March 13, 2023

Minnesota needs your help to become the 23rd state to pass a law requiring education about the Holocaust and other genocides.

Please contact your state legislators today to ask for their support of legislation to require Holocaust, Genocide of Indigenous Peoples, and Other Genocides education in Minnesota’s public middle and high schools.

• Our bill prepares students to counter hate and prejudice while equipping educators to successfully teach Minnesota’s new state social studies standards and benchmarks.

Please email or call today (see advocacy template below) to let your state legislators know that you support the Holocaust, Genocide of Indigenous Peoples, and Other Genocides education bill authored by Sen. Steve Cwodzinski ( SF 2442 ) and Rep. Frank Hornstein (HF 2685).

• Find your state Senator and state Representative

After unanimously passing through its first committee last Monday, the bill will next be heard this Wednesday, March 15th, in the House Education Policy Committee before moving on to three additional committees.

JCRC is working diligently on this legislation with our legislative authors, partners at the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, additional experts in Holocaust and genocide education, and other communities impacted by genocide, including Minnesota’s indigenous community. We appreciate your support.

Advocacy Template

As a constituent, I strongly support legislation to make Minnesota the 23rd state to require Holocaust and other genocides education in our public schools (SF 2442 / HF 2685).

This issue is important to me because…  [provide a couple of sentences sharing why education about the Holocaust and other genocides matters to you]

With this bill, Minnesota has the opportunity to be a national leader in genocide education, which research indicates prepares students to counter hate and prejudice. I also appreciate that the legislation equips educators to successfully teach Minnesota’s new state social studies standards and benchmarks while being inclusive of not just the Holocaust but also the Genocide of Indigenous peoples and other genocides.

Please support SF 2442 / HF 2685, requiring education about the Holocaust and other genocides to Minnesota students.

For additional questions about the bill, please connect with lead authors Senator Steve Cwodzinski, Representative Frank Hornstein, or Ethan Roberts at the JCRC.

Sincerely,

[your name]
[your address]

UPDATE: March 16, 2023

The House Education Policy Committee unanimously passed the bill, moving it on to its next stage. See extensive media coverage of 99-year-old Holocaust survivor Dora Zaidenweber’s testimony before the committee:

• 99-Year-Old Holocaust Survivor Steals Show At Genocide Education Hearing (TC Jewfolk)
• Minnesota Holocaust survivor pushes for genocide curriculum for middle and high school students (Star Tribune)
  • Syndicated in: Red Lake Nation News
• Dora Zaidenweber, 99-year-old Holocaust survivor, tells state lawmakers: “Mass murder can happen” (Minnesota Reformer)
  • Syndicated in: Mesabi Tribune
• Holocaust survivor testifies in favor of requiring schools to teach the history of genocide (KARE 11)
• 99-year-old Holocaust survivor offers powerful testimony at Minnesota capitol (FOX 9)
• Holocaust Survivor Calls For Schools To Teach History Of Genocide (KTOE)