HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 2023-4642

HR 4642

ByRepresentative Senn

WHEREAS, On Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day, we remember the six million Jews who perished in the systematic persecution of the Jewish people in Europe; and

WHEREAS, Alongside the Jewish people, millions of other innocent victims, including persons with disabilities, LGBTQ+ individuals, Roma, and others, were systematically murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators in one of the most heinous campaigns in human history; and

WHEREAS, This horrible act against humanity caused the Jewish community to lose their familial lineage, caused a generational deprivation of people's Jewish identity, and created multigenerational trauma; and

WHEREAS, We stand in solidarity with the Jewish people and remember the victims, survivors, and liberators, many within our own Washington communities, who, having borne witness to the depths of evil, remind us of the vital refrain: "Never Again"; and

WHEREAS, We must ensure the horrors of the Holocaust can never be erased from our collective memory in order to prevent a tragedy like the Holocaust from happening again; and

WHEREAS, As in recent years in the state of Washington the rise of antisemitism and acts of discrimination has risen affecting countless people and generations of Washingtonians, each citizen of the state should never forget the urgency to speak out whenever they witness antisemitism or any form of ethnic and religious hatred, racism, homophobia, or xenophobia, for silence is complicity; and

WHEREAS, We reiterate the importance of teaching about the Holocaust and gratefully acknowledge the valuable resource in the Holocaust Center for Humanity and its trove of local survivor speakers and stories; and

WHEREAS, We should never forget the horrors governments can foment when they endorse policies fueled by hatred and allow the dehumanization of people to continue; and

WHEREAS, Pursuant to an Act of Congress, the United States Holocaust Memorial Council designated the Days of Remembrance of the victims of the Holocaust to be Monday, April 17th at sundown through Tuesday, April 18th at sundown, including the Day of Remembrance, known as Yom HaShoah;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State House of Representatives recognize April 17, 2023, through April 18, 2023, as Holocaust Remembrance Day.