YP Letters: Why we must not stand silent in face of evil on Holocaust Memorial Day

THE theme for this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day on January 27 is “Don’t stand by”. At over 3,500 events across the country, hundreds of thousands of people will hear about bystanders, those whose silence and indifference allowed persecution, and ultimately genocides, to take place.

And we will honour the rescuers and resisters, who not only saved individuals, but who took action against bigotry and hatred. We know that silence and indifference in the face of discrimination and hatred allows persecution to take root, so we want to encourage people to stand up and speak out, as many brave souls have in the past.

As well as taking a stand in our own communities, we also need to be mindful of the fact that genocide is continuing in Darfur, where thousands of people have been murdered and millions have been forced to flee. In our film for Holocaust Memorial Day 2016, Susan Pollack, a survivor of the Holocaust, tells for the first time a surprising and unique story of surviving genocide.

Please visit dontstandby.hmd.org.uk, share the film using social media and sign up to our Thunderclap so that Susan’s story is shared as widely as possible at 1pm on Wednesday.