Holocaust Memorial Day, Monday 27th January
January 27th annually marks Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD). On that day in 1945, eighty years ago, Soviet soldiers liberated Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp, the largest camp of its kind. More than 7,000 prisoners were released. During the five years of its operation, more than one million men, women and children were murdered, ninety per cent of them Jewish. Victims also included Poles, Romani, Soviet prisoners of war, political prisoners, gay people, and those who were physically or mentally disabled.
From the HMD website: Auschwitz-Birkenau has become a symbol of the horror of industrialised murder, and what can happen when hatred is left unchecked.
Holocaust Memorial Day also commemorates the millions of people worldwide who have been killed in genocides.
In July 1995, eight thousand Muslim men, and boys over the age of twelve, were murdered in Srebrenica by Bosnian Serbs. This was the largest mass murder in Europe since World War Two.
Darfur, Sudan, was the setting in 2003-2005 for the genocide of two hundred thousand black Africans. War continues in Sudan.
Discrimination and persecution, bigotry and hatred continue to this day, in every nation, in every walk of life. From casual generalisations and crude jokes to organised marches and demonstrations, we are only ever a short step away from the breakdown of a civilised, caring society.
The hatred in this world is very sad. Let's pray for peace for all nations.
ReplyDeleteAmen!
DeleteMy sister's Polish father in law was shipped in a cattle truck. He never made it to the camp, a witness told her husband after the war. He was Catholic, but a hotel owner, and they occupied his hotel and captured and expelled the family. One son escaped, my brother in law.
ReplyDeleteMy son-in-law's Polish grandfather managed to escape, but most of the rest of the family died in concentration camps.They were Jewish.
DeleteSeems that as the last of that generation dies out lessons are being forgotten.
ReplyDeleteIt's a period of history that should be taught to every generation, so that the deniers don't spread their lies.
DeleteMurder, hatred and the need for power are such terrible things. How can such people look at others and not see they are also just people?
ReplyDeleteExactly. It's impossible to understand.
DeleteWe have learned nothing from the atrocities of the past. Persecution is ever present. I visited Auschwitz-Birkenau a few years ago. It is a harrowing experience never to be forgotten.
ReplyDeleteWe have learned nothing, as you say, and that is why we need to keep reminding people, particularly the young, of this history. It is taught in most European schools and I fervently hope it continues to be so.
DeleteThis is a powerful post. Good work, and it is also good to have a clear definition of genocide, to be considered when thinking about what is happening in the world. .
ReplyDeleteWhen standards of decent behaviour begin to slip, and crude actions and opinions become acceptable, that is the beginning of a slippery slope.
DeleteMy parents were in Australia back then, thankfully. But my in laws were hiding or imprisoned in camps in Poland, Hungary or Ukraine. Joe's uncle, aunt and 6 of the 7 children were exterminated, as were his grandparents. It was one of the world's most inhuman eras.
ReplyDeleteMost of my son-in-law's mother's family was exterminated. So much of his family history is lost to him.
DeleteInhuman is the word. When one starts thinking of people as non human, how else could people treat other people like that
ReplyDeleteIt is still difficult to understand how such a monstrous regime took power.
DeleteSomething that should never be forgotten.
ReplyDeleteQuite so.
DeleteGive some humans power and they forget any type of compassion, as you say it's still happening across our globe.
ReplyDeletePower overtakes humanity.
DeleteI do not like it that in the USA we are not teaching about the holocaust. Actually I'm not sure what they're teaching in schools anymore, I really don't think they care about anything but the easy life of a computer. Certainly not history. And certainly nothing about tragedy.
ReplyDeleteHistory can be expanded as we learn more, but it should never be denied or ignored.
DeleteIt's sad that there is such hatred in the world. Even worse is when they try to cover these things up and hide them away. We can only hope that one day there is a world without such hatred.
ReplyDeleteIt worries me that history is 'adapted' to suit the mood of the moment. Those with inquiring minds will search out the truth, but so many will simply accept what they are told and not question it, and that applies to 'news' as well.
ReplyDeleteWe can be a most awful species. We can also be awesome, but it seems to require enlightenment, which has not come to everyone.
ReplyDeleteThere has to be generosity of spirit before awesomeness can be achieved.
DeleteThat breakdown has been activated here, and it is horrifying.
ReplyDeleteIt is looking too horribly familiar.
DeleteI fear the USA is sliding down this slipper slope and that there are so many Americans who believe the holocaust was a hoax. or that Covid was a hoax. all these deaths you mentioned are so horrifying. and yet they continue on and on..
