Berlin Trip : Trains to Life – Trains to Death by Frank Meisler

Unveiled on 30 November 2008, this powerful sculpture was designed by Frank Meisler (1925-2018) and it shows two groups of Jewish children from the 1930s, facing in different directions. Their fates hung in the balance and 10,000 children were sent from Berlin to the UK as part of the Kindertransport, using the railway lines located at this site. The children facing east symbolises those who were sent to their deaths at concentration camps, whilst the children facing west were more fortunate, their involvement with the Kindertransport and the adventure forced upon them meant their lives were saved. However, for all of the children there was uncertainty, fear and parents who struggled to know what to do for the best for their children. The sculpture stands here as a memorial to the two million children who died under Nazi rule and occupation between 1933 and 1945, many of who might still be alive today if hatred hadn’t prevailed for so many years.