What is Holocaust Memorial Day?
The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust encourages remembrance in a world scarred by prejudice and systematic, targeted persecution. We promote and support Holocaust Memorial Day – the international day on 27 January. The Holocaust is central to Holocaust Memorial Day and we remember the 6 million Jews murdered during the Holocaust. We also commemorate the millions more people murdered through the and in the , and the .
Reference:
SU Statement
On Monday 27 January we must take the time to remember the millions of lives lost during the Holocaust and in subsequent genocides globally. The staggering statistics related to these genocides are overwhelming and to ensure we fully consider the ever-lasting impact of such atrocities we must recognise the millions of individual tragedies that occurred.
As an SU, we are commemorating Holocaust Memorial Day by encouraging fellow students to take a moment to reflect on the individual experiences of victims and survivors of the Holocaust, as well as the lessons that can be learnt from genocides of the past. Here are a few ways you could do this:
- The World Holocaust Remembrance Centre (Yad Vashem) has a unique commemorative activity where you can add your name to the ‘IRemember Wall’ and be randomly paired with the name of a Holocaust victim, you then appear together on the wall – you can read more about the individual’s story to remember this person’s life.
- These pages on the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust website have a range of resources that we recommend looking at to increase your understanding of the genocides that have happened through history and their present-day implications.
- On 27 January, households across the UK will be lighting candles and safely putting them in their windows to remember those who were murdered for who they were, as well as to stand against prejudice and hatred occurring today. You could light a candle and put it in your window at 20:00 (if you are able to do so safely).
The SU stands in solidarity with our Jewish students and all students who have been impacted by genocide or hate-motivated violence.