[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 36, Number 41 (Monday, October 16, 2000)]
[Pages 2454-2455]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on Signing Legislation To Permanently Authorize the United 
States Holocaust Memorial Museum

October 12, 2000

    I am pleased to sign into law H.R. 4115, which would permanently 
authorize the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
    One of my earliest acts as President was to dedicate the Museum, and 
since then almost 15 million people have visited the institution, which 
serves as a constant and painful reminder that racism, anti-Semitism, 
and all forms of hatred are ever-present dangers, and that indifference 
to hatred makes each of us complicit in some way. Each generation must 
be taught these critical lessons anew, and therefore the Museum's 
special emphasis on reaching America's young people is vitally important 
for our country's future.
    The Museum has become a moral compass that must endure, especially 
as the Holocaust recedes in time. When the survivors are gone, our 
Nation will have this vital American institution to illuminate 
humanity's darkest potential and to inspire our eternal vigilance.
                                            William J. Clinton
 The White House,
 October 12, 2000.

Note: H.R. 4115, approved October 12, was assigned Public Law No. 106-
292. This statement was released by the Office of the Press Secretary on 
October 13. An original was not available for verification of the 
content of this statement.

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