Adam Ma’anit, 51, who lives in Hove ,has shared the story of his mother, Renata, and his grandmother who fled Croatia to escape the Nazi regime.
Adam told The Argus: “My mother spent the first year of her life hidden in a cellar in Italy to protect her from the Nazis. The kindness of strangers saved them. They called her Renata to mask her Jewishness.
“She kept that name and was proud. It was a symbol of survival and connected her to those who helped them live.”
His grandmother, Olga Kraus, was living in Zagreb, Croatia before she was forced to flee to Asti, Italy by foot with Renata in her womb following a raid by the Ustasha police in the 1940s, then under Nazi supervision.
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The Ustasha regime was motivated to persecute minorities due to its racist beliefs about Jews, Serbs and Roma and it’s strong political links to Nazi Germany.
Adam also lost his great grandparents, great aunt and her family in the Holocaust.
They were killed at Auschwitz and at Jasenovac, a concentration camp in Croatia.
As set out by the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, Holocaust Memorial Day is held to remember the six million Jews killed in the Second World War.
It also commemorates the millions more people murdered through the Nazi persecution of other groups and in the more recent genocides of Rwanda, Srebrenica, and acts of genocide in Cambodia and against the Yazidi people.
In commemoration for Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, Labour MP Peter Kyle for Hove and Portslade told The Argus: “Whenever I meet with survivors and hear their extraordinary stories of courage, I’m reminded of the phrase ‘never again’, and its importance.
“So, we must continue with renewed effort to keep these stories alive – vital to this is educating young people about the Holocaust in an age of fake news and unregulated social media.
“The Holocaust reminds us what can happen when hatred is left unchecked and with the alarming rise of antisemitism and hate across the globe it’s more essential than ever to teach, learn and listen.”
Another local MP, LibDem MP James MacCleary for Lewes told The Argus: “On this Holocaust Memorial Day, and the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, I reflect on the millions who were murdered and pay tribute to the survivors.
“Their courage in sharing their stories ensures future generations understand the horrors of the Holocaust and remain vigilant against hatred and prejudice.
“To mark this, I have signed the Holocaust Educational Trust’s Book of Commitment.”
As part of the UK’s commitment to Holocaust remembrance, the Prime Minister pledged at least £2.2 million in September to continue to fund the Holocaust Educational Trust’s Lessons from Auschwitz project, enabling UK students to visit Auschwitz and learn about the history of the Holocaust.
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