It was a year ago. The town hall of the commune of Montigny-lès-Metz, a small town of 20,000 inhabitants in Moselle, was then discussing the possibility of installing new Stolpersteine ​​(pavers in memory of the victims of Nazism) in the town, when a tune came in the mind of Dimitri Sokolowski, deputy mayor of Montigny-lès-Metz. “I mentioned the title Comme toi by J-J Goldman when discussing Lucienne, Denise and Georgette Bernard deported and murdered in Auschwitz on August 5, 1944,” he says on his Instagram account. “Their story made me think of Sarah, a young girl who in the song was not “born like you” (like us) and who had experienced a disastrous fate because “other people had decided otherwise””.

The idea of ​​inviting the singer on the day of the ceremony then emerged in Dimitri Sokolowski’s mind. “I had imagined for a moment, admittedly a little unreasonably, seeing him play Like You on a sidewalk in Montigny, at the time of the tribute,” he admits. The deputy mayor of Montigny-lès-Metz is giving it a try. “Like a bottle in the sea”, he sent a letter to Jean-Jacques Goldman, who replied within a few days.

In a handwritten letter, the favorite personality of the French wanted to thank Dimitri Sokolowski for his “touching invitation” and congratulated the municipality for its initiative. The 72-year-old singer, heartbroken, explains that he cannot be present during the tribute ceremony. But in a few lines, he opens up about his personal story: “On May 5, 2023, three Stolpersteine ​​were placed in Munich, the birthplace of my grandparents and my mother who had fled to France and where they had were welcomed and hidden. With you, I think of Denise, Lucienne and Georgette who were not so lucky.”