Opinion
‘Never again’ is a more urgent message than ever
It is increasingly difficult to reconcile the language of remembrance with the reality facing Jewish communities today
January 21, 2026 11:20
2 min read
It is increasingly difficult to reconcile the language of remembrance with the reality facing Jewish communities today
January 21, 2026 11:20On January 27, the UK will come together, as it does every year, to remember the Holocaust.
The six million Jewish men, women and children who were murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators will be remembered. The incredible survivors, now in their latter years, will be honoured. Politicians, journalists, and celebrities will mark the day publicly, pledging to always remember the darkest days in our shared history.
Holocaust Memorial Day is a vital moment for this nation, a chance to reflect on the horrors of the past. I am proud of the way that it has become embedded in our national consciousness. Part of that is thanks to the far more than 1,000 teachers who we at the Holocaust Educational Trust have trained in British schools in each of the past three years, reaching hundreds of thousands of pupils.
But this year, Holocaust Memorial Day weighs heavily on me and the Jewish community.
Because while the day is rightly about remembrance, it must also be a moment of reckoning. “Never Again” cannot simply be a slogan. It must carry meaning in the present. And it is increasingly difficult to reconcile the language of remembrance with the reality facing Jewish communities today.
The pictures of people, from all walks of life, lighting a candle and sharing their Holocaust Memorial Day reflections on social media, juxtaposes with the fear felt across the Jewish community today, as antisemitism once again shifts from a worry in the background to a far more present threat.
Eighty years on from the Holocaust, Jewish people have been murdered while observing our most holy days – at Heaton Park in Manchester on Yom Kippur, and on Bondi Beach during Chanukah celebrations.
Last week we heard the shocking news that a Jewish Member of Parliament was barred from visiting a local school. His planned visit, when he was due to speak about democracy and the aspirations of students, was cancelled following planned protests by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and the National Education Union.
We have seen abuse screamed at staff and customers in disgraceful protests outside Jewish restaurants in London.
And just a few months ago visitors to a synagogue in the capital had to walk past a gauntlet of hate.
Incidents such as these tell Jewish people they are not welcome. When even an MP is banned from a school, it suggests that Jewish students are not welcome either.
These incidents reflect a broader pattern of institutional capitulation and looking away, whether from public bodies, law enforcement or other authorities, when faced with anti-Israel or anti-Zionist rhetoric that too often crosses into antisemitism. As made obvious by West Midlands Police, these bodies feel it easier to remove Jews, rather than defend us.
Since the October 7 terror attacks on Israel it has been made patently clear to the Jewish community that anti-racist and pro-inclusion movements do not, on the whole, include Jews. Whether the inclusion and diversity officer at the very trust that banned a Jewish MP from speaking who called the massacre of 1,200 Israelis “Heroes fighting for justice”; or the exclusion of “Zionists” from LGBT spaces; or the refusal of progressive feminists to speak out when Israeli women were raped and mutilated, this pattern is seen over and over.
In 2026, this trend looks set to continue unless clear and decisive action is taken.
It is no longer enough to remember the past. It is no longer enough to say that antisemitism is not acceptable. We need to see our political leadership showing, clearly and without fear or favour, that antisemitism, in all of its forms, will not be tolerated. We need to see antisemitism treated in the same way that every other form of hatred, prejudice or racism is treated. We need to see that wherever the antisemitism comes from, it is addressed, head on. Even when it is uncomfortable to do so.
British Jews need to know that when people say Never Again, they mean it. This Holocaust Memorial Day cannot be a day for hollow promises and empty words.
Karen Pollock is chief executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust
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