Mark Garnier MP and students from Wyre Forest have visited Auschwitz-Birkenau. Wyre Forest's local MP joined more than 200 other post-16 students from around Worcestershire on the Project, which was a unique opportunity to learn about what happened at Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Organised by the Holocaust Educational Trust the project was designed to explore the universal lessons of the Holocaust and its relevance for today. The Wyre Forest Students from Holy Trinity School, Kidderminster College, King Charles I School and Stourport School, were also given the chance to pay their respects to the millions of people those who lost their lives there during the Second World War.
Mark said, "I cannot underestimate the importance of visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau and recognising the full extent of the industrialised nature of the Holocaust. These events may have taken place over 60 years ago but as our society bears witness; we need to continue to teach the lessons of the Holocaust to the younger generations in order to fight bigotry and hatred today.
I look forward to seeing how the students will communicate their experience to their peers and am encouraged that many more students will have the opportunity to participate in the course in future years. I hope that this will ensure that the Holocaust is never forgotten and that its lessons are truly learnt, disseminated and acted upon."
Now in its thirteenth year, the Project is based on the premise that "hearing is not like seeing". Students first visited Osweicim, the town where the Auschwitz death and concentration camps were located and where before the war, 58% of the population was Jewish. Students then visited Auschwitz to see the former camp's barracks and crematoria and witnessing the piles of belongings that were seized by the Nazis. Finally they spent time at the main killing centre of Birkenau where the day concluded with candle lighting and a period of reflection to remember the 6 million Jews, and the Roma, Sinti, gay, disabled, black people, and other victims of the Nazis killed in the Holocaust.
Government funding has enabled the Trust to facilitate regional visits to Auschwitz, as part of its Lessons from Auschwitz Project for thousands of students each year.
Karen Pollock, Chief Executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust said: "We are delighted that Mark joined us on the visit with students from his constituency. The Holocaust Educational Trust's Lessons from Auschwitz Project is such a vital part of our work because it not only gives students the chance to learn about the Holocaust but to understand the dangers and potential effects of prejudice and racism today on a local and national scale."