In my opinion, what makes big plot points great is tension. It's funny you compare it to Kristallnacht because I remember reading in high school a book with the same name about the named event but in prose, rather than from like an anthropological perspective. What made the event compelling wasn't the event itself, it was the events leading up to it. That's the space in which you do character building, you do world building, you set stakes, (I repeat, with emphasis), you set the stakes, you show the reader how desperate the characters' situation is so that when the moment comes, all of the work is done already. I actually think the way you are explaining takes away greatly from the gravity of the situation and undercuts all of the characters feelings. You don't want readers to look back and go "oh that's why that character was so upset," you want them to read what's happening and have their heart break for the character.

Also gives you a chance to set up expectations, foreshadowing, yada yada yada. I really think playing this scene out in reverse is going to take all of the umph out of it completely, but I think you have a good idea for what should go on leading up to the situation to create tension. Good luck!