Last week saw Holocaust Memorial Day being marked.  As the horrors of the Holocaust fade from living memory with fewer survivors each year, it is more important than ever to remember that mankind is capable of such atrocities and that people can still be hated and suffer violence simply for being who they are. 

Our government has rightly pledged to fight antisemitism with renewed vigour and sadly the need has not gone away.  On Holocaust Memorial Day, it was distressing to see the video of two middle-aged Orthodox Jewish shopkeepers in London being violently attacked by an apparent passer-by as they closed their shop.  Thankfully an arrest was swiftly made but despicable acts like this can install fear in the wider Jewish community, as well as in other communities where people can be easily identified, such as because of their physical appearance or their attire.

One thing I’ve always liked about our town is that the vast majority of us get along well, with violent crimes motivated by discrimination being few and far between.  When they do happen, whether on a political or personal level, we all unite to condemn them and encourage any information to be passed to the police.               

In marking Holocaust Memorial Day, the government announced that it is to make all its records related to the Holocaust available to the public for the first time, for research and study purposes.  This includes the collection of 787 books in the St. Lambrecht collection, once looted by the Nazis, which will be accessible to the public for the first time. This collection is planned to be moved to London’s Wiener Holocaust Library.

The government is now urging others, throughout the world, in possession of collections of Holocaust-related material/records to adopt a similar approach.  In an age where disgracefully, some deny or distort the Holocaust, it is important to make documents of the era as freely available as possible.  While there is progress, the wider world still sees people murdered and persecuted for who they are, making it vital to mark Holocaust Memorial Day and teach the next generation.

Councillor Duncan Crow, Leader of Crawley Borough Council Conservative Group

2nd February 2022