ANNUAL REPORT 2005–06 LESSONS FOR TODAY’S WORLD UNITED STATES HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL MUSEUM A living reminder of the moral obligations of individuals and societies It happened, therefore it can happen again: This is the core of what we have to say. It can happen, and it can happen everywhere. Primo Levi, author and Holocaust survivor, in The Drowned and the Saved ushmm.org 1 From Our Leadership 3 Confronting Hatred and Antisemitism 5 Preventing Genocide 13 Building Moral Leadership 21 Days of Remembrance Events 29 Our Donors 34 2005 Financial Statement 48 United States Holocaust Memorial Council 49 From Our Leadership Who would have thought that the That is why our living memorial Our Museum cannot eradicate evil need for a Holocaust Museum on is so important. With unique power or hate. But, with the support of our National Mall would be more and authenticity, we teach millions our donors and partners, we can critical in the 21st century than in of people each year about the cultivate a sense of moral respon- the 20th? dangers of unchecked hatred and sibility among our citizens so antisemitism and the need to that they will respond to the mon- Yet, at the beginning of this new prevent genocide. umental challenges that confront century, we face an alarming our world. We thank all of our rise in antisemitism—even in the And, we do more than that—we supporters for their dedication very lands where the Holocaust encourage them to act. and generosity. happened—as well as genocide and threats of genocide in other parts We teach that the Holocaust was Fred S. Zeidman, Chairman of the world. And we see that not inevitable, but the result of Joel M. Geiderman, Vice Chairman technology and globalization bring choices made by many individuals, Sara J. Bloomfield, Director benefits but also new dangers. including bystanders. All of this when we know we are approaching a time when Holocaust Likewise, what happens today— survivors and other eyewitnesses whether in Europe or America, in will no longer be alive. Sudan or Iran—is not inevitable. ushmm.org 3 This is an institution for all of humanity. We must take responsibility to learn the lessons of the Holocaust and work with compassion and mercy in our hearts to act on them. If we do not, we will have failed mankind. Akbar S. Ahmed, former High Commissioner of Pakistan to Great Britain; Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic Studies American University, Washington, D.C. Confronting Hatred and Antisemitism “ he longest hatred” did not disappear in Hitler’s bunker. Only 60 T years after Auschwitz, it is clear that antisemitism still exists and even thrives. Unique among hatreds, antisemitism is remark- ably durable and adaptable. Its ability to remain active in so many different cultural, political, economic and religious contexts for more than two millennia speaks to its utter distinctiveness. Many Americans do not understand this. They may know some- thing about the Holocaust, but they are probably not aware of the long history of antisemitism or of its resurgence today. That is why educating our visitors—90 percent of whom are not Jewish—as well as the millions we reach each year from almost every country worldwide is such an urgent priority. With our exhibitions, archives, scholarship, public programs and technology, the Museum is uniquely positioned to counter the spread of antisemitic propaganda and Holocaust denial with evi- dence of the truth. And the Museum’s vast reach, from American schoolchildren to heads of state, gives it a unique opportunity to remind the world just how dangerous antisemitism remains. ushmm.org 5 C ONFRONTING HATRED AND ANTISEMITISM Countering Extremism In response to the December 2005 comments of Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad, in which he declared the Holocaust a “myth” and said Israel should be “wiped off the map,” the Museum de- nounced his hateful statements, in both Arabic and Farsi (below). This year, there were 42,000 The Museum’s Web site plays a visitors to our Web site from critical role in countering anti- countries with majority Muslim semitic propaganda and providing populations. The top 10 were: historically accurate information Somali-born Aayan Hirsi Ali, about the Holocaust to audiences 1. United Arab Emirates (above) former member of the worldwide. Portions of the site are Dutch Parliament and outspoken 2. Turkey available in more than 20 languages. critic of Muslim extremism, With hundreds of thousands of 3. Malaysia recently visited the Museum visitors from countries with major- and plans to participate in the 4. Saudi Arabia ity Muslim populations coming to Museum’s efforts to confront 5. Egypt the site, translating it into Arabic hatred and antisemitism. 