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April 25, 2006
"A man hides in a forest with his family. They forage what they can to survive, hiding from detection because of their religion. Despite the man’s caution, and to his horror, he returns from a search for food to discover his wife, his child and other family and friends taken from him at the end of a knife. This was life during the Holocaust.
Holocaust Memorial Day allows all Canadians the opportunity to reflect on one of the darkest periods of humanity. People were judged by the colour of their skin, their sexual orientation and, most noticeably, their religion. For years, the Jewish community has marked Yom Hashoah, a day to remember the more than six million Jews who died because of who they were. Today, survivors tell their stories and pass down the tales of atrocities so their children and future generations will never forget.
Last year, world leaders gathered to remember the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the concentration camp where human beings were reduced to a number tattooed on their arm. We remember now as we did then, mourning for the loss of family, friends, and those whom we will never know.
Canadians across the country will use this day as an opportunity to teach their children about this bleak period. Out of this grief, however, there is hope that retelling stories of devastating tragedy and heroic survival will convey the importance of working together to ensure this never happens again."
Michaëlle Jean