In 2005, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 60/7 Holocaust Remembrance which designated January 27th as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. This day is intended to honor the memory of the six million Jewish victims and the millions of other victims of Nazism on the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau.
The Nazis murdered six million Jewish people – a number so large it may be difficult to comprehend. It is more than the population of Los Angles. It is twice the population of Chicago or four times the population of Philadelphia. It was six million individual, living, breathing, people. Look at the person sitting next to you, the people in the next room, the people in the building with you. How far would your personal geographical bubble need to expand to include six million people? Then add eleven million more people for the other non-Jewish people murdered by the Nazis – the Soviets, the disabled, the Roma, Polish citizens, criminals, political opponents, and LGBTQ individuals. Although the exact number is not known, records show that the Nazis murdered over seventeen million people (17,000,000).
Has the world forgotten the horrors inflicted by the Nazi regime? Some days it feels like, yes, we have. When the world seems upside down, wars raging, political turmoil, an unending pandemic, and the erosion of human rights, reading the text of the resolution for Holocaust Remembrance Day reminds us of what we, as lawyers, law students, and legal educators, and people are fighting for. I urge you to read the full text. Some excerpts included below:
- Affirms the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
- “…everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.”
- “…everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.”
- Recalls the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide
- “…which was adopted in order to avoid repetition of genocides…”
- “Reaffirming that the Holocaust, which resulted in the murder of one third of the Jewish people, along with countless members of other minorities, will forever be a warning to all people of the dangers of hatred, bigotry, racism and prejudice,”
On Friday January 27, 2023 at 9:30 am EST, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum will present a live program where Irene Weiss, a volunteer at the museum, “… will share the story of the day her family was torn apart…” and was documented by a Nazi photographer. Hearing stories of the survivors helps us remember and, hopefully, resolve to never let this happen again.
The United States Holocaust Museum invites you to share reflections about International Holocaust Remembrance Day on social media using #HolocaustRembranceDay.