Mayor Andy Street to mark Holocaust memorial Day with West Midlands faith leaders

West Midlands mayor Andy Street will join members of the Jewish and interfaith community tomorrow to mark Holocaust Memorial Day, ahead of national commemorations.

Marking Holocaust Memorial Day in a special virtual event, the mayor will be joined by guest speakers and religious figures from the region, who will be reflecting on the events that took place during the holocaust – also known as the Shoah.

Featuring readings, poems and music performances, Street will be joined by Holocaust survivor Mindu Hornick MBE, who will be sharing her personal story.

Also present will be the Lord-Lieutenant of the West Midlands, Mr John Crabtree OBE and members of the Kol Kinor Choir, joined by Rabbi Yehudah Pink of the Solihull & District Synagogue, Youth Ambassador Joe Collins, Bosnian Music Performers Elvir Solak & Aida Ccorbadzic; and Amrick Singh Ubhi from the Faith Strategic Partnership.

Be the light in the darkness

The theme for this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day, which takes place on Wednesday 27 January, is ‘Be the light in the darkness’.

According to organisers, the theme “asks all of us to recognise that the responsibility for genocide education and prevention does not lie only with survivors and their families sharing their stories.

“Their experiences hold lessons for all of us and it is vital that we listen to their experiences and become witnesses for them.

“Holocaust Memorial Day enables us to remember – for a purpose. It gives us a responsibility to work for a safer, better, future for everyone.

“Everyone can step up and use their talents to tackle prejudice, discrimination and intolerance wherever we encounter them.”

The HMD service will be live streamed on the West Midlands Combined Authority YouTube channel here, and has been organised in partnership with Jewish Birmingham and Remembering Srebrenica.

The West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) is also encouraging those marking Holocaust Memorial Day to light a candle and share a photo on social media with the hashtags #WMHMD2021 and #LightTheDarkness.