Young Voices: This week… Horror march offered hope

In the week following Yom HaShoah, I found myself reflecting on my recent experience as a participant in the UK delegation of March of the Living.

It’s an eye-opening experience to walk through Auschwitz, Belzec and Majdanek with Holocaust survivors who have a personal connection to these sites, where so many horrific atrocities were carried out at the hands of the Nazis.

I found myself in awe of the survivors’ bravery and strength in giving their harrowing eyewitness accounts of such tragic memories, a selfless act to ensure that such human devastation never happens again. Yet despite their troubled past, they remained positive about the future of our world, something I found inspiring.

As a proud Jewish woman living in today’s world, it’s hard to even comprehend the suffering endured by the victims and survivors of the Holocaust.

In order for us to create a safe and secure world for tomorrow’s generation, the Holocaust must not become a simple footnote at the end of a history book.

The actual ‘march’ took place on Yom HaShoah, comprising 11,000 people, who walked from Aushwitz to Birkeanu.

It was a privilege to take part in such an event, surrounded by different cultures, nationalities and faiths, all coming together to remember the Holocaust.

In my mind the march demonstrated that violence can be eradicated, wiped away and replaced by peace and humanity.

• Sophie Lipton is a Jeneration fieldworker