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AROUND THE WORLD 4: New Memorial to Holocaust Victims

On Tuesday, March 15, 2005, more than 40 leaders of countries around the world gathered in Jerusalem, Israel, to unite in a historic moment. Yad Vashem, Israel’s tribute to the 6,000,000 Jewish people who died in the Holocaust, opened a new museum. During World War II, Nazis tried to kill everyone who did not fit their idea of the way a person should be. This massive killing of people is known as the Holocaust. The main group under attack was the Jewish people, but Gypsies, the physically disabled, and others were also targeted.

Through diaries, photographs, and stories told by witnesses, the new museum gives life to the six million murdered Jewish people. It shows graphic images and tells the most detailed stories, which is important because the events of the Holocaust are too terrible for an ordinary mind to imagine. The museum wants people to understand that the Holocaust must be remembered forever so it will never happen again.

The presence of so many world leaders at Yad Vashem’s new museum opening was a sign that the world is joining together to support mankind and make sure that a tragedy like the Holocaust will never happen again. People of all backgrounds can learn an important lesson from this historical tragedy, and visitors to the museum will empathize with the fate of the Jewish people. Yad Vashem hopes they will be inspired to join the drive to a more humane future for mankind. Kofi Annan, the head of the United Nations, was present at the opening to show the UN’s solidarity with Israel in remembering the Holocaust and preserving human rights in the future.

Yad Vashem has concentrated on trying to make the Holocaust relevant to the young. It is kids today who will educate future generations on the subject. The museum also hopes that it will inspire visitors to make moral choices in their lives.

--Written by Sevonne Cohen

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