Since 2007 the University of Essex has marked Holocaust Memorial Day with a series of events taking place around the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration and extermination camp by Soviet troops.
Holocaust Memorial Week provides a focus for remembering the millions of Jewish people killed in the Holocaust and other victims of the Nazi persecution. We also remember victims of genocides perpetrated against targeted groups in countries such as Armenia, Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Herzegovina (Srebrenica), Sudan (Darfur) and Myanmar. It is also an opportunity for us to look at human rights issues, explore discrimination that still exists today, and lessons still to be learned by the Holocaust.
Each year during Holocaust Memorial Week, a number of events take place, each reflecting a different theme. These events include talks, lectures, exhibitions, film screenings and more.
The first week with a specific theme was in 2009, when 'STAND UP TO HATRED' was chosen by the National Holocaust Memorial Day Trust. This theme was chosen to highlight the extreme consequences of hatred, and help us to look at our behaviour toward others and explore how each of us can help make our communities stronger and safer.
Over the years, other themes have included; disability and euthanasia, issues including prejudice, intolerance, discrimination and stigmatization, the experiences of the Roma and Sinti, the persecution of gay men under the Nazi regime, and the struggle for human rights and dignity of LGBT people since 1945.
We are currently organising our programme of events for Holocaust Memorial Week 2026 and will update this webpage as events, timings and locations are confirmed. If you would like any further information about our planned programme of events for 2026, please email Holly Ward or Lorena Saiano at events@essex.ac.uk.
Filmmakers around the world have risen to the challenge of thoughtfully depicting the Holocaust, helping to ensure victims are not forgotten and the circumstances that led to the Holocaust are understood. Dr Joanna Rzepa, from the Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies has selected five films you should watch if you can. Find out why she recommends the films on her list, and how you can watch them.
Edek was screened at 1pm each day on the large outdoor screen in the Pavilion on Square 2, throughout Holocaust Memorial Week. One of the world's darkest stories is told in an entirely new way when an 85-year old Holocaust Survivor named Janine and a young African American rapper named Kapoo collaborate to deliver a Hip-Hop message to the youth of the world.
Members of the University community took part in this act of remembrance, reading names in person from 10.50am-11.10am, 11.50am-12.10pm, 12.50pm - 1.10pm and 1.50pm-2.10pm between squares 4 and 5. The names were also projected on the building's wall behind the readers and a video of the names being read was shown on the large screen at The Forum at our Southend Campus.
Members of the University community attended the Holocaust Memorial Day event, organised by Harwich Town Council which took place around the status 'Safe Haven' on Harwich Quayside.
Professor Sanja Bahun, Executive Dean for the Faculty of Arts and Humanities and a Professor in the Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies spoke before the film screening at the Electric Palace in Harwich. Professor Lucy Noakes, Director of the Centre for Public History at the University and President of the Royal Historical Society introduced the film with a history of the Kindertransport and her reflections on the significance of local history in this context.
The Lakeside Theatre hosted a film screening of 'The Windermere Children' which recounts the true story of a group of young adults rescued from Nazi Concentration Campus and bought for rehabilitation, on the shores of Lake Windermere, to prepare for a new life in the UK.
A workshop-panel was held which explored what existing modes of Holocaust commemoration reveal about the nature of public memory and commemorative practices and the questions they pose for those who produce them and those who receive them, and their relevance for commemorating present-day human rights issues such as refugee and migrant deaths.
The Origami Society hosted a lantern-making workshop to make lanterns for the Procession of Light that took place the next day.
Members of the University Community walked together through the Squares at the Colchester Campus with their lanterns, made by members of the Origami Society. The procession stopped to listen to 'Even when he is silent' - a poignant and introspective choral work, inspired by a short but deeply moving text, written by a Jewish individual hiding during World War II and found scratched on the wall of a cellar in Cologne, Germany. The procession finished with a gathering outside the Silberrad Student Centre for a moment of reflection.
A seminar examined the translations and retranslations of Holocaust testimonies, considering the contribution that translation studies research can offer to histories of Holocaust memory.
Lantern-making workshop, Colchester campus
Students and staff joined artist Tom Armstrong to make lanterns for the Procession of Light which took place from 5.15pm.
The Procession of Light, Colchester campus
University of Essex students and staff walked together across the Colchester Campus, accompanied by musicians from the Band of Fools. The procession finished with a gathering outside the Lakeside Theatre for a moment of reflection with a poem read by Dr Marian De Vooght. Following our moment of reflection, there were hot drinks served in the Lakeside Cafe.
Lantern-making workshop, Southend campus
Students, staff and members of the general public made lanterns at The Forum for the Procession of Light which took place from 6.15pm.
