Today is Holocaust Memorial Day.

Remember the victims of the Holocaust and other more recent genocides. I honor those of my family who, not for religious reasons but for their opposition to tyranny, died at Mauthausen, Lamplighter

Thank you, LL, a sad day.

Stairs of Death in Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp. Imagine climbing these stairs, carrying heavy stone, starving. And being killed if you fell or faltered. These stairs are difficult enough to navigate under the best circumstances, let alone under the conditions the prisoners faced.    LL

I forget what programme it was, but earlier this week I actually saw an interview, from a few years back, with an elderly man who had somehow managed to survive Mauthausen.

He specifically mentioned those stairs.

bb1 wrote:I forget what programme it was, but earlier this week I actually saw an interview, from a few years back, with an elderly man who had somehow managed to survive Mauthausen.

He specifically mentioned those stairs.

They are very steep and uneven, I walked them with my grandad when I was a teenager.    LL

I don't know if you have ever heard of these, they are called 'Stolperstein' or stumble stones and can be found all over Vienna set into the pavements.   They give, if the details are known, the names, birth date, deportation date and and also death and in which camp.     They can also be found in many cities and towns across Europe.  LL



Here are some in  Budapest.

No, I hadn't heard of those, LL.

What a fine way to remind people that behind those awful, huge statistics, were real individual people, all with their own hopes and dreams, who once walked those same streets.

Budapest - 'Shoes on the Danube Bank' gives remembrance to the 3,500 people, 800 of them Jews, who were shot into the Danube during the time of the Arrow Cross terror.


The memorial outsude the central Synagogue in Budapest - each silver leaf commemorates a family/victim of the Holocaust.

Very moving and well thought out, LL.

Thank you LL.