Mayor and Assembly host Holocaust Memorial Day ceremony

Victims of the Holocaust were remembered today as the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, and Members of the London Assembly joined with Jewish faith leaders and a Holocaust survivor for a moving ceremony in honour of Holocaust Memorial Day.

Guests at City Hall were invited to consider the devastating and far-reaching consequences of individuals, families and communities being wrenched from their homes through persecution, as they reflected on this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day theme ‘Torn from Home’.

In keeping with the theme, the Mayor read the poem ‘Homesick’, where an anonymous author laments their loss of place by asking “Why did they tear me away?”.

Tony Arbour AM, Chairman of the London Assembly, led the service and Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg, Senior Rabbi of Masorti Judaism and Rabbi of New North London Synagogue, provided the main address.

Guests heard poignant personal accounts from Holocaust survivor Susan Pollack MBE, as well as an emotional contribution from Sokphal Din, who survived the genocide in Cambodia in the late 1970s.

The ceremony also featured schoolchildren from across London who read the Holocaust Memorial Day Statement of Commitment and presented their experiences from the Lessons from Auschwitz project, delivered by the Holocaust Educational Trust. Carol Isaacs and Meg Hamilton of the Jewish Music Institute performed three instrumental pieces including ‘Doina’ and ‘Boybriker Nign’.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “No matter what is happening in the world, on Holocaust Memorial Day it is crucial we take the time to stop and listen to the accounts of Jewish survivors and refugees who witnessed unthinkable horrors during the Holocaust.

“Every year there are fewer people left alive to tell us what they endured during this dark period of history. That is why the work of The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust and the Holocaust Educational Trust in our schools and communities remains so utterly vital.

“Today, as we take time to remember six million stolen Jewish lives, as well as the millions killed in genocides around the world, we, as Londoners, must reinforce our commitment to opposing hatred and intolerance in all their forms, wherever they appear.”

Chairman of the London Assembly, Tony Arbour, said: “When people, families and communities are wrenched from their homes through persecution or the threat of genocide – lives are destroyed.

“This year’s Holocaust Memorial Day theme is ‘Torn from Home’ and as we remember the Holocaust, the 40^th anniversary of the end of the Genocide in Cambodia and the 25^th anniversary of the Genocide in Rwanda, we must stop and think.

“How can we ensure such atrocities will never happen again? It’s a question we all need to answer – because they must absolutely never happen again.

“Having to find a new a new home and a new life is hard enough – it should never have to be because of persecution and genocide.

“We stand in solidarity with all those who have suffered and pledge to take action to ensure these tragedies are not repeated.”

Olivia Marks-Woldman, Chief Executive, Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, said: “As people come together across the UK to mark Holocaust Memorial Day 2019, we are pleased to see the Mayor of London and the London Assembly making a strong commitment to remembering all those murdered during the Holocaust, under Nazi Persecution and in the genocides which followed in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur.

“The event at City Hall will be one of more than 11,000 taking place across the country – in schools, workplaces, local authorities, libraries and many more varied settings.

“At the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust we are pleased to see people learning lessons from genocide, for a better future – particularly at a time when rising antisemitism, anti-Muslim hate and other forms of prejudice are causing real damage across society.”

Karen Pollock MBE, Chief Executive, Holocaust Educational Trust, said: “Today, we came together to remember the Holocaust - the darkest chapter in our shared history, where six million men, women and children were murdered, simply for being Jewish.

“In many ways, Susan’s story personifies the theme of Holocaust Memorial Day, ‘Torn from Home’, having experienced vast swathes of antisemitism in her home town before being forcibly deported to ghettos and concentration camps. We must treasure this precious testimony, remember the victims, and become witnesses to the stories of survivors.”