Page 27 - TORCH #16 - August 2020

A lesson
during Olockdown
ur work at CUFI thankfully continued unhindered during lockdown, but admittedly it was not quite the same as working
in the office. When my son approached me for some help with his schooling, in a moment of absent-mindedness on my part, I completely forgot that a photo of a swastika filled the entirety of my computer screen. His jaw dropped, he turned pale and shockingly proclaimed, “Dad, what is that!”
My nine-year-old was lost for words because he wasn’t seeing a photo from World War II, but instead swastikas daubed onto “Protect our NHS” road traffic signs.
His reaction startled me as much the sign startled him. He then immediately chimed with confusion and concern, “But the Nazis killed lots and lots of people. And we would have been part of the German empire if they had won.”
I don’t think I could have explained it better myself. We discussed the issue and he concluded that the culprits
responsible for the swastika
graffiti deserve at least
one year in prison. Home-
schooling didn’t quite take
the direction I had imagined
on that day, but these are vital
lessons our young people will
need to learn.
The Nazi graffiti was apparently in protest against the government’s lockdown measures. However, there are other ways to protest if they must.
The swastika is a symbol of evil. It should disgust us
every time we see it. It should trigger those memories from history when Nazi brutality
was responsible for taking millions of innocent lives. We should remember the great sacrifice that was necessary to overcome this evil. And we should be disgusted every time someone chooses to use it for whatever political aim they are trying to make. We must not allow ourselves to become immune to the evil that it represents.
Neither should the swastika be separated from its Nazi roots. A few days later the symbols were found daubed onto the tombstones of
a Jewish cemetery in Finland. In an almost unbelievable coincidence, my son approached me for a second time whilst I was reading about this incident and was equally disgusted.
Also whilst in lockdown, we celebrated 75 years since victory in Europe. For me, VE Day doesn’t just stand for Victory in Europe, but “Victory over Evil”. We must never forget the great sacrifice that was made to defend our freedoms and deliver this country and Europe from the evil of the Nazis. Furthermore we must ensure future generations remember the lessons from this dark period in history and not allow them to be repeated.
As former Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill said, “never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never-in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.”
Victory over evil should always be remembered and it should always be
celebrated.
Alastair Kirk
CUFI.ORG.UK
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