Interview Date: July 14, 2025
Location: Thessaloniki, Greece
As part of the ROMDIEM project’s field research, we had the privilege to interview Dr. Maria Kavala, historian and academic specializing in Holocaust studies, antisemitism, and the history of exclusion.
Dr. Kavala studied History at the Ionian University and pursued graduate and doctoral studies at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and the University of Crete. Her PhD focused on Thessaloniki under German occupation (1941–1944), with an emphasis on society, economy, and the persecution of Jews. She has also conducted postdoctoral research on the post-war reconstruction of the Jewish community, and is fluent in English, French, and German.
She has taught courses on:
- The Holocaust and Historical Memory
- Antisemitism in the 20th Century
- European Social and Economic History
She currently serves as an Assistant Professor in Contemporary History at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, and as a tutor in the Public History MA program at the Hellenic Open University.
In our conversation, Dr. Kavala offered a rich historical analysis spanning Europe and Greece, concluding with a focus on the Roma Holocaust in the Greek context. She emphasized the important, but often overlooked, role of Roma communities in resisting Nazism and contributing to the fight against fascism.
A powerful interview that helps deepen our understanding of historical exclusion and remembrance.
Full content coming soon in the ROMDIEM White Paper and oral history archive.
