Holocaust remembered in Southend

Those who suffered and died in the Holocaust and more recent genocides are being remembered at a series of events and exhibitions being held throughout Southend.

To mark National Holocaust Memorial Day on Friday 27th January, the Worshipful the Mayor of Southend, Councillor David Norman, will plant a tree at noon in Victoria Avenue, between Churchill Gardens and Southend Civic Centre.

The simple ceremony is being staged to commemorate the lives of those who perished in the Holocaust at the hands of the Nazis and died as a result of more recent atrocities.

The event is aimed at providing time for reflection on the barbarities which have occurred during the last hundred years.

Then, on Sunday 29th January at 3pm in the Council Chamber of the Civic Centre, the annual Holocaust Memorial Day Commemoration ceremony will take place.

The service will feature music performed by members of the Southend Boys' and Girls' Choirs, poetry readings and an address by Mrs Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, a survivor of Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen.

Refreshments will be available after the service, and all are welcome to attend.

Meanwhile, a moving exhibition called „Through the Eyes of Children - Drawings from Darfur‟ will be on show at Southend Central Library from Monday 23rd to Saturday 28th January (finishing at 4pm on the 28th) and will then be displayed at the Civic Centre from Sunday 29th January to Friday 3rd February.

On Sunday 29th January there will also be an exhibition at the Civic Centre entitled „Holocaust History‟ from the Holocaust Centre of Beth Shalom.

This will be displayed from 2pm to 5pm

And the University of Essex in Elmer Approach, Southend, will play host to an exhibition called „Why Remember?‟ on Saturday 28th and Sunday 29th January, from 10am to 4pm each day.

Southend-on-Sea Borough Council‟s Executive Councillor for Culture, Councillor Derek Jarvis, who also chairs the Honours and Holocaust Memorials Day Working Party, said: “It is hugely important to keep commemorating National Holocaust Memorial Day, as we have done in Southend for many years.

“As well as being a sign of respect and recognition, it is vital that we never forget the terrible crimes committed.

“We firmly believe that the more we can all learn about the savagery of the Holocaust and other acts of genocide, the more we can prevent the risk of anything similar ever happening again.

“We hope as many people as possible will be able to attend at least one of the events or exhibitions.”