At a House Education Committee hearing earlier this month lawmakers discussed the Never Again Education and Reauthorization Study Act.
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00:00The committee will now proceed to consideration of the bill H.R. 8606 for amendment.
00:10The bill was circulated in advance and printed copies are available.
00:14The clerk shall designate the bill.
00:17H.R. 8606, a bill to reauthorize the director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
00:23to support Holocaust education programs and for other purposes.
00:29Without objection, the first reading of the bill is dispensed with.
00:33Without objection, the bill will be considered as read and open for amendment at any point
00:37and any amendment offered shall be considered as read.
00:43Mr. Wilson, for what purpose do you seek recognition?
00:50Madam Chairwoman, I have an amendment at the desk entitled H.R. 8606, A.N.S.
00:59The clerk shall designate the amendment in the nature of a substitute.
01:04Amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8606 offered by Mr. Wilson of South Carolina.
01:09Identifier H.8606 underscore A.N.S.
01:13Without objection, the amendment shall be considered original text.
01:16For purposes of further amendment, the amendment in the nature of a substitute has already
01:20been distributed.
01:21I now recognize Congressman Wilson for five minutes to explain the amendment in the nature
01:28of a substitute.
01:30Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.
01:31I am grateful to be one of the lead co-sponsors of the quote never again education reauthorization
01:37and study act.
01:38I applaud Representative Buddy Carter for introducing this legislation and Representative
01:43Kathy Manning of North Carolina and the other co-sponsors of the bill for their leadership
01:48on these issues.
01:49This amendment removes language related to elementary schools from the new study and
01:54report authorized by the bill.
01:57The Holocaust Museum expressed concern about including elementary schools in this study
02:01given their concerns with the teaching of the Holocaust in elementary schools.
02:06The amendment also adds new language to ensure the study determines criteria used by states
02:12and school districts to evaluate the effectiveness of Holocaust education programs.
02:17I know this is a particular priority for Representative Lisa McClain and I thank her for her work
02:23with this.
02:25This is a good amendment and I urge its adoption.
02:29I also urge my colleagues to support the underlying bill.
02:32Since the never again education act was enacted in 2020, the Holocaust Museum has been developing
02:39and disseminating resources to states, school districts, and schools to be used in the instruction
02:45about the Holocaust.
02:46These materials deal with the facts of the Holocaust and how and why the Holocaust happened
02:52and this bill will extend the Holocaust Museum work through FY 2030.
02:58This bill also directs the Holocaust Museum to study the extent to which states and school
03:03districts are effectively implementing Holocaust education within their curriculum.
03:08As we deal with the explosion of anti-Semitism tragically on our college campuses, it's critically
03:14important that we examine the extent to which states and school districts are teaching students
03:19about the Holocaust and its anti-Semitic roots.
03:23Thank you, Madam Chairwoman, and I urge all my colleagues to support the Never Again Education
03:28Reauthorization Act of 2024.
03:31I yield back.
03:32Thank you, Mr. Wilson.
03:35Ms. Manning, you're recognized for five minutes.
03:38Thank you, Madam Chair.
03:39I'd like to thank my good friend, the gentleman from South Carolina, Representative Joe Wilson,
03:45for offering this amendment in the nature of a substitute.
03:48I strongly support HR 8606 ANS, the Never Again Education Reauthorization Act, bipartisan
03:57legislation I was proud to help introduce with Representative Buddy Carter of Georgia.
04:03We have witnessed a major increase in anti-Semitism across our country in recent years, but since
04:10the horrific Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7th, this hatred has exploded.
04:18According to the Anti-Defamation League, anti-Semitic incidents have increased by more than 360%
04:26in the three months following October 7th.
04:29We have seen the impact of the rise of anti-Semitism in our K-12 schools and on college campuses
04:37across the country.
04:40Too many young people know too little about the Holocaust and the long history of anti-Jewish
04:47hatred.
04:49According to a 2020 Claims Conference survey, 63% of U.S. Millennials and Gen Z do not know
04:58that 6 million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust.
05:02Additionally, 12% of U.S. Millennials and Gen Z have never heard about or do not think
05:10they have heard the word Holocaust before.
