| Antisemitism |
|---|
|
Part of Jewish history
|
| History · Timeline · Resources |
|
Manifestations
|
|
Opposition
UN Watch
Anti-Defamation League Community Security Trust FRA · Stephen Roth Institute Wiener Library · SPLC · SWC UCSJ · SCAA · Yad Vashem |
|
Categories
Antisemitism · Jewish history
|
Yad Vashem (Hebrew: יד ושם sometimes written as Yad VaShem; "Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority") is Israel's official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, established in 1953 through the Yad Vashem Law passed by the Knesset, Israel's parliament.
The origin of the name is from a Biblical verse: "And to them will I give in my house and within my walls a memorial and a name (Yad Vashem) that shall not be cut off".[1]
Located in the western region of Mount Herzl on the Mount of Remembrance in Jerusalem, Yad Vashem is a 45-acre (180,000 m2) complex containing the Holocaust History Museum; memorial sites, such as the Children's Memorial and the Hall of Remembrance; The Museum of Holocaust Art; sculptures, outdoor commemorative sites such as the Valley of the Communities, a synagogue, archives, a research institute, library, publishing house and an educational center, The International School for Holocaust Studies. Yad Vashem honors non-Jews who saved Jews during the Holocaust, at personal risk, as the "Righteous among the Nations".
Yad Vashem is the second most-visited tourist site in Israel, after the Western Wall. It receives some one million visitors annually. Admission is free.
Contents |
In 1993, Yad Vashem institute decided to build a larger museum to replace the one built during the 1960s. This was in response to the need to provide a meaningful way to commemorate the Holocaust amid the technological advances of the new millennium, while connecting to younger generations, whose responsibility it will be to pass on the legacy of Holocaust remembrance. The new Holocaust History museum is the largest Holocaust museum in the world. It is carved into the Mount of Remembrance and designed to tell the story of the European Jewish community during the Holocaust. Consisting of a long corridor connected to 10 exhibition halls, each dedicated to a different chapter of the Holocaust, the museum tells the story of the Holocaust from a Jewish perspective. The museum combines the personal stories of 90 Holocaust victims and survivors and presents approximately 2,500 personal items including artwork and letters donated by survivors and others. At the end of the Holocaust History Museum is the Hall of Names, a memorial to the 6 million Jews who perished in the Holocaust. The main hall is composed of two cones: one ten meters high, with a reciprocal well-like cone excavated into the underground rock, its base filled with water. On the upper cone is a display featuring 600 photographs of Holocaust victims and fragments of Pages of Testimony. These are reflected in the water at the bottom of the lower cone, commemorating those victims whose names remain unknown. Surrounding the platform is the circular repository, housing the approximately 2.2 million Pages of Testimony collected to date, with empty spaces for those yet to be submitted—room for six million Pages in all. Attached is a study area with a computerized data bank and where online searches of Holocaust victims' names may be performed on the Central Database of Shoah Victims' Names. Access to the Central Database of Shoah Victims' Names is also available on the Internet at the Yad Vashem website.
Since the 1950s, Yad Vashem has collected approximately 102,000 audio, video and written testimonies by Holocaust survivors; as the survivors age and are beginning to become less mobile, the program has expanded to visiting survivors in their homes to tape interviews.
On 15 March 2005, the dedication of the new Yad Vashem Holocaust History Museum in Jerusalem, Israel took place. The impressive building was designed by the world acclaimed Canadian-Israeli architect, Moshe Safdie. Leaders from 40 states and former Secretary General of the UN Kofi Annan attended the inauguration of the Holocaust History museum. President of Israel Moshe Katzav said that the new museum serves as "an important signpost to all of humankind, a signpost that warns how short the distance is between hatred and murder, between racism and genocide."[5]
The grounds of Yad Vashem display sculpture by Naftali Bezem, Ilana Gur, Lea Michelson, Nathan Rapoport, Moshe Safdie, Boris Saktsier, Zahara Schatz, Buky Schwartz, Shlomo Selinger, and Marcelle Swergold.
