A moving ceremony at the U.S. Capitol marks the dedication of an important source of information on anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial
The Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice and the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) jointly hosted the dedication of the Tom Lantos Anti-Semitism and Holocaust Denial Archives at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday. In a moving ceremony, members of Congress and other dignitaries expressed their support for the establishment of the Lantos Archives and praised both MEMRI and the Lantos Foundation for their important work and efforts to combat anti-Semitism and human rights violations worldwide.
The event’s list of distinguished speakers featured a bipartisan mix of members of Congress, including: Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senator George Voinovich, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Congressman Gary Ackerman, Congressman Eric Cantor, Congressman Dennis Kucinich, Congressman Anh “Joseph” Cao, and Congressman Eni Faleomavaega. Additionally, the standing room only crowd heard remarks from the Israeli Ambassador Salai Meridor, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State (Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor) Kay Mayfield, and Paul Shapiro, Director of the Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Many of the speakers recalled their former colleague Congressman Tom Lantos, the archives’ namesake, and his dedication to combating anti-Semitism and all forms of injustice. Vice President Joe Biden echoed this theme in a letter expressing his support for the new Lantos Archives, which read, “The Lantos Anti-Semitism and Holocaust Denial Archives will help future generations understand why we confront injustice, why we defend human rights, and why we honor all that Tom Lantos stood for… I think it is fair to say, Tom would have been proud to be associated with an archive that not only documents past injustices, but acts as a tool to help prevent future intolerance.”
The Lantos Archives, which represent a collaborative effort between the Lantos Foundation and MEMRI, will be the repository of MEMRI’s Anti-Semitism Documentation Project. These remarkable archives document anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial in every form of media throughout the Greater Middle East. The project also focuses on those brave individuals in the Arab and Muslim world who courageously speak out against anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial. MEMRI's Anti-Semitism Documentation Project maintains the largest archives in the world of translated Arabic, Farsi, Turkish, and Urdu - Pashtu material on anti-Semitism from the past decade. It has become the preeminent source of information on the global upsurge in anti-Semitism and is regularly used as a primary source for legislators, policymakers, and researchers around the world.