Europe remembers

For over 70 years, the European Union has been the institutional and cultural defence of a Europe built on peace and the protection of its citizens.

It was born, however, of a Europe that was the antithesis of today’s Union. 2025 marks 80 years since the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration camp. The Holocaust (1933-1945) saw the persecution and murder of approximately 6 million Jews in Europe by the Nazi German regime and its allies and collaborators, as well as millions of people from other groups considered to be a social or racial ‘problem’ by the Nazis. These included Sinti and Roma people, political opponents and trade unionists, Slavic people, black people, members of the LGBT+ community, persons with disabilities, those whose religious beliefs conflicted with Nazi ideology, such as Jehovah's Witnesses, and other ‘asocials’.

It is a history that has come to shape how Europe sees itself, politicians and citizens alike. Over the years, the European Parliament has worked to ensure that we remember this history — and that we do not repeat it.

In this exhibition, we look at how Parliament engages with this history, through political actions and through commemoration, sharing the stories of survivors and their families who have come to Parliament to deliver their messages to MEPs and citizens so that we may never forget.