1st US Public Holocaust Memorial Merges Past With New Tech

In 1964, the first public memorial to the Holocaust in the United States was unveiled in a solemn ceremony in Philadelphia.

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The bronze-on-black granite sculpture called “Six Million Jewish Martyrs” was the work of artist Nathan Rapoport, who fled his native Poland when the Nazis invaded Warsaw. It was commissioned by a group of Philadelphia-area Holocaust survivors and Jewish civic leaders. The sculpture, which depicts images of resistance, innocence and faith, has sat unchanged on its perch along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway ever since.

Now, after more than half a century, the Holocaust Memorial Plaza has been expanded and enhanced to focus on both remembrance and education. With new displays and an interactive app, visitors can hear testimonies from survivors, liberators and witnesses associated with the Philadelphia community.

The new plaza opened at a ceremony featuring local dignitaries and Holocaust survivors.

Some highlights of the expansion:

SIX PILLARS:

The plaza’s centerpiece is called the “Six Pillars.” Organized in pairs, the pillars contrast atrocities of the Holocaust with American constitutional protections and values. The idea is to remind visitors that if America is faithful to the Constitution, a genocide like the Holocaust will not happen here, said Eszter Kutas, the acting director of the Philadelphia Holocaust Remembrance Foundation.

For example, one pillar is dedicated to human equality, and features a quote from the Declaration of Independence, and is contrasted with a pillar describing the Nazis’ idea of a master race.

The six pillars feature quotes from figures like George Washington, Dwight Eisenhower and Philadelphia native and concentration camp liberator Leon Bass.