On 27 January, countries around the world mark Holocaust Remembrance Day, the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz by Soviet troops in 1945. That moment revealed the full scale of Nazi crimes and marked the beginning of a collective duty to preserve the memory of the victims.

In Italy the day has been officially observed since 2000, commemorating not only the extermination of Jews but also the fascist racial laws and the courage of those who helped the persecuted. Millions were killed in concentration camps: Jews, Roma and Sinti, political opponents, people with disabilities and others labelled “undesirable”. Remembering is a way to remain vigilant, so that such horrors are never repeated.