Procession of Light, Southend campus
University of Essex students and staff processed in front of The Forum accompanied by musicians from the Oysland Klezmer Band. The procession ended with a moment of reflection which was read by East 15 Acting School , Zara Finestone. Following the moment of reflection, hot drinks were served in The Forum.
Screening of 'Night and Fog'
The film screening was hosted by the Centre for Public History and was introduced by Professor Sanja Bahun from the Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies. A Q&A was held after the film with Dr Andrew Fagan, Director of the Human Rights Centre and Professor Lucy Noakes, Director of the Centre for Public History, PHAIS.
Reading of Names
On 27 January each year, we come together to remember the victims of the Holocaust and other genocides with the Reading of Names. University staff and students joined this act of remembrance and read names from 11.50am-12.10pm, 12.50pm-1.10pm and 1.50pm-2.10pm.
The names that were read were projected onto the campus buildings behind them and were showed as a video on the large screen at The Forum, Southend campus.
Holocaust Memorial Service
University of Essex staff and students and members of the local community gathered together for a service with readings and reflections in the spirit of peace and friendship. All shared light refreshments after the service.
Holocaust Memorial Week 2024 Exhibition
The Jewish Society organised a walk-in exhibition in the Silberrad Student Centre to learn from our past, for a better future.Events in Harwich
The Harwich Kindertransport Memorial and Learning Trust held an exhibition from Wednesday 24 - Wednesday 31 January 2024. The exhibition "Safe Haven – Leslie Brent” highlighted his amazing journey on the Kindertransport - one of the largest acts of rescue in the whole of the Nazi era - and the life he made for himself in Britain. He was one of the 10,000 mostly Jewish children who were sent to safety in Britain from 1938-1939, and like many of the children, he arrived in the Essex port of Harwich.
Harwich Town Council held their Holocaust Memorial Day Ceremony on Harwich Quayside on Friday 26 January.
The Electric Palace Cinema in Harwich screened 'One Life' from Friday 26 - Monday 29 January 2024.
National events
The Holocaust Memorial Day 2024 Ceremony Curated Moments was available to watch on the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust webpage.
On Holocaust Memorial Day, the nation joined together to Light the Darkness at 8pm, lighting candles and putting them in their windows and then sharing the photos of their candles on social media.
Students, staff and members of the public joined artists Tom and Iris to make lanterns for the Procession of Light which took place from 5.15pm.
University of Essex staff, students and members of the public joined together for the Procession of Light. We walked together across the Colchester campus, accompanied by musicians from Don Kipper.
The procession finished with a gathering outside the Lakeside Theatre for a moment of reflection with a poem read by Dr Marian De Vooght. Following our moment of reflection, there were hot drinks served in the Lakeside Cafe.
The audience in the Lakeside Theatre joined Don Kipper on a journey into the world of Eastern European Jewish and Roma music making, from hectic hongas and frantic freylekhs, to tranquil Dobridens and soulful Doinas. Over the course of the evening Don Kipper told stories about the lives of great Klezmer musicians (the Klezmorim) of the past and helped bring to life this most durable of traditions.
The Jewish Society organised a walk-in exhibition in the Silberrad Student Centre to learn from our past, for a better future.
The UK Online Commemoration for Holocaust Memorial Day was streamed on Thursday 26 January at 7pm.
On 27 January each year, we come together to remember the victims of the Holocaust and other genocides with the Reading of Names. University staff and students and members of the local Community join this act of remembrance and read names from 1pm-2pm on the Colchester Campus.
This year, as well as reading in-person, we asked our community to join in this act of remembrance by recording short videos, introduced by Professor Anthony Forster, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Essex. This video was also shown down at The Forum in Southend.
Reverend Dr Sara Batts-Neale recalls how she learned, aged seven, of the genocide taking place in Cambodia. She reflects on this experience and her own visit to the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, in Phnom Penh, in 2015. Watch her video here.
University of Essex staff and students and members of the local community gathered together for a service with readings and reflections in the spirit of peace and friendship. All shared light refreshments after the service.
On the 85th anniversary of the Kindertransport, Mike Levy, author of 'Get the Children Out - Unsung Heroes of the Kindertransport', told the remarkable story of this unique rescue in the winter of 1938 to a packed audience at the Electric Palace Cinema in Harwich.
Watch the Burrows Lecture video on our Vimeo channel and see the Burrows Lecture photos on our Flickr page.
A distinguished world-wide panel of speakers took part in this online discussion:
Felice Gaer, Executive Director, Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights, New York, spoke about: 'Protecting Survivors, Preserving Memory, and Promoting Prevention: The UN’s response to Holocaust denial and genocide denial'.
