Selaine Saxby, MP for North Devon, signed the Holocaust Educational Trust’s Book of Commitment in Westminster. In doing so pledging her commitment to Holocaust Memorial Day and honouring those who were murdered during the Holocaust, as well as paying tribute to the extraordinary Holocaust survivors who work tirelessly to educate young people today.
Holocaust Memorial Day falls on 27th January every year, the anniversary of the liberation of the infamous former Nazi concentration and death camp, Auschwitz-Birkenau, in 1945. Across the UK – and world – people will come together to remember the horrors of the past.
The theme for this year’s commemorations is ‘Fragility of Freedom.’ The lead up to and on Holocaust Memorial Day, thousands of commemorative events will be arranged by schools, faith groups and community organisations across the country, remembering all the victims of the Holocaust and subsequent genocides.
Selaine Saxby, MP for North Devon said:
"Holocaust Memorial Day is an important opportunity for people from North Devon and across the UK to reflect on the darkest times of European history and ensuring it never happens again.
Karen Pollock CBE, Chief Executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, said:
“On Holocaust Memorial Day, we remember the six million Jewish men, women and children who were murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators, and we honour those who survived.
When the concentration camps of Europe were liberated, the reality of the Nazi attempt to eradicate world Jewry became clear. In newspapers, cinema and radio broadcasts the atrocities were laid bare. The phrase ‘Never Again’ was coined, reflecting the hope that the Holocaust would forever represent the ultimate result of anti-Jewish hatred; a warning signal for generations to come of where unchecked antisemitism could lead.
This Holocaust Memorial Day, as antisemitism once again sweeps across the globe, it is more important than ever to remember the six million Jewish victims and remind ourselves that anti-Jewish racism did not begin nor end with the Holocaust.”
ENDS
For more information please contact: Selaine Saxby, [email protected], 01271 327990.
NOTES TO EDITORS
About Holocaust Memorial Day
Holocaust Memorial Day was established following an MP’s visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau with the Holocaust Educational Trust. Moved by his visit, Andrew Dismore MP proposed a bill, “to introduce a day to learn and remember the Holocaust” on 30 June 1999.
The Holocaust Educational Trust has been closely involved in the establishment and development of Holocaust Memorial Day since its inception in 2000. The theme for the UK Holocaust Memorial Day 2020 is ‘One Day’.
The Holocaust Educational Trust - https://www.het.org.uk/
Photo Selaine signing Holocaust Education Trust’s Book 2024
