what better medium than TikTok? A Pew Research Center study found 63% of teens under 18 use it regularly, with 16% on it “almost constantly.” And they don’t shake that habit when they graduate high school. Some 35% of TikTok users in the U.S. are 18-24, according to the Charle Agency.
More than 20 people in that cohort came to the Weitzman from the Holocaust Resource Center at Stockton University. This was more than a class assignment for them. It was a rare, fleeting chance to hear from a witness to the history they so ardently study. They may not have realized it, but platforms like Tova’s can reduce stereotypes and promote cultural understanding, through sustained, meaningful education about the Holocaust, antisemitism and other forms of hate.
Tova stressed that she will keep doing speaking engagements as long as she can. But one day it will be left to other generations to tell her story. We must not shirk from that solemn task.
As AJC’s report revealed, 90% of Americans believe combating antisemitism is a collective responsibility all of society must embrace, not just Jews.
First we have to know what we’re up against. An 84-year-old grandmother, who by all accounts should have been among the six million, serves as an excellent reminder.
Marcia Bronstein is Director of American Jewish Committee Philadelphia/Southern N.J.
