WHITEFISH BAY, Wis. — Friday marked International Holocaust Remembrance Day. It commemorates the day in 1945 when the Auschwitz  concentration camp was liberated. In Wisconsin, Jewish people, as well as non-Jews, took time to reflect. 

What You Need To Know

  • January 27th is International Holocaust Remembrance Day 

  • Commemorates the liberation of Auschwitz in 1945

  • Important focus on Holocaust education in Wisconsin 

Samantha Abramson serves as executive director of the Holocaust Education Resource Center. As a division of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation, the HERC advocates for education about the Holocaust and provides education materials for talking about it. 

At a time when cases of anti-semitism are on the rise in Wisconsin and nationwide, Abramson said it is very important to learn from the Holocaust and to take any incident of anti-semitism seriously. 

“We need to stand up for one another as human beings. Without that advocacy and education we can find destruction and it is really important that we are there for one another to be allies and to prevent genocide from happening,” said Abramson. 

A 2021-22 report compiled by the Milwaukee Jewish Federation found there were 95 confirmed cases of anti-semitism in Wisconsin that year. Read the full report below:

Annual Report 2022: Meeting our most important needs by Aly Prouty on Scribd

The Holocaust Education Resource Center provides learning materials to teach about the Holocaust at home or in schools. To access them, visit their website.