Testimonials
I am delighted to give my wholehearted support to this project by The-Latest, with whom I have collaborated over a long period of time. As a writer, publisher and broadcaster with a keen interest in Black history there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that a living online memorial to the veterans in their own words is much needed by members of the public, young and old, as an enduring historical resource. I fully endorse the need for a lasting memorial, available to all, of oral testimonies of Second World War veterans – especially those from Africa and the Caribbean, whose contribution to Britain’s victory over Hitler’s Nazis has been too often overlooked.
We the Citizen Journalism Educational Trust have become acutely aware that there is a huge need for a national “Living memorial” of World War Two veterans’ stories, including the recollections of relatives and friends. There is tremendous interest in this subject and people are eager to know and learn how they can record these stories for posterity. We are therefore delighted to strongly endorse this project and offer our full support.
The website as a ‘living memorial’ will be a valuable resource in and of itself and follows on directly from the solid foundation laid by The-Latest.com's Divided by race, united in war and peace film. It will be easily accessible, including by mobile phone and tablet. In my experience of university teaching this is essential to maximise reach and impact with young people in particular.
A living memorial website with oral testimonies would maintain the momentum of the new Renaissance created by The-Latest.com’s film Divided by race, united in war and peace. In addition, it is my firm belief that such a project would be an opportunity to bridge the existing historic generational void now and in perpetuity. "Quick March” to its launch.
Anyone who fought in uniform in the Second World War has got to be at least 88 years old; many will be much older. That’s not many people, and the number gets fewer and fewer each month. That’s why this Second World War Living Memorial is so important. It’s significant for us all, but it’s particularly poignant for all those with an African-Caribbean, or indeed a South Asian background. If people today don’t mark the sacrifices of those who went before, their contributions will be lost. History doesn’t write itself.