6. Indonesia and Farsi is a top priority. The site, ushmm.org, is the world’s leading 7. Iran online authority on the Holocaust 8. Morocco and is expected to be used by 15 million visitors this year. 9. Pakistan 10. Nigeria < ARABIC < FARSI 6 Annual Report 2005–06 C ONFRONTING HATRED AND ANTISEMITISM PROTOCOLS EXHIBITION EXPLORES THE CONTINUING THREAT OF ANTISEMITIC PROPAGANDA In April, the Museum opened Today, the Protocols remain in wide A Dangerous Lie: The Protocols circulation, exploited by those who of the Elders of Zion, an exhibition advocate hatred, and sometimes that explores the history and violence, against Jews and the continuing impact of the most State of Israel. White supremacists widely distributed antisemitic and Holocaust deniers in the United propaganda of modern times— States and Europe promote the the fabricated Protocols of the Protocols. It has become a main- Elders of Zion. stream text in Arab countries and elsewhere throughout the Muslim From its early 20th-century origins world, where many school text- in Czarist Russia to its promotion books teach the Protocols as fact. In by the Nazi Party and its spread 2002, Egypt’s state-sponsored tele- in the Middle East today, the vision network aired a miniseries Protocols tract has been used to based in part on the Protocols. The disseminate hatred of Jews in charter of the Palestinian organiza- virtually every part of the world. tion Hamas also draws on the Protocols to justify its terrorism against Israeli civilians. ushmm.org 7 C ONFRONTING HATRED AND ANTISEMITISM Europe Faces Its Past After years of pressure from will help people learn the fate of the Museum, in April 2006, the loved ones and will double the 11-nation commission of the size of the Museum’s archives, a International Tracing Service in major resource for scholars. At Bad Arolsen, Germany, agreed to an announcement at the Museum open its archives. Forming the (below), Museum Director Sara largest closed, Holocaust-era Bloomfield and German Federal archive in the world—an estimated Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries 50-million pages—these records made a joint statement on the historic decision. 8 Annual Report 2005–06 C ONFRONTING HATRED AND ANTISEMITISM With Museum support, the Romanian government in 2004 launched an effort to fully docu- In October 2006, the German ment Romania’s role in the Hygiene Museum in the city of Holocaust, resulting in the presi- Dresden (below), located in a dent of Romania declaring to Elie region with one of the strongest Wiesel, “There Was a Holocaust” neo-Nazi parties, will host Deadly (right). Staff members Radu Medicine: Creating the Master Ioanid and Paul Shapiro now Race, the Museum’s exhibition on conduct an annual seminar on the the role that physicians and scien- Holocaust for Romania’s military tists played in legitimizing and leaders at the country’s National implementing Nazi racial theories. Defense University. ushmm.org 9 C ONFRONTING HATRED AND ANTISEMITISM In May, the Museum signed an agreement with French authorities regarding the creation of a memo- rial at the Rivesaltes internment camp in southern France (above), another important acknowledge- ment of the role of the Vichy government in deporting French Jews. The agreement was signed by Christian Bourquin, president of the general council of the Department of Pyrenées-Orientales, the local authority. French Ambassador Jean-David Levitte attended the ceremony. 10 Annual Report 2005–06 C ONFRONTING HATRED AND ANTISEMITISM The Catholic Church Examines Its History The Museum marked the 40th A program on how the Holocaust James Carroll (right), of The anniversary of the historic Nostra influenced the contemporary Boston Globe and author of Aetate declaration, widely viewed Catholic Church, moderated by Constantine’s Sword. A second as one of the most significant E.J. Dionne of The Washington program, “Antisemitism and breakthroughs in Jewish-Catholic Post and Brookings Institution Interfaith Cooperation,” featured relations. The 1965 document (left), featured panelists Father Jean-Marie Cardinal Lustiger of from Vatican II (below) repudiated John T. Pawlikowski (center), France, interviewed by E.J. the centuries-old “deicide” charge, Chairman of the Museum’s Church Dionne. condemned antisemitism and Relations Committee and President acknowledged the enduring valid- of the International Council on ity of Judaism. Christians and Jews, and ushmm.org 11 Who is guilty? Those who commit these crimes. But to the question, “Who is responsible?” we are compelled to say: “Aren’t we all?” Elie Wiesel, Nobel laureate and Founding Museum Chairman, on the genocide in Darfur, Sudan Preventing Genocide he Holocaust ended, but the scourge of genocide has not. The TMuseum honors the memory of those who suffered in the Holocaust by confronting genocide and threats of genocide today. Working with Holocaust survivors and an array of Jewish, Christian and secular organizations, the Museum played a key role in galvanizing the widespread public outcry over the crisis in Darfur, Sudan. In fact, the Museum called the situation a genocide in July 2004—nearly two months before then-Secretary of State Colin Powell followed suit.