Luke Mills and Ben Redfern
Remembering the Holocaust through the 'Lessons from Auschwitz Programme'.
Luke's experience of the 'Lessons from Auschwitz Programme'
Defined by the Holocaust Educational Trust as the “murder of approximately six million Jewish people by Nazi Germany and its collaborators in the Second World War”, the Holocaust has become synonymous with stories of horror and pledges of “never again”. However, after over three-quarters of a century, we are sadly losing the voices of countless Holocaust survivors who have shared their testimonies across the wider world to educate future generations on the importance of tolerance and peace. That is why the ‘Lessons from Auschwitz Programme’ (which we ourselves have been fortunate to participate in over recent months) gives young people the extraordinary opportunity to hear first-hand accounts of Holocaust survivors and learn more about what is undoubtedly the darkest period of European history. Whilst learning about the spread of antisemitism in Europe, we were able to talk with 87 year old Steven Frank - a man who was just 5 years old when the Nazis invaded his home city of Amsterdam, Netherlands. Soon after the beginning of Nazi occupation, Steven was separated from his father (a member of the Dutch resistance) who was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau where he was killed for his poor physical condition - Steven never had the chance to say goodbye to his father. Just months later, Steven and his mother too were sent to various concentration camps across Nazi-occupied Europe where they were subjected to the most horrific atrocities one can imagine.
Listening to Steven recount his experiences, we were inspired by his ability to talk about such a personal, unimaginable trauma so openly in order to share his hope for peace, love and tolerance of others. Moreover, we were all reminded that behind each victim of the Holocaust, for every person included in that overwhelming “six million”, there is a story that needs to be heard and shared. Likewise, the story of Kitty Hart-Moxon was shared with us as we learnt of how she extraordinarily survived for two years at Auschwitz-Birkenau (perhaps the most notorious of Nazi extermination camps) at just 16 years old. Again, her testimony was incredibly moving and her determination to use her story for good was undeniably very stirring. Indeed, what many of us found the most powerful was the Holocaust survivors’ hope that no one else will ever have to go through the unfathomable horrors that they were forced to endure.
Ben's experience of the 'Lessons from Auschwitz Programme'
It is particularly important to remember and reflect on the holocaust, as one of the darkest chapters in human history, now more than ever with current events in Ukraine. We need to remember that we begin to dehumanise the victims of the holocaust by simply referring to them as “six million Jewish people” who were murdered. We need to remember that with every individual that perished, it meant the loss of a member of a community, a member who played a role in the lives of all other members. It is important to remember the consequences of the holocaust as it ultimately also lead to a loss of cultures, customs and ideas, each individually unique to different regions or even villages across Europe.
By listening to the accounts of survivors we can also become witnesses. It is important as witnesses that we spread awareness of the events of the holocaust as by doing so we can help to prevent tragedy on this scale from ever happening again. By talking about these subjects we can truly begin to educate each other and correct misconceptions which we might have about the events of the Holocaust. Furthermore, the number of witnesses who were alive during the holocaust is declining year by year due to it being roughly 80 years since the peak of the holocaust. This is another reason why we need to attempt to hear from our remaining survivors while we still have the privilege. Testimonies such as those from Kitty Hart-Moxon OBE and Steven Frank BEM are vital to fully understand the true atrocities committed to the Jewish population in Europe. It is also important to remember that each of the six million who perished through various means of extermination also had a story unique to them, a story equally filled with the true horrors of the holocaust.
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