LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION commemorating the observance of Holocaust Remem-
brance Day in the State of New York on April 15, 2015

WHEREAS, From 1933 to 1945, 5.8 million Jews were murdered in the Nazi
Holocaust as a part of a systematic program of genocide, and millions of
other people also perished as victims of Nazism; and
WHEREAS, Jews who fell under German control in Eastern and Central
Europe were quickly stripped of their rights and property; and
WHEREAS, The Jews who perished at Nazi hands comprised two-thirds of
all European Jewry, and in countries such as Poland, which before the
Second World War included parts of the Ukraine and Belarus, the Jewish
death toll surpassed 90 percent; and
WHEREAS, The People of the State of New York should always remember
the atrocities committed by the Nazis so that such horrors are never
repeated; and
WHEREAS, Those who survived the killing camps tell us that as many
people walked to their deaths, their last words were "Remember Us"; and
WHEREAS, The year 2015 marks the 82nd anniversary of the beginning of
the genocide of European Jews, the darkest, most murderous moment in
history; and
WHEREAS, We learn in the aftermath of the Holocaust that indifference
to genocide cannot be tolerated; Holocaust remembrance imposes a moral
obligation to speak out; and
WHEREAS, The Holocaust represents the darkest period in the civiliza-
tion of mankind and must always be remembered in order to prevent its
reoccurrence anywhere else in the world; and
WHEREAS, The People of the State of New York should continually reded-
icate themselves to the principle of equal justice for all people; and
WHEREAS, The People of the State of New York should remain eternally
vigilant against all tyranny and recognize that bigotry provides a
breeding ground for tyranny to flourish; and
WHEREAS, Holocaust Remembrance Day, known in Hebrew as Yom Hashoah, is
a day set aside for remembering the victims of the Holocaust and for
reminding New Yorkers, all Americans, and people around the world of
what can happen to civilized people when bigotry, hatred and indiffer-
ence reign; and
WHEREAS, Internationally, Holocaust Remembrance Day is observed on the
15th day of Nisan on the Hebrew calendar, which this year falls on
Wednesday, April 15, 2015; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commemorate the observance of Holocaust Remembrance Day in the State of
New York on April 15, 2015; and be it further
RESOLVED, That copies of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to The Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of the State of New
York; Valadimir Ripa, Holocaust Survivors Charity; Pavel Vishnevetsky,
New York Association of Holocaust Survivors; and Zinoviy Ginzburg, Chil-
dren of World War II from the former Soviet Union.