On Holocaust Memorial Day (January 27), hundreds of thousands of people will gather at over 2,400 events across the country to mark 70 years since the liberation of the Nazi’s most notorious killing site Auschwitz-Birkenau.

These events will allow people to come together to remember and honour the millions killed in the Holocaust and in subsequent genocides. Candles designed by award-winning sculptor Sir Anish Kapoor will be lit at 70 special commemorations around the UK and at Auschwitz itself, symbolically linking them on this important anniversary. It is vital that we all remember and reflect upon the horrors of the past, and honour those who survived. Many survivors will be speaking about their experiences at events in schools, cinemas and local communities. By hearing, seeing and sharing these powerful stories and memories, we are challenged to confront all forms of hatred and discrimination wherever we see them.

Play your part by attending a local event – listed at hmd.org.uk – or reading a survivor story on keepthememoryalive.hmd.org.uk and sharing it with others.

Olivia Marks-Woldman

Chief Executive of the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust