Khan stresses importance of hearing survivors at Holocaust Memorial Day ceremony

Sadiq Khan stressed the importance of hearing Shoah survivor testimony, as City Hall marked Holocaust Memorial Day.

Reflecting on the “worrying rise in antisemitism at home and abroad, this year’s theme, ‘Standing Together’ could not be more apt”, he said.

Speaking at the ceremony for HMD, which this year marks 75-years since the liberation of Auschwitz and 25-years since the end of the genocide in Bosnia, he urged action to tackle hate.

“Progress in opposing hatred and promoting equality must never be taken for granted. That’s why it’s ever more important that we hear survivors’ stories and remember the horrors of the death camps and the millions who died.”

The Mayor of London encouraged people “to stand in solidarity with the Jewish community” in remembrance to “ensure it never happens again.”

He was joined by communal leaders, as well as Holocaust survivor Lily Ebert and Bosnian genocide survivor,  Sabit Jakupović. The Mayor read a poem entitled ‘Toys’ by Abraham Sutzkever

This comes after an announcement made last week, that City Hall would give a £300,000 grant to ensure the preservation of Auschwitz.

Jennette Arnold AM, Chair of the London Assembly, led the ceremony which also featured Rabbi Marcus, the Emeritus Rabbi of Central Synagogue.

Olivia Marks-Woldman, Chief Executive of the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, praised the Mayor’s “strong commitment” to remembering victims of the Holocaust, adding she is “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 identity-based prejudice are causing real damage across society.”