As we do every year, my husband and I attended Barnet’s Holocaust
Memorial Day annual event, held at the fabulous surroundings of the
Quadrangle at Middlesex University in Hendon.
Two of the strongest lessons that we brought away from this year's event,
for which the theme was The Power of Words were:
1. Words are powerful and can mend, raise awareness, show that we have
the guts to stand up and be counted - as well as hurt and destroy. As can
silence. Fascism didn't start with actions - it started with the words of the
fascists, and the silence of the rest. This was a timely reminder to ALWAYS
speak out. Even if we make one person think again, it is worth it. At the
very least, we are speaking up on behalf of those who can’t or won’t. We
are showing that WE are not complicit.
2. There is no point calling the Nazis monsters. They were normal people
doing monstrous things. If we forget that, we are in danger of thinking it
can't happen again. This was the point of view put forward by one of the
school girls who had been part of the organised trips to Auschwitz. Hope
for the future lies with this fantastic programme and these young people
who will keep the message going long after the last survivors have left us.
On a final note, Jethro and I were again disappointed at how few people
who were not of the war generation attend this memorial event. It lasts
less than 90 minutes, it is moving and varied, we hear wonderful speeches
and hear spine-chilling words and music. As we leave, small children hand
out snowdrop bulbs to commemorate the thousands of children who died
in the Holocaust – so that we can come home and plant them as an ongoing
memory.
Please think about going next year – you will not be sorry, and the many
older people present will not have to feel that they are alone.
Marilyn Rowland
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