Hoan Bridge, other Milwaukee landmarks lit in yellow to commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day
MILWUAKEE (CBS 58) -- Milwaukee's Hoan Bridge was lit up in yellow Monday, Jan. 27, to commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
The day honors the more than six million Jews who were killed in the Holocaust.
International Holocaust Remembrance Day not only honors the lives lost and the families affected forever, it also calls attention to the dangers of modern day antisemitism.
Samantha Abramson is the executive director of Milwaukee's Holocaust Education Resource Center. She told us, "Yes, six million Jews were killed, but those were six million individual lives. And millions more impacted."
Abramson said the center's mission is to keep alive the personal stories of survival and loss from the Holocaust.
It comes at a critical time. She said, "We are, unfortunately, at this moment, where holocaust denial and distortion on the rise."
Here at home, the Milwaukee Jewish Federation reported a 570% increase in antisemitic incidents in Wisconsin from 2015-2023.
Several Milwaukee landmarks were lit in yellow Monday to commemorate the day, including the Milwaukee Art Museum.
Abramson said education, being good allies, and advocating for others are the best ways to combat the spread of antisemitism. "That is something we want to make sure students recognize. How this happens and what they can do to prevent it in the future."
This year's commemoration is particularly poignant because this year marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz Birkenau concentration camp.
Fifty survivors attended a ceremony there, but the number of survivors worldwide is dwindling.
Abramson said they are true heroes who bravely relive their trauma every time they share their stories, because, she said, "They know they are the missing link, they are the ones who are going to be able to change the beliefs that someone might have."
The resource center is charged by the state with providing resources for all Wisconsin school districts.
Currently 118 lesson plans are available online for free to help educators, districts, and families teach and learn about the holocaust.
They're also working to collect as many testimonies as possible from survivors.
And this year a traveling trunk program will launch that will share individual people's experiences during the holocaust.
Abramson said, "Education is key. Being good allies to others in society. Making sure we’re standing up for one another."
All of the more than 100 lessons offered by the Holocaust Education Resource Center are free and available online at this link.