President Barack Obama attended a private event held by Hollywood director Steven Spielberg on Wednesday to celebrate the stories shared by Holocaust survivors, The Associated Press reported.
"The voices of those recorded and unrecorded -- those who survived and those who perished -- call upon us, implore us, and challenge us to turn 'Never Forget' into 'Never Again,'" Obama said.
The USC Shoah Foundation went into its 20th year collecting video testimonies of survivors from the Holocause and other genocides as well. Spielberg was inspired to create the organization after the making of "Schindler's List," The AP said.
Liam Neeson, who portrayed Oscar Schindler in the film, opened the event.
"As long as we fail to learn, our work will be urgent work," Spielberg said. "This institute exists because we know that the future can always be rewritten."
At the event held at the Century Plaza Hotel, Obama accepted the foundation's Ambassador for Humanity award as Bruce Springsteen performed, including songs like "Promised Land" and "Dancing in the Dark."
"I think anyone who has a boss wishes it was you," Spielberg said to Springsteen, who he called "this nation's hardest working lyrical poet for our common humanity."
The gala, filled with a star-studded audience, was hosted by Conan O'Brien, speaking in Yiddish and cracking jokes at the president.
"You left Washington six hours ago, but I left Burbank seven hours ago," O'Brien joked, referring to the "Bridgegate" scandal.
However, there were also non-famous people in attendance that truly struck a chord with the audience.
Michelle Sadrena Clark, a high school teacher in San Diego, recited a poem and discussed how the foundation's work enhances her curriculum.
"Your institute has literally changed my teaching and my life," she said. Some of her students attended the event as well, showing off their multimedia projects and meeting with Obama.
Celina Biniaz, who was saved by Oskar Schindler, also spoke at the event.
"Oskar Schindler gave me my life, but Steven Spielberg gave me my voice," she said.
