As malicious actors weaponize the term and endanger Jews everywhere, meticulous use of the charge is more essential than ever.
asserted
use → weaponize → charge
We are honored to serve as the current and former chairs of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, an institution memorializing history’s most well-documented genocide: Nazi Germany and its collaborators’ attempt to systematically murder every Jewish man, woman and child in Europe.
asserted
We → honor → Europe
They almost succeeded.
asserted
They → succeed → ?
Two-thirds of European Jews – 6 million – were killed.
asserted
thirds → kill → Jews
The global Jewish population has yet to recover, with fewer Jews alive today than in 1939, when World War II began.
asserted
II → have → 1939
Holocaust survivors fervently hoped antisemitism would wither when Germany was defeated and its crimes exposed.
asserted
crimes → hop → ?
Yet, they knew from centuries of persecutions long before the Nazis, this ancient hatred is impossible to eradicate.
asserted
hatred → know → Nazis
Even so, after World War II, antisemitism became socially unacceptable.
asserted
antisemitism → become → II
The shocking reactions from many quarters to Hamas’s October 7th attack on Israel, three years ago, show this is no longer the case.
asserted
this → show → Israel
On that day, Hamas terrorists invaded Israel intending to murder as many Jewish people as possible, bringing about the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust.
asserted
terrorists → invade → Holocaust
As Israel defends itself, we reiterate our wholehearted conviction that Israel has not committed genocide, reflecting the United States government’s consistent and prevailing view.
asserted
Israel → defend → view
At the same time, we cannot forget the terrible tragedy many innocent Gazans have experienced as a result of the war.
asserted
Gazans → forget → war
The loss of tens of thousands, including many children, is horrific.
asserted
loss → include → children
As we mourn so many innocent lives lost, we cannot ignore that Hamas puts civilians in harm’s way as a central part of its strategy to demonize Israel.
asserted
Hamas → mourn → Israel
Despite this deadly strategy, Israel has made efforts to warn civilians when to evacuate, provide food and relief, and facilitate vaccine distribution.
asserted
Israel → make → distribution
And yet, whether out of ignorance or malice, people from all walks of life often with little knowledge or legal expertise, including in the specific definition of genocide, continually wield the term.
asserted
people → include → term
Others weaponize it to delegitimize the world’s only Jewish state.
asserted
Others → weaponize → state
Furthermore, state actors like Iran, Qatar, China and Russia spread antisemitic and anti-Israel conspiracy theories and Holocaust denial to stir hatred of Jews and sow chaos in democracies.
asserted
actors → spread → democracies
They are succeeding.
asserted
They → succeed → ?
Antisemitism is no longer lurking at society’s fringes.
asserted
Antisemitism → lurk → fringes
It is marching openly through its institutions.
asserted
It → march → institutions
Violent antisemitism is at levels not seen since the Holocaust.
asserted
antisemitism → see → Holocaust
And every day, Jews face relentless harassment and threats on streets, campuses and online.
asserted
Jews → face → streets
The Holocaust teaches the dangers of unchecked antisemitism and how hatred began with the Jews but did not end with the Jews – it infected all of society.
asserted
it → teach → society
It is a sad truth that as Jews desperately tried to flee Nazi Europe, the rest of the world did not want them, including our own nation.
asserted
rest → try → nation
History shows some Jews who survived returned to their homes only to face further deadly violence from their former neighbors.
asserted
who → show → neighbors
Knowing Europe was a Jewish graveyard, survivors desperately wanted to build new lives where they could feel secure – primarily the United States and their ancestral homeland, what is now Israel, which was then under British colonial rule.
uncertain
which → know → rule
The Holocaust also teaches other lessons about humanity.
asserted
Holocaust → teach → humanity
As the Nazis and their collaborators hunted Jews, in every country some remarkable individuals chose to help, rising above the propaganda, hatred and threats to their own safety.
asserted
individuals → hunt → safety
And the survivors showed remarkable resilience as they rebuilt their lives, perhaps wondering if there had been a Jewish state, how many of their lost family members might have been saved.
uncertain
many → show → members
Even so, after World War II, antisemitism became socially unacceptable.
asserted
antisemitism → become → II
The shocking reactions from many quarters to Hamas’s October 7th attack on Israel, three years ago, show this is no longer the case.
asserted
this → show → Israel
Even today, principled individuals are risking all to stand against this age-old hatred.
asserted
individuals → risk → hatred
Holocaust survivors, people who have seen the worst humanity has to offer, continue to demonstrate a strength and courage we can only marvel at as they share their testimony.
asserted
they → see → testimony
We need this courage from all of society.
asserted
We → need → society
History has taught us what happens when antisemitism is excused, normalized, or allowed to masquerade as something more respectable.
asserted
antisemitism → teach → something
We cannot make that mistake again.
asserted
We → make → mistake
"Never Again" cannot be something we say about the past.
asserted
we → say → past
It must be a promise of what all of us are willing to do in the present.
asserted
all → do → present
We owe that to the 6 million.
asserted
We → owe → million
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
