Virtual candlelit ceremony in Cornwall to mark Holocaust Memorial Day
Truro Cathedral is holding an online event
People across Cornwall are coming together to mark this year's Holocaust Memorial Day.
Residents from all faiths and backgrounds are asked to join together on Wednesday January 27th.
The yearly event remembers the millions murdered under Nazi persecution, and other genocides that have followed in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur.
The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust’s theme for this year is ‘Be the light in the darkness’ and people across the country are encouraged to put a candle in their window at 8pm to reflect on the depths humanity can sink to but also the ways individuals and communities resisted that darkness.
Truro Cathedral are holding their own candle lighting ceremony online at 1pm on 27th January and can be watched through their website Truro Cathedral - Holocaust Memorial Day – Be a light in the darkness
“Cornwall Council is proud to support Holocaust Memorial Day. We must ensure that we never forget the atrocities of the Holocaust and we must learn from this terrible history to ensure that this is never allowed to happen again. In our own communities we continue to witness dreadful acts of violence, prejudice and hatred which only remind us of the need to keep working to tackle this behaviour.
“Cornwall is home to a wide range of people from different faiths and backgrounds and this makes our culture strong, vibrant and exciting. We will continue to work for equality, fairness, kindness and safety for all in Cornwall. Our Jewish residents are an integral part of our community and we stand side by side with them to mark Holocaust Memorial Day.”
Cornwall Council leader, Julian German
Cllr Tim Dwelly, cabinet member for culture, economy and planning said: “I’m very happy that Cornwall Council recognises the IHRA (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance) definitions of anti-Semitism which I know will bring comfort to many who have been on the receiving end of anti-Semitic abuse.“
Reflecting on his own heritage, he added: “I’m Cornish, and I’m also Jewish. My mother’s mother was Jewish and she was lucky to get out of Germany in the 1930’s and she drove ambulances in the blitz in London. So my family background means a lot to me in terms of the Holocaust because if the Holocaust had come to this country, I wouldn’t be here talking to you today.”
Councillor Tim Dwelly
“Recognising Holocaust Memorial Day only gets more important as the years go by. On Sunday we saw over 150 people come together, from different organisations, groups and faiths, to remember and honour those who lost their lives, and those that survived and had to rebuild their lives following the Nazi regime.
“As we remember, we also strengthen our resolve to stand up against other more recent genocides and current injustices, where even today, groups of people, from different races and faiths, are oppressed and their freedoms limited or taken away from them completely. They are dehumanised, as the Jews were, in order to excuse their persecution in the interests of a cynical, monolithic and monopolising political system. This cannot continue to happen and we must stand up to prejudice and abuse.”
Chairman of Kehillat Kernow, Jeremy Jacobson