HMDT statement on the remarks of Jackie Walker
Jackie Walker, vice-chair of Momentum, questioned the aims and basis of Holocaust Memorial Day at a training session on antisemitism at the Labour Party conference.
Here is the response from HMDT Chief Executive Olivia Marks-Woldman:
‘The Holocaust was a threat to the fabric of society and it is right that everybody should commemorate the events of this appalling period of history.
We are extremely shocked and saddened that Jackie Walker has questioned the aims and basis of Holocaust Memorial Day, a day when people of all backgrounds come together to remember the Holocaust, and indeed all victims of Nazi Persecution and subsequent genocides which have taken place in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur.
Commemoration of the Holocaust should be a universal responsibility and does not prevent or undermine commemoration of other genocides.
With more than 5,500 activities in local communities across the UK, Holocaust Memorial Day effectively brings together vast numbers of people to commemorate the Holocaust and subsequent genocides.’