The US House on Monday passed a bill in support of a recognizing the Holocaust memorial in Bedford Heights, Ohio, one of the first of its kind, as a national monument.
The memorial has been a longtime project of the Kol Israel Foundation, organization founded by Holocaust survivors who settled in Cleveland after World War II.
“At time of rising antisemitism, it is more important than ever to remember the history of the Holocaust and to learn from it,” said the bill’s sponsor Rep. Shontel Brown (D-OH). “Designating this site as a National Memorial ensures that future generations understand the true legacy of a very dark chapter in history.”
The Kol Israel organization applauded the bill’s passage through the House.
“We at KIF are thrilled that the House has approved this legislation,” former Kol Israel Foundation president Mark Frank told the Cleveland Jewish news. “We greatly appreciate the efforts of Rep. Shontel Brown and the 27 co-sponsors in the House of Representatives for their support of the National Memorial recognition committee. Truly their personal attention to our cause exceeded any expectations that Kol Israel members, past and present, could ever have dreamed of when the Memorial was conceived.”
The monument in Zion Memorial Park was built by the Kol Israel organization in 1961 and is thought to be one of the first Holocaust memorials in the US. In 2017, it was awarded a state historic marker and was designated by the state of Ohio as the first Holocaust monument in the nation.
Kol Israel Foundation started a process in 2020 to have the memorial receive national recognition, according to the Jewish News.