Leaders and people from all faiths and communities came together today to mark Holocaust Memorial Day.
The commemorations began with a wreath-laying ceremony in St John's Gardens. Lord Mayor of Liverpool Cllr Roy Gladden was joined by political leaders and Rabbi Natan Fagleman of the Allerton Hebrew Congregation for the ceremony.
After this, a special service was held at Liverpool Town Hall. This included prayers led by Rabbi Fagleman and an Act of Commitment from representatives of different faith leaders from across Liverpool.
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The moving ceremony also saw a performance by the King David High School choir, while John Gorman read a poem called Peace, Perfect Peace.
The guest speaker at today's memorial service was novelist Vivien Churney, whose book 'Bound by the Scars We Share' is based on her own mother’s experiences during the Second World War. As a child she fled Poland with her family, moving to Belgium and then France where she became part of the Resistance Youth Movement, helping to take Jewish children through the mountains to Switzerland.
Ms Churney said: "Holocaust Memorial Day is a time when we remember millions of people who perished under the Nazi regime during the Holocaust of World War Two and subsequent genocides.
“It is a time to ensure that together we should never forget that genocide occurs when leaders promote division instead of harmony and encourage racism and hatred to grow strong. Future generations must be educated through this remembrance of the past so that never again will such atrocities happen.”
Holocaust Memorial Day is held on January 27 each year, marking the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, as well as serving as an act of remembrance of all victims of the Holocaust and more recent genocides in Cambodia, Bosnia, Rwanda and Darfur.
The theme of today's commemorations is "ordinary people," highlighting the ordinary people who let genocide happen, the ordinary people who actively perpetrated genocide, and the ordinary people who were persecuted.
Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Cllr Roy Gladden said: "Each year, Holocaust Memorial Day gives us space to remember those who have been victims of genocide and renew the commitment that these crimes can never be allowed to happen again
“This year’s theme is ‘Ordinary People.’ Ordinary people are not only the victims of genocides, they are the perpetrators. People who turn a blind eye to prejudice and believe propaganda.
“It’s easy to think that these appalling crimes that happened in the past have little to do with us today, but fighting ignorance and hatred is the responsibility of all of us and this week’s service at the Town Hall is a timely reminder of that.”
Jeremy Wolfson, chair of the Holocaust Memorial Day Planning Group and a member of Liverpool’s Jewish community, said: “Holocaust Memorial Day gives us an opportunity to reflect on the Holocaust and subsequent genocides and raise awareness of not only what happened, but to try and ensure that the attitudes which led to them are not repeated.”
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