Reality television personality Liel Kulik lit an online firestorm after making dismissive remarks about a Holocaust Remembrance Day event she attended this week.
Kulik, who appeared on the Israeli edition of Love Island, took part in a Zikaron Basalon (a memory in the living room) gathering—a grassroots initiative launched in 2011 that brings Holocaust survivors into private homes to share their stories in a personal setting. The initiative has become a prominent part of the annual Holocaust Remembrance Day commemorations.
Following the event, Kulik shared her thoughts with her 14,200 Instagram followers, writing: “Is it OK to tell the truth and say I was at the lamest Zikaron Basalon ever? The Holocaust survivor didn’t even witness any horrors or go through anything traumatic. That’s all, just wanted to share.”
Kulik’s original post quickly went viral, prompting a wave of backlash from her followers who accused her of trivializing the survivor’s experience and disrespecting the solemnity of the occasion.
The firestorm prompted her to post a follow-up story to clarify her remarks. “I’ll start by saying that both of my grandmothers and both of my grandfathers are Holocaust survivors,” she wrote. “What I meant was that I came expecting to hear testimony from a Holocaust survivor. But the speaker wasn’t really a survivor—he wasn’t where everything happened and didn’t have much to share. Unfortunately, everyone was on their phones, but we still showed respect and asked many questions. I was looking to hear Holocaust testimony, not things unrelated to the topic.”
Her explanation failed to satisfy many of her followers, leading Kulik to issue what appeared to be an apology—or at least an attempt at one.
“As you can see, it was important to me to attend a Zikaron Basalon event, which means I care and that continuing this tradition matters to me,” she wrote. “I have the right to be disappointed. I came to hear Holocaust testimony, not to hear him spinning yarn. I heard things unrelated to Holocaust Remembrance Day, and that really upset me. Thank you for understanding.”
Michal Lipman, CEO of Zikaron Basalon, responded to the controversy, emphasizing that every survivor’s story is valid, regardless of the nature of their wartime experiences.
“I received that screenshot from so many people. Honestly, it’s repulsive. Let’s focus on the fact that a young woman thinks it’s acceptable to post something like that online," she said. "Honestly, I have no doubt that many people might have had similar thoughts if they were sitting across from the same survivor—but they probably just wouldn’t have posted it.
“We’re always chasing the sensational—wanting to hear about the child torn from his mother on the ramp at Auschwitz. We look for the tattooed number on the arm, and if possible, someone who was just freed from Hamas captivity to ‘spice things up.’ Too many people sign up with us and then cancel because we couldn’t ‘match’ them with a survivor they found compelling enough. Some even ask to ‘switch’ testimonies if possible.
“And now, think about your children—not just about whether they’ll post something foolish in front of a mirror to gain more followers. We have a responsibility to be good to others, to minorities and to strangers. We have a duty to do everything we can to protect what we have and ensure that this kind of evil never resurfaces.”