The Hon. Sabina Cudic, Member of Parliament, Bosnia and Herzegovina spoke about: 'The denial of genocide denial: Consequences of policy of appeasement in Bosnia and Herzegovina'.
Adama Dieng, former UN Undersecretary General and Special Adviser on Genocide Prevention spoked about: 'The role of Religious Actors and Community Leaders in responding to incitement to violence.
Professor Geoff Gilbert, School of Law, University of Essex spoke about emerging technologies and atrocity prevention.
Exhibitions were shown at The Forum: “Shoah, how was it humanly possible” and “Mapping Memories, Jewish Refugees 1933 - 1945”. These are free to view during opening hours of The Forum.
A tree planting ceremony took place outside Westcliff Library on Friday 27 January. The tree was planted in memory of those who have perished in the Holocaust and other genocides.
A service of commemoration was held at the Civic Centre in Southend-on-Sea on Sunday 29 January at 3pm. Janine Webber, BEM, a Holocaust Survivor gave an address.
On 27 January each year, we come together to remember the victims of the Holocaust and other genocides with the ‘Reading of Names’. This year, we asked our community to join this act of remembrance by recording short videos. Introduced by Professor Anthony Forster, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Essex.
Students, staff and members of the public joined artists Tom and Iris in the Silberrad Student Centre foyer to make lanterns for the Procession of Light which took place in the evening.
University of Essex staff, students and members of the public joined together for the Procession of Light. We walked across the Colchester Campus on Holocaust Memorial Day, accompanied by musicians from the Band of Fools.
The procession finished with a gathering outside the Lakeside Theatre for a moment of reflection with a poem read by Dr Marian De Vooght. Following our moment of reflection, there were refreshments for all, baked by the Good Souls Bakery in the Lakeside Café.
The UK Holocaust Memorial Day 2022 ceremony was streamed online. Households across the UK lit candles or other electronic lights and safely put them in their windows to:
#HolocaustMemorialDay #LightTheDarkness
University of Essex staff and students and members of our local community joined together for an online service, which included Jewish memorial prayers for the departed. There were readings and reflections in the spirit of peace and friendship. The service was led by Ruth Stone.
CINE 10, our on-campus cinema screened the Oscar-winning drama set in Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1944.
The screening was followed by a panel discussion with Dr Andrew Fagan, Director of the Human Rights Centre and Co-Chair of the Holocaust Memorial Week Organising Committee; Professor Carla Ferstman from the School of Law and Professor Elizabeth Kuti from the Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies.
Our panel of speakers recalled what happened in South Africa 20 years ago from the perspective of a student participant in the NGO Forum and the author of the 'Durban Diaries', which records and recollects the events that continue to affect Jewish life today, especially on campuses. We also heard from leading members of the Jewish community in South Africa who reflected on how the events from 20 years ago affect their lives today. Other speakers focussed on student experiences of contemporary antisemitism in UK campuses and on global advocacy efforts to combat antisemitism.
Our online ‘Words with…’ event was with acclaimed historian Professor Wendy Lower who talked about her book ‘The Ravine’ which explores an exceptionally rare image documenting the horrific final moment of the murder of a family during the Holocaust.
The terrible mass shootings in Poland and Ukraine are often neglected in studies of the Holocaust because the perpetrators were meticulously careful to avoid leaving any evidence of their actions. Professor Lower stumbled across one such piece of evidence – a photograph documenting the shooting of a mother and her children and the men who killed them – and has crafted a forensically brilliant and moving study that brings the larger horror of the genocide into focus.
Following the talk, Dr Joanna Rzepa from the Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies and Co-Chair of the Holocaust Memorial Week Organising Committee was ‘in conversation’ with Professor Lower about her research for ‘The Ravine’ and our audience had a chance to ask questions.
The Lakeside Theatre audience enjoyed a special Holocaust Memorial Week performance from the award-winning Klezmer band, Don Kipper.
This event was postponed and will now take place in January 2023 - the 85th Anniversary of the Kindertransport. Staff and students from the University of Essex were invited to visit the Harwich Museum to hear more about the role of the Port of Harwich, just 13 miles from Colchester, in the Kindertransport and to find out more about the Harwich Museum.
Mike Levy, Author and Chair of The Harwich Kindertransport Memorial and Learning Trust planned to give a talk on ‘Harwich and the Kindertransport’ whilst giving audience members a chance to ask questions. David Whittle, Curator, had planned to talk more about the Harwich Museum and Nigel Spencer DL, Founder and Vice Chair of The Harwich Kindertransport Memorial and Learning Trust was due to tell us more about this fascinating project to create a new memorial statue and a supporting educational programme in Harwich.
The visit had planned to finish with a walk to the site of the new memorial.
