Historyworks

The guns stopped. The bombs stopped. The world was broken. People were broken. Millions of people had no home, millions of people were far from home. One of them was called Michael.  He was alone. No father, no mother.  Alone amongst millions.  What now? He had an address. He had a cousin in England. So, one day, some time after the guns and bombs  had stopped, a woman called Sylvia was in her hou...

You can’t do something yesterday.  You can’t do something tomorrow.  You can only do something now. You can remember something from yesterday.  You can plan something for tomorrow. You can only do something now. What you did yesterday can help you choose what to do now. What you did yesterday and what you do now  can help you plan what to do tomorrow. But you can only do something now.

We open the Holocaust Memorial 2020 civic event with the singing together of the Hebrew Lament with singers from Sing! Community Choir, the CAP singers from Cambridge Academic Partnership and Primary Singers from Fawcett Primary, Trumpington Meadows Primary, St Matthew's Primary, Milton Road Primary, and The Spinney. 

It is a great honour to be here to today, to welcome you on behalf of Cambridge City Council to this event, which is our city’s 20th Holocaust Memorial Day commemoration. Here we pause to remember the 6 million Jews who were murdered in the Holocaust, the millions of victims of Nazi persecution, and the victims of subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur. This is an opportunity...

Michael Rosen, writer and broadcaster, professor and poet and former Children’s Laureate, is known to many of us as the author of famous poems such as ‘Bear Hunt’ and ‘Chocolate Cake’, but today he is continuing his work we’ve been doing in Cambridge schools, to share histories about his family’s experiences in the Holocaust.   Michael, may I ask you to say a few words about remembering not to for...

WE ARE BETTER WHEN WE STAND TOGETHER by Michael Rosen Verse 1 (solo / small group) A child wanders through the ruins A family fears a knock at the door A grandma looks for her old home They know they didn’t start this war   Chorus We are better When we stand together When we stand together We are better   Verse 1 (full choir) A child wanders through the ruins A family fears a knock at the door A g...

I’m Eva Clarke, and I was born at Mauthausen, a Nazi concentration camp, in Austria. My date of birth is 29th April 1945.  Myself and my mother were almost the only survivors of my family.  I never even met my own father, because he was killed at another Nazi death camp, at Auschwitz.  In fact, 15 members of my family were killed in Auschwitz-Birkenau & one died in Terezin. Those murdered incl...

EVA CLARKE INVITES THE LIGHTING OF THE 6 CANDLES, STARTING WITH HER GRANDSON CALLD THEO  Now I invite Theo to come up on stage to stand by Michael and me with some of our young poets to be representing the next generation.  Singer Mario will help you to light the symbolic six candles to pay tribute to the over six million Jews who perished during the Holocaust.   May I invite the singers from prim...

The Damaging War When the war damages me I hope to find a home When the war damages me My life was demolished When the war damages me I feel alone and down When the war damages me I need help When the war damages me I search When the war damages me I don’t feel like myself When the war damages me My world flips upside down When the war damages me My sadness runs down my face When the war damages m...

DANIEL ZEICHNER –  HMD SPEECH   Thank you for inviting me once again to join you as we stand together here in Cambridge, a city of sanctuary, to mark HMD. I want to reflect very briefly on the past, on what is happening today, and what we can do for the future. In the room today are people who have direct experience of terrible events in the past, their own experience or close family or friends. B...

STRONG TOGETHER, HAND IN HAND  Verse 1 There’s nothing very easy about speaking out There’s nothing very easy knowing how to shout But you see someone picked on for something that they are Nothing they can do: they were born that way Not saying that it’s easy to have your say It can often turn out that the only person's you You’re the only one who can say what’s true   Bridge We want the eliminati...

Dear Oscar and Rachel Oscar and Rachel, you escaped from where they pinned a yellow star on you. You escaped from where they took all you had. You escaped from where they made you put a sign on your market stall, saying “Jewish business”.   Oscar and Rachel, You heard it was safe In the great resort of Nice On the other side of France, because the Italians in Nice were refusing to send Jews like y...

THE ABSENTEES by Michael Rosen, set to music by composer Kirsty Martin   There are gaps there are blanks in the house of my life   there's a face nothing more something gone from my life   She was here he was there in the rooms of my life   there's a place for them both in the words of my life.   There are gaps there are blanks in the house of my life

Performed by CAP Drama Group, Cambridge Academic Partnership.  Directed by Russell Burgess, Head of Create,  and Natalie Evans, Teacher of Drama at Parkside Community College, Cambridge Academic Partnership.

A Knock on the door   A Knock on the door A click on the locks A family lie on the floor As still as rocks.   Death eyes its raid The handle turns It wields a blade The families’ blood churns.   A plea for help Echoes through the air But no help Is offered there.   And all around is silence As wailing moonlight edges into the still home The house is empty A bare brick dome.   A plea for help Echoe...

NOWHERE TO CALL HOME/TORN FROM HOME poem performed by the CAP Dance Troupe What we’re going to tell you about won’t take LONG We weren’t doing anything you could say was WRONG This is all about being in the wrong kind of PLACE This is all about having the wrong kind of FACE This is all about being in the wrong kind of LINE This is all about being in the wrong kind of TIME ‘cos we were called out t...

Dr Sejad Mekic, Imam of Cambridge Central Mosque Today I live happily with my family in Cambridge, where I’m Imam of the new iconic Mosque on Mill Road. Listening and seeing today the school children’s powerful poems and songs, dramas and dances expressing empathy with victims of civil wars and genocides (where one group or several groups are being marked out and persecuted and murdered by another...

Stand Strong, Stand Together   When all hope is demolished. And you feel like giving up. Stand Strong, Stand Together!   When everything you do, Fells like it’s not good enough, And the walls feel like they’re tumbling down. Stand Strong, Stand Together!   People shouting, children crying, It’s too late to stop this now. This is just a game of greed! Stand Strong, Stand Together!   When will anyon...

Verse 1 When there’s no road left and the land is dusty and dry; When there’s no way home  and death falls from the sky; When the lightning strikes and floods rip through the town; When there’s nothing to eat and death comes creeping round; When sirens are louder than laughter   Bridge (x3) Who will speak for the fearful who will stand with the weak who will stand up to power and find the words to...

NOTE - LONGER VERSION THAN THE EDITED FILM =  Our theme for this Holocaust Memorial Day 2020 is ‘Stand Together’ and as Mayor of Cambridge I welcome each and everyone of you – and encourage everyone today to reflect on this theme and take it up as a call to action!     I’m so pleased to hear the words of the Choir Singers in their song today calling for the “end of Persecution, the end of Discrimi...

Thank you singers.  I also want to thank all the speakers, poets, dancers, actors, documentary makers, artists, musicians, singers from not only today’s civic ceremony but all those who’ve participated in workshops and school assemblies with Historyworks over the past days, weeks, months.     Also, I would like to especially thank Eva Clarke, for helping us mark the 75th anniversary of the liberat...