BASW England's Personal Reflection: Holocaust Memorial Day 2017

Holocaust Memorial Day 2017

The theme of Holocaust Memorial Day 2017 is ‘How can life go on?’

To mark Holocaust Memorial Day, BASW Professional Officer Joe Godden has written a blog; “A Personal Note around Holocaust Memorial Day”.

Joe visited Germany this year and relays stories discussed amongst his family; “One of my relatives who had survived the Riga ghetto, (about three per cent of people survived) gave testimony about her experiences. She talked passionately about her concerns about the rise of racism and xenophobia across the world today.”

Joe attended a ceremony called the laying of a ‘Stolpersteine’ and spoke to the Mayor. “He said that his town needed to acknowledge and face up to what had happened in the past and that the extermination of the Jewish population had left a blank in history that the Stolpersteines were helping to fill. He also stressed the need to learn from history to help prevent racism gaining ground in Germany again.”

Read the full blog here.

BASW Professional Officer Karen Goodman has written a blog as a "descendant of a Holocaust survivor and a social worker for more than 30 years".

In light of the theme, 'How can life go on?' Karen speaks of the need to be aware of history; "I believe it is our responsibility to be aware of that history and understand and value what it teaches us, however uncomfortable and painful that may be. For me, this is the meaning of Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) and as a social worker I believe we must face it without fear or hesitation."

Read the blog in full here.