[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 107 (Wednesday, September 13, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1461]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                UNITED STATES HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL MUSEUM

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                           HON. NITA M. LOWEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 7, 2000

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 4115) to 
     authorize appropriations for the United States Holocaust 
     Memorial Museum, and for other purposes:

  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4415.
  The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum stands in our nation's 
capital in solemn testimony to the terrible power of senseless hatred 
and the ultimate triumph of faith and the human spirit. It guards the 
memory of the six million Jews and millions more who fell victim to 
Nazi Germany's genocidal persecution during World War Il. And it stands 
as a symbol for those who survived this tragedy, assuring them that we 
are committed to keeping their stories alive.
  An investment in the Holocaust Memorial Museum is an investment that 
strengthens the very fabric of our society. The nearly 15 million 
people who have visited the museum since its establishment have seen 
the pictures of murdered families, loyal and productive members of 
society, who were sent to their deaths for the crime of being Jewish. 
They have seen the gaunt bodies of survivors, liberated by allied 
troops from the death camps, facing the reality of families destroyed 
and lives shattered. They have seen the examples of the righteous, like 
Raoul Wallenberg, who risked their lives to defy Nazi hatred and save 
their Jewish brethren. Because of this museum, 15 million people know 
the price society pays when contempt triumphs over compassion, when 
people blinded by hatred are allowed to reign free.
  In light of the events of the past decade, of the strife we have seen 
in Bosnia, Rwanda, Kosovo, and other places, it it more important than 
ever that we offer our full and unwavering support to the educational 
and cultural mission of the Holocaust Memorial Museum. It is a powerful 
rebuke to those who would divide us, both at home and abroad. It is a 
clear statement, a tangible symbol, of our active, ceaseless resistance 
to the darker impulses of humanity. It is a manifestation of our 
commitment to end hatred and bigotry in all their forms, to liberate 
those who face misfortunate and oppression, and to cherish the 
differences among the world's inhabitants. The museum is at once a 
monument to the past and a challenge for the future.
  As a first step toward meeting this challenge, I urge my colleagues 
to support this bill.

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