Commemorating Holocaust Remembrance Day

Floor Speech

* Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate Holocaust Remembrance Day, or Yom Hashoah, and to pay tribute to the men, women, and children murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust.

* This week, we pause to join in solidarity with people around the world to remember one of the darkest chapters in human history. During the Holocaust, six million Jews were killed, and countless others were brutalized, raped, dehumanized, and robbed. The world pledged ``Never Again'' would such a tragedy be allowed to occur, but over sixty years later we continue to fight anti-Semitism and other forms of hatred and intolerance, even genocide.

* The Days of Remembrance hold a deep meaning for me, as a Jew, and for my community. My district, the 9th Congressional District of Illinois, is home to one of the largest concentrations of Holocaust survivors in the country. An estimated 3,500 Holocaust survivors live in the Chicago area, including the Village of Skokie, which boasts a vibrant Jewish community built by survivors in the 1940s and 50s. The community recently celebrated the opening of the new Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center, a state of the art facility dedicated to preserving the memory of the Holocaust.

* This year, we also mark the 65th anniversary of the verdicts at the first of the Nuremberg trials, as well as the 50th anniversary of the trial of Adolf Eichmann. By holding the perpetrators of genocide legally accountable for their heinous crimes, those trials were defining moments in the evolution of international justice. The trials also produced a comprehensive record of the Holocaust by collecting both documentary evidence and survivor testimony.

* In a world where genocide and other massive violations of human rights are far too prevalent, it is critical that we preserve the history of the Holocaust and the memories of survivors and other witnesses. This week, we pause to remember all those who perished, honor those who survived, and redouble our pledge to fight genocide, intolerance, and persecution wherever they occur.

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