“The Day of Memory is not just a re-evocation of the past, but it asks us about the present and the future of our European societies. Because it is never useless to remember". On the occasion of the seventieth anniversary of the liberation of the concentration camp of Auschwitz - that Sant'Egidio celebrates with numerous initiatives in Italy and in Europe - the president of the Community, Marco Impagliazzo, appeals so that 27 January is an occasion for reflection and new commitment against all forms of racism: "In the face of serious resurgence of anti-Semitism that we have seen in recent years until the recent attacks in Paris - and of growing feelings of intolerance against the Roma and Sinti who too, in so many, were victims of extermination by the Nazis - Europe risks losing the way of living-together between people of religious faiths, cultures and traditions”.
Aware that “dialogue is not a mere intellectual position but the only alternative to confrontation” Impagliazzo invites institutions and civil society to make present the memory of this day and the enormous tragedy of humanity represented by the Shoah, now that even the last direct witnesses are gradually disappearing: “In Europe it is necessary to put together far-sighted policies and good information and - most importantly - do not let the peripheries alone, where discomfort and poverty often exacerbate tensions: it is from these places, where Europeans, now new European citizens, and immigrants live together that our continent can rebuild a culture of living-together and peace, respectful of different identities, which is in its deepest roots”.