Washington, D.C.–U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) issued the following statement in reverence of the 79th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp and on International Holocaust Remembrance Day:
“On Holocaust Remembrance Day, we remember the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust, as well as the millions of other victims of Nazi hatred programs.
“Unfortunately, Jewish hate still permeates our world today, and the time to act on ‘Never Again’ is now. Following the October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack in Israel, national and global antisemitic behavior is on the rise. It continues to threaten the lives of Jewish people here in the United States and across the world. I strongly condemn this hatred, the groups who endorse it, and the antisemitic attacks on the Jewish community.
“I remain a strong advocate for and continue to support and reaffirm the United States’ support for Israel in its right to defend itself, especially against terrorist threats like Hamas. The United States and Israel have forged a special bond as friends and allies. The work to support Israel must continue. Moreover, antisemitic behavior must never be tolerated here in the United States–in schools or anywhere else–and I remain committed to supporting efforts to combat abhorrent antisemitic behavior both at home and abroad.”
As a member of the Senate Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Antisemitism, Senator Crapo has joined a number of efforts to address the rise of antisemitic behavior in the United States and abroad, including:
- Urged the Biden Administration to protect Jewish students amid rising antisemitism on college campuses across the United States;
- Called for the accountability of the U.S. Education Department’s taxpayer-funded actions amid the dangerous increase in antisemitic behavior on college campuses;
- Called upon the Biden Administration to address the rising rates of antisemitism in K-12 schools, requesting the use of their enforcement power under Title VI to maintain a safe learning environment for all children;
- Demanded that Harvard University condemn the statement issued by more than 30 Harvard student groups supporting Hamas’ attack on Israel;
- Called on U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate the pro-Hamas criminals who disgracefully and illegally vandalized a veterans cemetery;
- Issued strong condemnation of the United Nations for its inaction regarding Hamas’s widespread sexual violence, including mass rape and mutilation, against women in Israel, and urged them to bring forward a resolution designating Hamas as a terrorist organization; and
- Raised concerns over the resurgence of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement on college campuses.