Rio unveils Holocaust Memorial

A Holocaust memorial has been inaugurated in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

 Overlooking Sugarloaf Mountain, the memorial comprises a 72-foot tower with the Commandment, “Thou shalt not kill”, at its base. Beneath the tower is an interactive exhibition area.

Government officials and Jewish communal representatives, including Brazil’s Secretary of Communications Fabio Wajngarten, attended the inauguration on 13th December. Mr Wajngarten, the grandson of Holocaust survivors, represented President Jair Bolsonaro.

Brazil’s Supreme Court president, Judge Luiz Fux – himself the grandson of Jewish refugees from Bulgaria – quoted Elie Wiesel saying: “indifference is the greatest danger for humankind.”

The memorial will work with other major institutions abroad and is expected to host exhibitions. The cornerstone was laid in 2017 by Rio Mayor Marcelo Crivella, who said that Rio had been “magnified, dignified, ennobled, and redeemed” with the creation of the memorial.

Some 35,000 of Brazil’s 120,000-member Jewish community live in Rio.

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