Never again - NEVER!

Today is International Holocaust Memorial Day, we honor and remember the six million Jewish Holocaust victims and survivors, and the millions of other victims of Nazism . We listen and learn so we may educate future generations, and we say never again to ensure atrocities of the past – including all acts of genocide – are never repeated.

"Never again," we say, and yet we let horrible hateful things happen still to this day.  I don't mean for one moment to minimize the Holocaust by talking about modern day hate crimes.  My point is that we get angry and say we are going to do something, but then don't.  The best way to honor the victims of the horrible systematic, government-sponsored persecution and murder of human beings, is to remember them and to ensure that nothing like this ever happens again.

Were there any warning signs of what was to come before the start of mass killing in 1941? Indeed there were. The biggest warning both then and now, was the abundance of hate. The killings did not come first. It began with hate. It started with denial of basic human rights. It began with attacks on truth and on the rule of law.  What about now?  Do you see any hate in the world?  In our country?  In your community?  Now in 2024, I am saddened by the many examples of hate all around the world.

Take some time today to really remember the horror that was the Holocaust.  Think of the victims.  Light a candle.  Above all, work to stop the hate.  When we say never again, we have to make it so!