Holocaust Memorial Day

How dare you speak of light
In this, the darkest of times?
How dare you speak of hope?
How dare you sing your songs
when even the birds stay silent?

Here, where the mutilated
skies lie ashen grey,
Where barbed wire still rises,
How dare you write poetry
and tell stories?

Yet here — here, too,
When the voices of intolerance rise,
How dare you not speak?
How dare you stay silent
while others suffer?
How dare you not hope?

You can sing the songs
of freedom that batter
down chains,
Standing in solidarity
for the despised,
persecuted and rejected,
And you can say:
Never again,
Not in my name,
Not in my name
Never again.

Rebecca Lowe is a journalist and Quaker peace activist. Her most recent collection, Our Father Eclipse, was published this year by Culture Matters. She lives in south Wales. 21st-century Poetry is edited by Andy Croft, email info@smokestack-books.co.uk.