THE community gathered for a poignant vigil to mark Holocaust Memorial Day as well as remember those who died in subsequent genocides.
The event, organised annually by Saddleworth Peace Group, saw members, supporters, councillors and locals meet outside Uppermill Methodist Church.
They reflected and paid their respects to the six million people who died in the Holocaust as well as the victims of other genocides around the world.
Group members gave readings, offering personal reflections of their own visits or connections to countries where genocides have taken place.
Liz Green spoke about Rwanda, Michele Abendstern about the Nazi Holocaust, Phillida Shipp about Cambodia, Magda Sachs about the Bosnian genocide, and Katy Boulton about Darfur.
A minute’s silence was held to reflect – with the group noting that if a minute’s silence was held for each of the six million people who died in the Holocaust, it would add up to 11.5 years.
Magda Sachs, from Saddleworth Peace Group, said: “People were othered and dehumanised for who and what they were and we still see instances of that today. We should resist that and guard against that.
“It doesn’t happen overnight. It is a process over time and becomes embedded so we have to stop it in the early stages.
“Refugees live across Greater Manchester and are our neighbours but they are vilified by other neighbours. We do not want to become those other neighbours.”
Debbie Abrahams, MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth, said: “It is important that we remember not just the people who were killed in the Holocaust but also in subsequent genocides.
“We must also remember the survivors and those who live with the pain of seeing family members slaughtered and murdered in front of their eyes
“But discrimination is not just happening in the past. We must not forget people who are persecuted here in the UK today.
“The discrimination some people go through is disgraceful, whether that’s hate crime online or in person.
“I challenge each of you to double your efforts to make sure that love and kindness overcome war.”
Barbara Beeley, chair of Saddleworth Parish Council, added: “We should all strive for world peace and tolerance of faiths and people.”
And unintentional guest Ian Joseph, who joined the gathering after spotting it while driving past with his wife Susan, added a few words.
Ian, who is chairman of the Bury Hebrew Congregation and wife Susan is administrator, said: “I feel very proud that your community is holding this event.
“I applaud you all for supporting the movement for peace and trying to make sure something like the Holocaust never happens again.”
Holocaust Memorial Day is held on January 27 each year – the day that Auschwitz was liberated – to remember the victims killed under Nazi persecution.
Find out about more about Peace Group on Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/saddleworthpeacegroup
Fine and admirable sentiments and yet Julian Assange still remains in jail and is most likely soon going to be deported to the US ?
“Tolerance implies no lack of commitment t one’s own beliefs. Rather it condemns to oppression or persecution of others.”
JFK
Fine and admirable sentiments?!
Fail to see how the potential extradition of a white, male alleged rapist (who took refuge in the Ecuadorean embassy to avoid extradition to face these charges), is remotely comparable to the Holocaust and mass genocide of millions of innocent people.
Then I would suggest that you probably don’t really know that much either about Julian Assange’s circumstances, (and the rape charges which most people believe were contrived anyway have all been dropped,) or about The Holocaust.
This is a potentially loaded topic and having said my piece; not one that I wish to get bogged down in, other than to remind anyone who cares that Assange’s only real crime has been courageous and honest journalism.
But you do perhaps usefully illustrate Hannah Arendt’s observation about, “The banality of evil,” which is to say that perhaps the mos completely horrifying aspect of the Holocaust and the one which she sums up so succinctly; is that it was operated, financed and administered by perfectly ordinary hard working, educated, patriotic, law abiding, god fearing, middle class Germans little different in final analysis to you or I .
The only reason the rape charges were dropped were for logistical reasons as the Swedish authorities couldn’t formally notify him. And unable to see how his actions have been courageous, Chelsea Manning took the biggest risk leaking the information and subsequently serving time for it. There are more courageous examples of journalism, those who’ve sadly lost their lives in the pursuit for truth and those risking their lives publishing news under oppressive regimes.
This is rightly a loaded topic and one that is important to keep discussing but to compare the horrific crimes of the holocaust with the leaking of government documents is insulting. Julian Assange is not being persecuted for his ethnicity, sexuality or religious beliefs. The refuge that he has benefited from sadly wasn’t available to the millions murdered during WW2 or the more recent genocide atrocities.
I think that it’s fairly typical of people of your own mind set that you are always far more outraged and inflamed by events that far away or that happened long ago than you ever seem to be about equally real and immediate injustices that are occurring right here right now in the UK and/or elsewhere..
An attitude that was probably shared, (if the accounts are to be believed,) by many perhaps and most ordinary Germans during 1930’s and one which was above all else how The Holocaust became possible in the first place.
But I agree with you completely Julian Assange is not the only journalist who is being hounded and persecuted and I’d certainly add Chelsea Manning and even Edward Snowdon to that long and growing list along with many many others less well known, (being detained, imprisoned and too often simply murdered,) as well; free speech and honest journalism have never during my lifetime, been under as widespread or as determine attack as they are today.
As for Assange;
“First they came for the communist and I did not speak out because I was not a Communist………………………….?”
And so on…………..
Good to see you making a massive assumption about my mind set and what enrages me. You’ll see that I referred to recent genocides in my last post therefore not only do past events enrage me but current ones too.
Our criteria for comparable injustices clearer differ and whilst you still haven’t convinced me that Assange’s current predicament is remotely similar to mass murder on the grounds of ethnicity. I wish you well.