On Holocaust Memorial Day people of many nations remembered the Shoah’s victims and pledged “Never again.” Westminster Council, however, prefers the less inspiring mantra of “not in my backyard”.
The council opposes plans for a Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens next to Parliament, calling them an “inappropriate development.” I applaud Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick’s response, along with the determination of the government under three successive prime ministers to see this project through.
When I chaired the Prime Minister’s Holocaust Commission, established by David Cameron, we received evidence from thousands across the country. From survivors, educators and experts but also from ordinary people of all faiths and backgrounds who believe that Holocaust commemoration and education is vital for this and future generations.
Their overwhelming view was that the UK needed a prominent monument in the heart of the nation’s capital. They said the location should attract the maximum number of visitors and include a world-class educational facility. This vision has enjoyed unqualified cross-party support.
The Victoria Palace Gardens site is entirely in keeping with their evidence and the recommendations of the Commission. There is no better place than next to the seat of Britain’s democracy – a warning from history that the rights and freedoms protected by our parliament can never be taken for granted. This location also makes a powerful statement of Britain’s commitment to fight antisemitism, racism and all forms of hatred.
The Holocaust was preceded by thousands of years of dehumanisation and hatred of Jews both on religious and racial grounds. But it was only possible because so many people, states and institutions stood by and let it happen.
As we seek to commemorate its victims and learn its lessons, with antisemitism and other forms of hatred on the rise, we must not unwittingly be bystanders yet again.
I can understand that the Council feels it has a duty to reflect the concerns of some of its residents but in this case “not in my backyard” is just another way of standing by. Standing by facilitated the greatest affront to humanity in history; it should not hinder its proper commemoration.
But Westminster City Council has found some surprising support. Melanie Phillips, in this newspaper, described Ron Arad’s winning design as “a giant toast rack.”
It is a disgrace for his sensitive design to be described in this way. Far from detracting from the Gardens it will greatly enhance them.
Baroness Deech, another vociferous opponent of the memorial, told the Times that it would be “a magnet for protests of the wrong sort, like pro-Palestine and Hezbollah”. If this is so, and I have not consulted pro-Hezbollah elements on the matter although the noble lady might have done, this is no reason to object to the monument, but an extra reason to build it.
Despite Westminster Council’s Nimbyism and despite the handful of Jewish opponents who have yet to encounter a Jewish leader they didn’t know better than, the National Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre will go ahead as it must.
Britain needs a fitting memorial, not tucked away from view or as an adjunct to the Imperial War Museum, but in our nation’s political heart - a lasting monument to this country’s commitment to democracy over tyranny, diversity over hatred and Jewish survival over those who tried to eliminate us.
