Today marks the 74th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi-run concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau where more than one million people died or were killed by Nazis. January 27 was later officially commemorated when the United Nations designated it International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
The idea behind the day was to both honor the victims of Nazism and the Holocaust and to promote education around it while preserving sites where the acts of genocide took place, according to the Holocaust Encyclopedia from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
The day is frequently marked by commemoration ceremonies and activities to accomplish the awareness and remembrance of the day. Museums, memorials and education centers across the United States play an active role in the education around the Holocaust year-round, but especially on the day of remembrance.
Florida is home to one of the largest Holocaust museums in the country, The Florida Holocaust Museum is the result of St. Petersburg businessman and philanthropist Walter P. Loebenberg’s remarkable journey and vision. Loebenberg escaped Nazi Germany in 1939 and served in the United States Army during World War II. Together with a group of local business people and community leaders, the concept of a living memorial to those who suffered and perished was conceived. Among the participating individuals were Survivors of the Holocaust and individuals who lost relatives, as well as those who had no personal investment, other than wanting to ensure that such atrocities could never again happen to any group of people.