USHMM Condemns Hate Speech

On 21 November the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum released a statement condemning the hateful rhetoric at a conference of white nationalists held on November 19 at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington D.C.

According to press reports, Richard Spencer, the leader of the National Policy Institute – a white nationalist think tank – that sponsored the conference, made several direct and indirect references to Jews and other minorities, often alluding to Nazism. In the statement the USHMM stressed the importance of combatting hate speech, stating "the Holocaust did not begin with killing; it began with words."

 The USHMM called on all American citizens, our religious and civic leaders, and the leadership of all branches of the government to confront racist thinking and divisive hateful speech.  

The full statement can be read here.