But those unique experiences, those unique views, are
precisely why you’ve been invited along today.
There are deeply moving monuments to the murdered Jews of
Europe in cities around the world. The thousands of
concrete columns that comprise the vast memorial in
Berlin. The heart-wrenching bronze shoes that line the
banks of the Danube in Budapest. The symbolic glass
towers that stand opposite City Hall in Boston.
They are all ideally suited to the cities and countries
they are in.
But we want a UK
memorial that is truly national, one that speaks
to the thoughts and feelings and experiences of British
survivors.
And that’s why your opinions – your honest, open opinions
– are so important.
If you think one of the designs is head and shoulders
above the rest, don’t be embarrassed about saying so. But
if you don’t rate a design, we want to hear that too. And
if you can think of ways to improve a design, share those
thoughts too. These are just initial ideas, there’s a lot
of work still to be done.
I can’t promise that the jury will pick your personal
favourite. I can’t promise that we won’t pick your
personal least favourite, for that matter! But I can
promise that your opinions will carry a great deal of
weight.
We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to build a
stunning, inspiring, sobering memorial in a jaw-dropping
location. And it’s so important that we get the design
right.
It’s not just important to me, or to the jury. But to the
whole country.
Because there are voices out there saying we don’t need
another reminder of the Holocaust. That it’s enough to
let it be noted in the history books and the museums.
That we should move on.
Such voices couldn’t be more wrong.
In recent weeks we’ve seen people proudly marching
through an American city with swastika flags held high.
We’ve seen Jewish children as young as eight being chased
through London by a man shouting the foulest anti-Semitic
abuse. We’ve read report after report about the steadily
swelling ranks of neo-Nazis and their efforts to become
almost respectable by denying or belittling the crimes of
their predecessors.
That’s why, as the Shoah slides towards the edge of
living memory, it becomes ever more important that we
refuse to forget it.
That we stand up as a nation and say “No, we will not let
the past be airbrushed. We will not allow this country
forget what happens when hatred and ignorance and bigotry
are allowed to flourish unchecked.”
The UK Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre will stand
as a permanent reminder of what happened.
Constructed right in the heart of our democracy, it will
be impossible to ignore or overlook. It will be a lasting
tribute both to those who died and to those who survived.
And it will be a focal point for reflection and education
that will ensure the Holocaust is remembered long after
all of us in this room are gone.
And I hope that, with your help, we can choose a design
worthy of the 6 million men, women and children who must
never be forgotten.
