Holocaust Anniversary Highlights Role of Education, Legislation to Stem Violent Antisemitism
To mark the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz extermination camp (International Holocaust Remembrance Day – January 27), 50 world leaders will travel to Israel for a commemorative ceremony. Vice President Mike Pence, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Prince Charles of Great Britain and French President Emmanuel Macron are among the confirmed attendees. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will lead a U.S. Congressional delegation. Israel’s foreign minister described Remembering the Holocaust: Fighting Antisemitism as “the largest diplomatic event in the state’s history.”
In the U.S., two Congressional hearings last week examined potential actions legislators can take in response to the surge of antisemitic rhetoric and violent attacks happening across America. “This is not the time for thoughts and prayers,” testified Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League. “We need resources and actions.”
- Greenblatt urged Congress to pass the Online Safety Modernization Act to protect users from hate speech online.
- Nathan Diament, executive director of the Orthodox Union Advocacy Center, suggested artificial intelligence be used to flag and remove content related to antisemitism, the way it already fights sex trafficking.
- U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) proposed legislation to help freeze assets of extremists and create a database, sharing information on domestic violent extremism to prevent terror attacks on U.S. soil.
- Other experts promoted the Never Again Holocaust Education Act, requiring Holocaust education in schools, increased funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program and improved recording of hate crimes by law enforcement across the country.
An op-ed published in the official Palestinian Authority daily newspaper called for a terrorist attack at the Auschwitz anniversary ceremony: “One shot will disrupt the ceremony, and one dead body will cancel the ceremony.”
- Seventy-five years after the largest systematic extermination campaign in history, there is increasing American ignorance about the Holocaust. Two-thirds of Millennials could not identify what Auschwitz is in a 2018 survey. Four in every ten believe that 2 million Jews or less were killed during the Holocaust. As memories of the Holocaust fade and eyewitnesses disappear, the stigma against expressing anti-Jewish sentiment also is vanishing. The loss of this guard rail is directly contributing to the rise of antisemitic rhetoric and violence in America.
- Holocaust education provides a vital safeguard for Jews in America, where antisemitic assaults continue to surge. Its lessons of a society’s plunge into madness – from the shattering of norms to new lows in human decency; staggering scale of death and unthinkable details of degradation – increase awareness and sensitivity of not only antisemitism, but discrimination against all groups of marginalized people.974
- World leaders and dignitaries who traveled to Israel, paying respect to the 6 million Jewish lives stolen by the Holocaust, deserve thanks. However, fighting antisemitism and remembering lessons of the Holocaust requires more than attending ceremonies. Legislation mandating Holocaust education, funding security for religious institutions, recognizing Holocaust atrocities, providing resources and collecting data to combat violent extremism, and curbing online hate is necessary to stop violent attacks motivated by hate against all Americans. Congress must follow through on its tough talk against hate.
- During their Holocaust memorial visits to Israel, Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Emmanuel Macron, Australian Governor-General David Hurley and the heir apparent to the British throne, Prince Charles will all visit Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas. During these diplomatic visits, world leaders should ask Abbas whether he still believes the Holocaust-denying lie that Zionists collaborated with Nazis to spur Jewish immigration to Palestine – or his more recent slander that Jewish money lending caused the Holocaust
Thanks, 50 world leaders, for traveling to Israel for the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz extermination camp (International Holocaust Remembrance Day – Jan 27)!
https://www.yadvashem.org/
Holocaust education provides a vital safeguard for Jews in America, where antisemitic assaults continue to surge. Legislation mandating Holocaust education and recognizing Holocaust atrocities is needed to stop violent attacks motivated by hate. Fighting antisemitism and remembering lessons of the Holocaust requires more than attending ceremonies or releasing a press statement.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/
50 world leaders will visit Israel this week to mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Several also will meet Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas. In these diplomatic visits, they should ask Abbas whether he still believes the Holocaust-denying lie that Zionists collaborated with Nazis to spur Jewish immigration to Palestine – or his more recent slander that Jewish money lending caused the Holocaust.
https://www.tabletmag.com/
Two Congressional hearings last week examined actions legislators can take in response to the surge of antisemitism happening across America. Urge your reps in Congress to pass:
- The Online Safety Modernization Act
- The Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act
- The NO HATE Act of 2019
- The Never Again Education Act of 2019
- The Anti-Semitism Awareness Act of 2019
- The Israel Anti-Boycott Act
- The Fund for Peace Act
- The FASTER Act
The U.S. Info: All are bipartisan legislation. This link can help you identify and contact your representatives.
https://www.house.gov/
