You're invited to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day at our free event on Monday 27 January.
The event will be held at The Polish Social and Cultural Association (POSK) in King Street, Hammersmith. We're marking the day with an in-person talk open to all residents. It runs from 11am to 1.30pm.
Lord Alf Dubs will be sharing his story on the day. He arrived in Britian aboard a Kindertransport train in 1939, aged six, as a refugee fleeing the Nazi occupation of Prague.
"The Germans occupied Prague in March 1939," Lord Dubs said. "My father, who was Jewish, left immediately for the UK. In June, my mother, having been refused permission to leave, put me on a Kindertransport train with a knapsack of food for the journey."
He travelled for three and a half days to get to London where his father was waiting for him. His mother later escaped and was able to join them in the UK.
"As we remember the terrible events of the Second World War it is my hope that we will also remember the humanity that was shown to children like me," he said.
"And honour that humanity by standing together and once again welcoming those persecuted by war so they too can have hope for the future."
Lord Dubs has spent his life campaigning for refugees and human rights and in 2016 sponsored an amendment – later known as the "Dubs Amendment" – to the Immigration Act 2016. This offered some unaccompanied refugee children stranded in camps in Europe safe passage to Britain.
He continues to campaign on behalf of refugees and currently serves on the British Irish Parliamentary Assembly and on the Justice and Home Affairs select committee.
Sharing their stories
The free event will commemorate the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau and the 30th anniversary of the genocide in Bosnia.
Also speaking on the day will be Francis Morton, sharing his parents' story, and Smajo Bešo, survivor of the genocide in Bosnia.
Francis Morton's mother, Renee, moved from Czechoslovakia to London to avoid Nazi persecution in 1938.
Through 500 letters written to his mother, between 1938 and 1946, from her friends and relatives, Francis has uncovered accounts of the persecution and murder of European Jews. In his retirement, he now researches and shares these stories to counter the message of Holocaust denial and minimisation.
Smajo Bešo, OBE, was born in Bosnia in 1985 and lived there until war broke out in 1992.
When the conflict began, the Serbian army arrested and imprisoned his father and male relatives in concentration camps. He was forced to relocate to Mostar where his family was bombed daily and left to face the harsh winter without food, water, or electricity.
Eventually, they found refuge in the UK, where Smajo embraced his Bosnian roots and new Geordie identity, and later founded the Bosnian Genocide Educational Trust. He was awarded an OBE for his work in genocide education and commemoration.
Everyone welcome
"This year's Holocaust Memorial Day theme is 'For a better future'. It gives us a chance to reflect and remember the millions of people across the world who have died due to genocide," said Cllr Patricia Quigley, Mayor of H&F.
"Families and whole communities were wiped out in the Holocaust, and in many, many cases, not even their names are known. Thank you to those who show us their humanity by sharing their stories and experiences so that others can learn about these atrocities and so that we never forget.
"I hope people will see the opportunity they have to act for a better future. An inclusive future where communities are not suffering because of their faith, gender, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, nationally or other characteristics."
Book your free tickets on our Eventbrite page. Refreshments will also be provided.
