Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) is commemorated internationally on 27th January each year. This date was chosen as it is the anniversary of the day in 1945 on which the Soviet Army liberated the largest Nazi concentration camp – Auschwitz-Birkenau.

Each year, the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust urges everyone in the UK to pause and reflect on what can happen when racism, prejudice and exclusionary behaviour are left unchecked. On HMD we take the time to see how the lessons of the past can play a part in our communities today.

HMD provides a time for us to:

• Remember the victims and survivors of the Holocaust, Nazi persecution and those affected by subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and during the ongoing atrocities in Darfur.

• Ensure that the historical events associated with the Holocaust continue to be regarded as being of fundamental importance.

• Raise awareness and understanding of the events of the Holocaust and subsequent genocides as a continuing issue for all humanity, based on a recognition that it could happen again anywhere and at any time, unless we ensure that our society opposes discrimination, persecution and racism.

• Highlight the values of a society which respects and celebrates the differences between individuals and communities, based upon the notion of universal dignity and equal rights and responsibilities for all its citizens.

You can read more about the remit of HMD in our Statement of Purpose.

Please join us at 10:45am on Wednesday, 27 January at the Wolverhampton War Memorial as we remember, lest we should ever forget, the tragedy of the Holocaust, genocide, persecution and human suffering. Only through being united in our shared humanity, can we prevent similar from occurring again, ensuring a brighter future for us all and our children.