One of Yad Vashem's tasks is to honor non-Jews who risked their lives, liberty or positions to save Jews during the Holocaust. To this end a special independent Commission, headed by a retired Supreme Court Justice, was established. The commission members, including historians, public figures, lawyers and Holocaust survivors, examine and evaluate each case according to a well-defined set of criteria and regulations. The Righteous receive a certificate of honor and a medal and their names are commemorated in the Garden of the Righteous Among the Nations , on the Mount of Remembrance, Yad Vashem. This is an ongoing project that will continue for as long as there are valid requests, substantiated by testimonies or documentation. 449 individuals were recognized during 2010, and as of 2010, more than 23,700 individuals have been recognized as Righteous Among the Nations.
The idea of establishing a memorial in the historical Jewish homeland for Jewish victims of the Nazi Holocaust was conceived during World War II, as a response to reports of the mass murder of Jews in Nazi-occupied countries.
Yad Vashem was first proposed in September 1942, at a board meeting of the Jewish National Fund, by Mordecai Shenhavi, a member of Kibbutz Mishmar Ha'emek.
In August 1945, the plan was discussed in greater detail at a Zionist meeting in London where it was decided to set up a provisional board of Zionist leaders with David Remez as chairman, Shlomo Zalman Shragai, Baruch Zuckerman, and Shenhavi.
In February 1946, Yad Vashem opened an office in Jerusalem and a branch office in Tel Aviv and in June that year, convened its first plenary session. In July 1947, the First Conference on Holocaust Research was held at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, where further plans were made for Yad Vashem. However, the outbreak in May 1948 of the War of Independence, brought almost all Yad Vashem operations to a standstill for two years. In 1953, the Knesset, Israel's Parliament, unanimously passed the Yad Vashem Law, establishing the Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority.
In 1973 the Austrian UN Secretary General, Kurt Waldheim rejected requests to wear a Jewish Kippa during a visit to Yad Vashem.[6]
In 2000, German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder visited Yad Vashem as a guest of Israeli Premier Ehud Barak and was invited to turn a handle to boost the Eternal Flame. In a much reported diplomatic gaffe he turned the handle the wrong way and extinguished it.[7]
In 2005, in response to a letter by Sa'ar Netanel, a member of the Jerusalem City Council, Avner Shalev, Chairman of Yad Vashem, promised a presentation of information on "other victims" in a "relevant place". Some information on other victims of the Nazis can be found on Yad Vashem's web site as of January 2008.[8]
During 2008, Yad Vashem hosted a wide range of VIPs and dignitaries, beginning with US President George W. Bush, who visited in January 2008. Also in January, Yad Vashem's International School for Holocaust Studies held the first ever International Youth Congress on the Holocaust. Over 100 young people, from 62 countries and five continents gathered at Yad Vashem for a three-day Youth Congress. The Congress, under the patronage of UNESCO, was devoted to the study of the Holocaust and discussions of its universal significance. Participants, ranging in age from 17 to 19, and including among them Christians, Jews, Muslims and Buddhists, and speaking some 30 different languages, studied various Holocaust-related topics, toured Yad Vashem and Jerusalem, participated in workshops, and met with Holocaust survivors. Special sessions were held with Israeli dignitaries including president Shimon Peres.
During March 2008, German Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel, accompanied by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and eight ministers from each government, visited Yad Vashem. A memorial ceremony, with the participation of the Chancellor, the Prime Minister, and the Chairman of the Yad Vashem Directorate Avner Shalev, took place in the Hall of Remembrance.
Pope Benedict XVI visited Yad Vashem on 11 May 2009, with the participation of President Shimon Peres and Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin. Similar to the visit of his predecessor Pope John Paul II in 2000, Pope Benedict XVI's visit took place in the Hall of Remembrance at Yad Vashem, where he participated in a memorial ceremony, delivering an address and greeting six Holocaust survivors and a Righteous Among the Nations.
On 9 November 2008, Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau was appointed by the Israeli government as Chairman of Yad Vashem to replace the late Tommy Lapid.[9]
During 2009–2010, Yad Vashem launched websites in Spanish and Russian that joined the existing ones in English, Hebrew, and Farsi. Yad Vashem also created dedicated YouTube channels in English, Hebrew, Spanish, Russian and Arabic. Some 11 million visits were recorded on www.yadvashem.org during 2010.