Auschwitz 75: Survivors are worried about history repeating itself, warns Sadiq Khan
27 January 2020, 12:10 | Updated: 27 January 2020, 13:44
Auschwitz survivors are worried about the rise of anti-Semitism, Mayor Sadiq Khan has told LBC.
The Mayor of London is in Poland for the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi concentration camp.
Survivors of the Auschwitz death camp are gathering at the site and wreaths have been laid at the former camp this morning.
After talking to survivors, Mayor Khan told LBC we need to remember the lessons of the Holocaust.
He said: "When you see a rise in anti-Semitism, it means there are other forms of hatred taking place.
"The real worry, speaking to survivors, is how do I explain to them the rise in anti-Semitism and the rise in nativist populist movements? They remember the early 1930s and where it can lead.
"They're not scaremongering, they are articulating their experience.
"We used to say the phrase 'Never again' and we took it for granted that progress was one direction.
"None of us thought it could go backwards. But the question I ask is are we going back to the 1930s in what we're seeing around our country, around Europe and around the world with anti-Semitism, the rise of hatred and the calling out of The Other.
"The way we treat asylum seekers and refugees... is that going back to the 1930s? We've got to understand the real lessons of the Holocaust."
Watch his full interview at the top of the page.
