The St. Louis Park City Council has proclaimed Jan. 27 as International Holocaust Remembrance Day in St. Louis Park. View the entire proclamation below.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day marks the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1945 and is meant to honor the memory of the six million Jewish adults and children who were murdered, and the millions of others who were killed or suffered persecution at the hands of the Nazi campaign of dehumanization and genocide. Their lives and memories teach us the importance not only of acknowledging the past but acting in the present to educate ourselves and fight antisemitism and hate.

On this day, St. Louis Park residents are encouraged to educate themselves and others about the Holocaust, and to explore the stories of Holocaust survivors in Minnesota from the University of Minnesota Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies Collection (CHGS).

• The Holocaust (History.com)
• Why it Took Decades for LGBTQ Stories to be Included in Holocaust History (TIME)
• The Persecution of the Toma is Often Left Out of the Holocaust Story. Victims' Families are Fighting to Change That. (TIME)
• Hadamar: The Forgotten Holocaust (Minnesota Department of Administration)
• American Eugenics and the Nazi Regime (PBS)
• Browsing Minnesota and the Holocaust (University of Minnesota CHGS)

Proclamation

The proclamation reads:

Whereas, the Holocaust was a state-sponsored genocide by the German Nazi regime that resulted in the systematic persecution and mass murder of millions of Jewish people, their communities and others, including Romani people, LGBTQ+ people, and those with disabilities; and

Whereas, the horrors of the Holocaust represent a tremendous loss of life and humanity, and remains a present memory for the generations of survivors, many who live in our community of St. Louis Park; and

Whereas, it is important to acknowledge the painful history of racism and eugenics in the United States that set the foundation for Nazi Germany's campaign of sterilization and persecution of any communities deemed “undesirable”; and

Whereas, educating ourselves about the events leading up to and during the Holocaust, including the role of the United States, is part of how we ensure that it never happens again; and

Whereas, St. Louis Park is committed to being a leader in racial equity and inclusion and strives to be a place of safety and respect for Jewish communities, their faith, traditions, and ways of life; and

Whereas, honoring the International Holocaust Remembrance Day is an opportunity to recommit ourselves to standing against government actions or inactions which dehumanize, displace, and bring violence to any group of people, religion, age, race, ability, or sexual orientation; and

Now therefore, let it be known that the mayor and city council of the City of St. Louis Park, Minnesota, hereby proclaim January 27 as International Holocaust Remembrance Day in St. Louis Park.