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to believe that people are so ignorant and gullible, but when you have an anti-vaxxer in a position of power, there's not much hope for the simple-minded.
ReplyDeleteThis is sadly true. we do not learn from history.
ReplyDeleteHistory is badly taught in UK. Many delivery people who come to our door are from different parts of Europe, notably Hungary, Poland and Romania - they are very knowledgeable about history and accurately quote facts.
DeleteMy father was a part of the army that helped to liberate the concentration camps. I don't now recall the name of the particular camp but he had some truly harrowing pictures of the experience that are burned into my memory.
ReplyDeleteThat's not something to recover from easily.
DeleteThank you, Janice for featuring this and the many perceptive comments that have been made. Yes, there is an alarming absence of a "generosity of spirit" as you put it. We need to individually commit to protecting those who are threatened, beginning with respecting their dignity and how we speak to and about others.
ReplyDeleteIt should start with everyone recognising that all human beings are part of the same species, but too often we are driven to show that we are superior in one way or another. Humility is a great gift to those who have it.
DeleteWe were reminded of the Holocaust Memorial Day in the Swedish media yesterday too. And I agree it's something we need to keep reminding ourselves (and each other) of. Back in 1990 I visited the Dachau concentration camp memorial near Munich. I have also read quite a few books over the years (both memoirs and fiction) describing the horrors of those camps.
ReplyDeleteThe horrors come freshly each time, to me, anyway. I cannot fathom man's inhumanity to his fellow man.
DeleteI spent almost 30 years working in refugee resettlement in the US. When I first started, the US took in over 132,000 refugees from various places around the world in a well-supported government program. Refugees from Rwanda, Bosnia, and oh so many other places where man's inhumanity to man (woman and child) thrived due to ignorance, greed and power. The US used to have a robust refugee program with more than one hundred local, non-profit social service offices around the country--helping refugees to begin new lives--most having endured unspeakable things on their journey to resettlement--seeing family members murdered in front of them; the women raped, often repeatedly in refugee camps; horrific escapes such as faced the Lost Boys. Most simply wanted a safe life for themselves and/or their children. By the time I retired, the Republican administration (now back in power--in the most obscene use of the word) had reduced the refugee program to less than 12,000 arrivals a year. In 2025, their first week back in power, the program has basically been shut down. Now they have fixed their sights on purging immigrants and their families, most of whom are law-abiding and hard working. These so-called leaders use vile names and foster lies about them just to incite the hatred of the ignorant (i.e. the ones who voted for them).
ReplyDeleteDoes it seem we've learned anything from the Holocaust? You must judge for yourself. I feel nothing but despair with the direction of my country and others intent on following fascistic regimes. All we can do is resist.
It is shameful that such a supposed leader should vilify thousands of fellow human beings. His decisions will bring about chaos and misery, particularly for the poorest of the people who voted for him.
DeleteThe fact that it even happened is so darn sad. The fact that people could treat other human beings so awfully, is just heartbreaking.
ReplyDeleteIt is heartbreaking, and it continues to this day. It's simplistic, but just imagine if everyone with green eyes were to be demonised, for no other reason than the colour of their eyes.
DeleteWhat did we learn from the Holocaust? Perhaps one of the lessons we've never absorbed is that it can happen anywhere, at any time. And that, perhaps, is one of the most frightening lessons of all, thinking of the various genocides that have taken place since 1945. Plus, in my country, more and more people believe the Holocaust never happened, or was greatly exaggerated.
ReplyDeleteThe Holocaust deniers are the most frightening of all, but it is impossible to have rational conversations with people who will not accept facts.
DeleteAh, there is another Mary at your site (and from the US) who feels as I do. Seems there are a lot of people in this country who have 'forgotten' the lessons of the past.
ReplyDelete. . . or never learned them in the first place!
DeleteThink it has all been said above and I agree with pretty much every word, every sadness expressed and every fear that has been given some light here that we seem fated to see repeats of ugly history by those who are unwilling to learn the lessons of history for which this memorial day has been created.
ReplyDeleteIndeed.
DeleteYes indeed. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteWhat an indictment of the human race!
DeletePraying for peace for all nations and all people.
ReplyDeleteAll the best Jan
Amen to that.
DeleteI am praying...and writing my state and federal legislators to let them know what I think.
ReplyDeleteI hope many thousands will feel moved to do the same.
DeleteSadly enough, we never seem to learn as history is repeating itself :-( xxx
ReplyDeleteYes, history repeats, with adaptations.
ReplyDelete