Twelve Months – Twelve Names

September: MARK SLAVIN

The terrorist attack during the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich will be commemorated for the 50th time in 2022. In memory of the twelve people killed, institutions from Munich and Fürstenfeldbruck are dedicating each month to one victim, his life and fate.

In September, the town of Fürstenfeldbruck and the Museum Fürstenfeldbruck remember the wrestler Mark Slavin. A light installation and an information stele about Mark Slavin in front of the museum refer to the exhibition “Olympia 1972” which can be seen at the Museum/Kunsthaus Fürstenfeldbruck from July 29 to October 23, 2022. Mark Slavin’s greatest dream was to be allowed to represent Israel as an athlete at the Munich Olympic Games. He grew up in the Soviet city of Minsk and became junior champion of the Soviet Union in Greco-Roman wrestling in 1971. Due to increasing antisemitic reprisals he emigrated to Israel in May 1972 where within a few weeks he became Israel’s Olympic hopeful. The 18-year-old wrestler was feverishly awaiting his Olympic debut, scheduled for Tuesday, September 5, 1972. In the early hours of that day, Mark Slavin was shot dead by Palestinian assassins during a failed attempt to liberate the Israeli hostages at the airbase in Fürstenfeldbruck.

Commemoration Project
Twelve Months – Twelve Names
50 Years Olympic Massacre Munich

To mark the 50^th anniversary of the Summer Olympics in Munich, the Munich Massacre of September 5–6 , 1972 is to be commemorated throughout 2022. Every month one victim will be at the focus of attention. A variety of different actions in public spaces is planned, ranging from installations lasting the entire month to activities on one specific day.

This commemoration project has been conceived and coordinated by the Jewish Museum Munich in conjunction with the Munich Documentation Centre for the History of National Socialism and the Consulate General of the State of Israel. 

It will be implemented with cooperation partners including the Amerikahaus Munich, the Landkreis Fürstenfeldbruck, the Deutsches Theater, the Police College—Hochschule für den öffentlichen Dienst in Bayern – Fachbereich Polizei, and the Munich Police Headquarters, as well as other cultural and educational institutions and interested parties.

The Jewish Museum Munich is also accompanying the commemoration project on its blog and its social media channels under the hashtag #MunichMassacre72.