IT was a much altered Holocaust Memorial Day that was held in Redditch town centre last Saturday.
Gone were the banners, the procession through the Kingfisher Shopping Centre, the keynote speaker and perhaps crucially, input from the various communities of Redditch.
No Polish children in traditional dress – and Poland suffered devastating losses under the Nazis, from the Warsaw Ghetto right across the country – nothing from the Keralans or other local communities.
Instead it was a largely civic affair led by local councillors, borough Mayor Coun Gareth Prosser and the borough’s MP Rachel Maclean who placed white roses at the Holocaust memorial in Mercian Square.
Anna Cardy from the Youth Representative Board for the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust was also there, and in a piece she circulated about HMD, she said: “January 27 every year is marked as Holocaust Memorial Day. A day where we come together to remember the six million Jewish men, women, and children who were murdered in the Holocaust as well as the victims of Nazi persecution and subsequent genocides.
“It is a day where we reflect on the lessons of the past and honour the survivors who continue to relive those memories and share their testimonies for us, the next generation.
“So why do we mark Holocaust Memorial Day? January 27 marks the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the infamous Nazi concentration camp where 1.1million men women and children were murdered.
“We mark this day to remember those who perished in the hands of the Nazis and subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur.
“It is an opportunity for communities to learn more about the lessons of the past then act upon them, challenging the language of hate that happens in society today.
“Only last week we saw how anti-Semitism is still prevalent with the hostage incident at a synagogue in Texas and the impact this has on Jewish communities across the world.
“We see the genocides happening in Darfur and the Uyghur population in the Peoples Republic of China.
“We have the ability to make a change and a stand against hatred and prejudice wherever and whenever we come across it, we need to speak out against injustices and the one day we may have a society without genocide.”
