Bill Text: IL HR0006 | 2021-2022 | 102nd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Declares the week of January 27, 2021 as Holocaust Education Week in the State of Illinois.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Passed) 2021-04-23 - Resolution Adopted 099-000-000 [HR0006 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2021-HR0006-Introduced.html

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HR0006 LRB102 04077 ECR 14093 r
HOUSE RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The Holocaust was the systemic annihilation of
six million Jews and millions of other victims by the Nazis in
the Second World War; and
WHEREAS, Illinois is the home to many Holocaust survivors
and their families; and
WHEREAS, In 1990, Illinois was one of the first states in
the nation to require education on the Holocaust in public
schools; and
WHEREAS, The U.S. Millennial Holocaust Knowledge and
Awareness Survey, released in September of 2020, demonstrated
that 59 percent of Illinoisans did not know that six million
Jews were murdered in the Holocaust and that 54 percent of
Illinois respondents could not name a single concentration
camp or ghetto; and
WHEREAS, According to the Federal Bureau of
Investigation's 2019 Hate Crimes Statistics Report, hate
crimes rose to their highest in a decade with a record breaking
51 fatal attacks; there were 953 reports of anti-Jewish hate
crimes in 2019; this is a 14% increase from the previous year;
and

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WHEREAS, Jewish students on college campuses in Illinois
have endured an unrelenting campaign of anti-Semitic
harassment, which led to an investigation by the United States
Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights into the
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign for its response to
such acts on campus; and
WHEREAS, Teaching the lessons of the Holocaust leads to an
understanding of the ramifications of prejudice and racism,
encourages tolerance of diversity, and nurtures the protection
of democratic values and institutions; and
WHEREAS, On January 27, 1945, the Nazi Concentration and
Extermination Camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau was liberated by the
Allied troops; and
WHEREAS, The United Nations General Assembly designated
January 27 as an annual International Day of Commemoration in
memory of the victims of the Holocaust; and
WHEREAS, The United Nations urges its members to develop
educational programs to help prevent future genocides; and
WHEREAS, A Holocaust Education Week can be used to spur
discussion in schools, communities, and civic organizations

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throughout Illinois about hate, discrimination, and prejudice
and hopefully reduce the number of hate crimes in the State;
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
we declare the week of January 27, 2021 as Holocaust Education
Week in the State of Illinois; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we encourage school districts and local
residents to support this week and participate in informed
educational events planned to commemorate the occasion.