A bipartisan group of members of Congress is planning to attend a tour of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and a related discussion next week.
The trip and subsequent conversation, which was reported on by Jewish Insider, is being led by Democratic Reps. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, Ted Deutch of Florida, Elaine Luria of Virginia, Susie Lee of Nevada, as well as Republican Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania and Lee Zeldin of New York.
The six members of Congress sent a letter to the rest of the House that reads in part, “Now, more than ever, it is important to rededicate ourselves to the work of remembering the Holocaust and learning the lessons of the attempt to eliminate European Jewry.”
“The Holocaust Museum serves as a stark reminder that we must never allow this to ever happen again and that we must never relent in the fight against anti-Semitism,” Zeldin told the Washington Examiner on Thursday.
“This tour is a part of our continued effort to share the stories of those we lost and those who survived so we may never forget what happens when this most extreme and destructive form of hate prevails and when too many people stay silent in the face of unconscionable evil,” he continued. “It is our duty as Members of Congress, and, most importantly, as Americans.”
The Holocaust Museum has been drawn into the political sphere in recent weeks as members of Congress have compared concentration camps from the Holocaust to facilities that are housing migrants apprehended trying to enter the country illegally.
The museum ultimately issued a statement “unequivocally reject[ing] efforts to create analogies between the Holocaust and other events, whether historical or contemporary.”
