The Mayor of North Lincolnshire, Cllr Jonathan Evison, is hosting an online commemoration on Wednesday 27 January to mark the anniversary of Holocaust Memorial Day 2021.
The ceremony, which usually takes place in Scunthorpe, has been postponed until next year to meet Covid-19 lockdown guidelines.
Instead, the Mayor is inviting people to reflect at home and watch a special video, available on North Lincolnshire Council’s YouTube channel.
The Mayor asked local young people to record passages, remembering the millions of men, women and children who lost their lives in the Holocaust and more recent genocides in Rwanda, Cambodia, Bosnia and Darfur.
Pupils from St. Barnabas Church of England Primary School and St. Hugh’s School; the Young Mayor of North Lincolnshire, Zaynah Jamal; the Young Voice Ambassador, Rosie Parkin; and Father David Rowett, the Mayor’s Chaplain, all joined the Mayor in recording their respects.
Church Square House will also be illuminated in purple to mark the anniversary.
‘Be the light in the darkness’ is the theme for Holocaust Memorial Day 2021. It asks people to consider different kinds of ‘darkness’, including identity-based persecution, misinformation and denial of justice, but also encourages us to consider different ways we can bring the light, through acts of solidarity and illuminating mistruths, for example.
The Mayor of North Lincolnshire, Cllr Jonathan Evison, said:
“We will continue to commemorate the important anniversary of Holocaust Memorial Day, as we have done for the past 20 years, albeit in a different way this year.
“This year’s theme, ‘Be the light in the darkness’ is very timely and will resonate with lots of people across North Lincolnshire living through the pandemic.
“In these unprecedented times it is so important to act with kindness, empathy and tolerance. In our area, we continue to witness the very best of what humanity is capable of, through the thousands of good deeds and a fantastic neighbourly spirit. It is these qualities that will see us emerge, together, to the other side.”
Photograph by Maren Winter.
