One of the oldest Holocaust memorials in the US has been designated as a national memorial by the US government as part of an omnibus package signed by President Joe Biden on Thursday, The New York Times reported.
Built by The Kol Israel Foundation in 1961 in Bedford Heights, Ohio, the memorial serves as a commemoration of the six million Jewish lives lost in the Holocaust.
Following Biden’s approval of a $1.7 trillion funding package, the monument, which includes the ashes and artifacts belonging to Jews killed by Nazis at three concentration camps, as well as the names of 1,300 family members of Cleveland-area Holocaust survivors, will be added to the federal list of memorials.
“Congress recognizes the significance of the Kol Israel Foundation Holocaust Memorial in preserving the memory of the 6,000,000 Jews murdered by the Nazi regime and allies and collaborators of the Nazi regime, and honors the life and legacy of the Holocaust survivors who erected the Kol Israel Foundation Holocaust Memorial,” the bill passed by the US Congress reads.
The Times said a few dozen people gathered at the memorial on Thursday, despite the bitter cold, to celebrate its national recognition.
The group raised the flags of the US, Ohio and Israel for the first time at the site.
Bob Zelwin, president of the Kol Israel Foundation, told The New York Times it was “overwhelming” that the victims’ memories “will last forever because of this great designation that we’ve received.”
Caught up with #OH11 @RepShontelBrown (D) today.
We spoke about several topics, including her bill to make the Kol Israel Foundation Holocaust Memorial in Bedford Heights a national memorial.
The House passed it on Monday night and it now heads to the Senate. pic.twitter.com/rG9jfnOjjl
— Taylor Popielarz (@TaylorPopielarz) September 20, 2022
In a statementSherrod Brown, US Senator for Ohio, called the memorial’s recognition a “momentous day for the survivors who erected this memorial and their families who continue its maintenance.”
“It gives me great satisfaction to have this historic memorial receive national recognition. Its work educating people about the Holocaust and remembering its six million Jewish victims with love deserves no less,” Brown said.
In the same statement, Howie Beigelman, Ohio Jewish Communities executive director, said: “With hate against Jews alarmingly high, it is all too timely that the Kol Israel Holocaust Memorial receives national designation, helping ensure ‘Never Again’ is more than just a pledge.”
There has been increasing concern in the US in recent years over surging antisemitism.
In 2021, the Anti-Defamation League reported more antisemitic incidents than in any year since it began annual surveys more than four decades ago.
And in 2022, high-profile episodes included anti-Jewish statements from the rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, and the suspension of NBA star Kyrie Irving after he posted a link on social media to an antisemitic film.
In addition, former US president Donald Trump hosted Nick Fuentes, a Holocaust-denying white supremacist at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida’s Palm Beach, along with West.