Members of the Southend-on-Sea community gathered for their annual service of commemoration to mark Holocaust Memorial Day. There was music, reflections, a presentation from a local secondary school, poetry and an address by Mr Bernie Graham.
The Worshipful the Mayor of Southend, Councillor Margaret Borton, along with the Jewish Community, planted a tree at the junction of Carnarvon Road and Victoria Avenue, in memory of those who perished in the Nazi death camps and in other genocides across the world.
Holocaust Memorial Day Exhibitions were on display at the Forum, Elmer Square, Southend, from Monday 10 January – Tuesday 25 January. The exhibitions were then relocated at the Civic Centre for the service of commemoration on Wednesday 26 January.
Each year on Holocaust Memorial Day, we come together to remember the victims of the Holocaust and other genocides with the ‘Reading of Names’. This year, we asked our community to join this act of remembrance by recording short video clips. Images of Rwandan victims by kind permission of the Genocide Archive of Rwanda.
The UK Holocaust Memorial Day 2021 ceremony was streamed online. This was their first fully digital ceremony. Households across the UK lit candles and put them in their windows to remember those who were murdered for who they were and to stand against prejudice and hatred today.
Our online panel of eminent experts looked back on the legal precedents set at Nuremberg, some of the major innovations of the trials and some of their inevitable limitations.
Members of the local community joined University of Essex staff and students as we held an online service, based on an evening synagogue service. There were readings and reflections, in the spirit of peace and friendship and the service was led by Alex Bennett.
As part of the annual Holocaust Remembrance Week programme, the University of Essex hosted an online panel discussion to examine the challenges and opportunities for combating antisemitism from the perspective of actors who have been engaged in addressing antisemitism and promoting societal cohesion. The panel discussion covered national contexts and international perspectives as well as insights drawn from education, interfaith engagement and promotion of human rights.
The Kindertransport, the flight to Britain of 10,000 mostly Jewish children from the persecution of the Nazis, is usually associated with the British stockbroker Nicholas Winton. He managed to save 6% of the children - who saved the other 94%? As part of his online talk, Mike Levy told the little-known stories of the Rabbi, the Dutch aunt, the Quaker and the German department store owner - crucial instigators of this unique act of rescue.
Dr Joanna Rzepa, Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies spoke at an online event organised by the University of Essex Human Rights Society. At the start of the event, Professor Rainer Schulze gave a brief history of Holocaust Memorial Week at the University of Essex.
The Colchester Holocaust Memorial Day Group posted a series of videos online. You can view these online via YouTube and Instagram.
This event was an online service, with an introduction by Cllr Kevin Robinson, Chair of the Holocaust Memorial Day Working Party.
Holocaust Memorial Week 2020 marked 75 years since the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau and the 25th anniversary of the genocide in Bosnia.
On Holocaust Memorial Day, the University community joined together to remember those killed in the Holocaust and other genocides at the Reading of Names in Square 4 from 1pm-2pm. Throughout Holocaust Memorial Day, our staff and students were able to join artist Maggie Campbell to make a willow lantern for the Procession of Light which was held later in the afternoon. The procession was led across campus by musicians and finished outside the Lakeside Theatre where staff, students and members of the local community gathered for a moment of reflection, followed by refreshments in the Lakeside Theatre Café. In the evening, a screening of ‘Prosecuting Evil’ was held in the Lakeside Theatre followed by a discussion, led by Dr Andrew Fagan, Director of the Human Rights Centre.
As part of the Holocaust Memorial Week programme, Dr Roman Nieczyporowski from the Gdansk Academy of Fine Arts visited the University and presented his new talk ‘Art and the Memory of the Holocaust’ and Don Kipper gave a special Holocaust Memorial Week performance in the Lakeside Theatre.
The Dora Love prize, awarded each year for the best Holocaust awareness project by an individual pupil or group of pupils at a school in Essex or Suffolk, was presented during Holocaust Memorial Week. The 8th Dora Love Prize was won by the Colchester County High School for Girls with runners-up prizes awarded to Northgate High School in Ipswich and SET Saxmundham.
As part of the week’s programme, Anthony Clavane from the Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies led a discussion ‘Bigger than ourselves: How football can help to challenge racism’ and Professor Lars Waldorf from the School of Law gave a talk on the 1994 Rwandan Genocide.
Later on in the week, students from the Human Rights Society lead a roundtable discussion: ‘Burning of Books: Intolerance of Progress and of Diversity of Opinion’ which started with an opening statement from Professor Rainer Schulze, Emeritus Professor from the Department of History and later that evening, the University hosted a panel discussion on ‘The State of Antisemitism Today’.
Holocaust Memorial Week 2020 finished with University of Essex staff and students joining members of the local community for a Friday Evening Service.