A Child of Our Time
The chorus describes an atmosphere of icy stillness.  They talk of “The Scape-Goat, The Child of Our Time” (a “scape-goat” is someone who gets the blame for something they have not done).  There is a chorus of the Persecutors and the Persecuted.  The choir are split into two like the crowd scenes in Bach’s Passions.  In the “Chorus of the Self-Righteous” we hear about the attitude of countries who refuse to accept more than just a few of the persecuted Jews (this includes Britain).  The boy tries to save his mother.  We are told of the murder of the Nazi diplomat.  There is a chorus of terror.  We see the boy in prison and the grieving of the mother.