Holocaust Memorial Day, which this year marks the 30th anniversary of the Bosnian genocide and the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, will be commemorated with an event at Poole’s Lighthouse theatre.
Following an act of commemoration, the event, hosted by the Bournemouth and Poole Holocaust Memorial Day Committee on January 26th from 2pm to 4.30pm, will hear from two speakers – Elma Hajrovic a survivor of the Bosnian genocide who now lives in Bournemouth, and Hanna White, daughter of artist and Holocaust survivor Yehunda Bacon.
Holocaust Memorial Day is an international day to remember the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust alongside the millions of other people killed under Nazi persecution and in genocides that followed. It takes place each year on January 27th – the date in 1945 that Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi death camp, was liberated. This year the memorial day takes the theme ‘For a Better Future.’
Lynda Ford-Horne, a member of the Bournemouth and Poole Holocaust Memorial Day Committee, said:
“Monday 27th January 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and 2025 also marks the 30th anniversary of the Bosnian genocide, so this year’s commemoration is particularly significant.
“It is so important we never forget. This commemoration is an opportunity for people to come together, to remember, and most importantly to learn lessons from the past to empower action ‘for a better future’ for all.
“From challenging prejudice and hate, to sharing knowledge, and encouraging understanding and respect for all communities, every one of us can play our part in creating a better future.”
The Bournemouth and Poole Holocaust Memorial Day Committee will be hosting a free to attend commemorative event at Poole’s Lighthouse on Sunday January 26th from 2pm to 4.30pm. The main talk taking place in this year’s programme will be dedicated to hearing the testimony of a Holocaust survivor Yehuda Bacon.
Yehunda was born in Czechoslovakia. In 1942, at the age of 13, he was deported with his family to Terezin, a concentration camp North of Prague. In 1943 he was deported to Auschwitz. He was eventually liberated from Gunskirchen, a subcamp of the Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria 1945.
As soon as he was released, he drew small sketches of the gas chambers and crematoria. His artwork served as evidence in trials against Nazi criminals, including the 1961 trial of Nazi high official Aldolf Eichmann in Jerusalem, and the 1968 Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials of twenty-two Nazi personnel who served at the Auschwitz Camp Complex between 1940 and 1945. They were also used in the litigation against Holocaust denier David Irving, who challenged the existence of gas chambers in Auschwitz.
Yehuda is now in his 90s and lives in Jerusalem. His story will be told by his daughter Hanna.
Bournemouth and Poole Holocaust Memorial Day Committee member Josephine Jackson said:
“We are told in the Old Testament that we are all God’s people. We sincerely hope that our speakers at this year’s event will show how important it is to remember this, and work together for a ‘Better Future’ in which we can live in peace with all people.”
The Holocaust Memorial Day 2025 tickets will need to be booked in advance from Lighthouse booking office on 01202 280000 or Lighthouse website https://www.lighthousepoole.
Tickets are free but there is a suggested donation of £5 via BACS to help support the Bournemouth and Poole Holocaust Memorial Day Committee to continue its work in the future.
Account is Bournemouth and Poole Holocaust Memorial Day Committee which is a business account. Sort code: 30-91-08. Account Number: 29336460
