‘Every Button Counts’ has been a two year collaboration between organisations in ICC member cities Lublin, Reggio-Emilia, Subotica, co-ordinated by the 6Million+ Trust in Huddersfield, UK. It provides a great example of how ICC can create relationships which become the foundation of important innovations.

With financial backing of the EU Europe For Citizens programme, the aims of the project were:

To remember how Jewish refugees were treated across Europe during and following the Holocaust and compare that to the present day refugee crisis and Europe's response

To look at stories of individuals within the context of the history of the Holocaust and contemporary conflicts

To challenge ourselves to consider if we are doing enough to prevent genocide nationally and internationally

To encourage creative responses to these explorations from all participants in four countries

To create a performance for Holocaust Memorial Day, highlighting the questions posed by participants and their responses expressed through image, writing, song and film

To share outcomes with a wider European audience

6 million+ Trust offers a programme of education, creative arts and live events exploring the connection between the Holocaust and the experience of persecuted minorities in the world today, especially those who seek sanctuary in our communities. In 2006, an installation of over 6 million buttons was created to illustrate the scale of the Holocaust. The plus sign refers to those who were not counted and to victims of genocides since WW2. The button as a symbol of one unique individual amongst millions continues to be a powerful symbol in the work. The Trust believes creative arts can help people speak out against the rise of extremism and ignite a flame of confidence and passion in people to stand up and make a difference to the lives of others.

The partner in Reggio Emilia, Italy was ISTORECO: the Istituto per la storia della Resistenza e della società contemporanea. The Institute for the History of the Resistance and Contemporary Society is responsible for the protection and promotion of the documentary heritage and the memory of the Resistance against fascism.

The partner in Lublin, Poland, was Stowarzyszenie Studnia Pamięci, The Well of Memory Association. The association organises educational trips to Holocaust memorial sites in Poland, Germany and Ukraine as well as conferences, seminars, lectures and exhibitions.

The partners in Subotica, Serbia were LDA and ECR. The Local Democracy Agency was established at the initiative of the Council of Europe to facilitate inter-ethnic dialogue and tolerance in multicultural local communities and promote EU standards of good local governance. ECR, the Roma Educational Centre in Subotica, empowers Roma communities to access and protect their rights, combat discrimination and participate in society on an equal basis.

The project enabled multi-ethnic groups from all the partners to meet regularly to share experience, show solidarity and to work together on presenting an artistic and memorial performance, which was held in Huddersfield in January 2018. It included a procession through the streets of the town with four large effigies of ‘Weeping Sisters’, representing women bereaved by genocide of the Jews, Roma, Bosnians and Kurdish people (illustrated).

The origin of the collaboration was an invitation to Reggio, Subotica and Lublin from ICC expert Phil Wood, who is a trustee of 6 Million + and a resident of Huddersfield. The aim for the future is to maintain and build upon the relationships with further projects.

A beautifully illustrated website tells the full story of the project.