05:14In addition, in its very first report to Congress under the Never Again Education Act,
05:20the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum noted the most striking finding was the lack of student
05:26knowledge about the Holocaust.
05:29In the educator-centered surveys, both experienced and inexperienced secondary teachers reported
05:36that close to 40% of their students had no familiarity with the Holocaust.
05:43In the fight against bigotry, ignorance, and intolerance, education is one of the most
05:49powerful tools we have.
05:52Education about the Holocaust and about the history of anti-Semitism is vital because
05:59it can help teach students about how to be moral citizens.
06:03It allows them to learn valuable lessons about bearing witness, building tolerance in civic
06:10values, the importance of democracy, and the responsibility we all have to confront
06:18hate wherever we find it, to speak up instead of being silent bystanders.
06:26That is why Congress passed the Never Again Education Act in 2020 and why we must work
06:32together on a bipartisan basis to ensure this critical work continues for another five years.
06:40This bill would extend support for Holocaust education across the nation, continuing the
06:46U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum's strong track record of providing resources for our educators
06:53and developing the best methods of conveying these vital lessons to future generations.
07:01I am particularly glad this bipartisan reauthorization includes an important study based on the HEAL
07:08Act introduced by our colleague, Representative Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, to ensure
07:14that the programs authorized are actually achieving their intended learning outcomes
07:21in all 50 states across the country.
07:25So in closing, I strongly support the ANS and the bill, and I urge all my colleagues
07:30to join me in voting for it, and I yield back the balance of my time.
07:35Thank you, Ms. Manning.
07:37Mr. Wahlberg, you're recognized for five minutes.
07:40Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.
07:41I rise in strong support of H.R. 8606, which would authorize or reauthorize the Never Again
07:48Education Act, which was signed into law by President Trump in 2020.
07:54With antisemitism on the rise in the United States, especially on our so-called prestigious
07:59college campuses, it is critical that we reflect on what ignorance and antisemitism, left unchecked,
08:07leads to.
08:08Not even a century ago, the Nazis brutally and systematically murdered over 6 million
08:14Jews in the largest genocide ever.
08:17Nevertheless, Holocaust denial and distortion is on the rise.
08:23We must commit now to upholding our commitment to never again.
08:28Demonstrators at Columbia University earlier this year outrageously called for Jews to
08:32return to Poland.
08:34On other campuses, we've heard phrases chanted related to the Nazis' final solution and
08:40other tragically misguided sentiment that glorifies the Holocaust and harming of Jews.
08:47In a poll from December of last year, it was revealed that one-fifth of U.S. citizens between
08:52the ages of 18 and 29 believe that the Holocaust is a myth.
08:58We must confront this dangerous ignorance head on.
09:03Further, as the Jewish state continues fighting for its existence against Hamas, we are again
09:09reminded of the real dangers ignorance and antisemitism leads to.
09:14Madam Chair, this bill would make sure that the United States Holocaust Museum has the
09:19funding and resources it needs to promote understanding of the Holocaust.
09:24This bill would also task the Holocaust Museum to examine Holocaust education in schools
09:30across the nation, including in my own.
09:34Having had the opportunity to view how some states educate their students on the Holocaust,
09:40I think many states and school districts would benefit with a better knowledge about teaching
09:45methods and best practices in other states.
09:49And hopefully this bill will help facilitate that understanding about the Holocaust.
09:55I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 8606, and I yield back.
10:00Thank you, Mr. Wahlberg.
10:02Ms. McBath, you're recognized for five minutes.
10:06Thank you, Madam Chair.
10:07I move to strike the last word.
10:10For five minutes.
10:11Thank you.
10:12I'm so glad to be here today to ensure that this important legislation is reauthorized
10:17before it expires.
10:19As time goes on, the memories of those that have been killed in the Holocaust and the
10:24survivors who have since survived, you know, we have to make sure that they're memories
10:33and we have to make sure that what has happened through the Holocaust, that that is not lost.
10:43We have seen troubling reports on Americans' knowledge of the Holocaust, and we must take
10:50as many important steps as we possibly can to make sure that we reverse this very dangerous
10:56trend.
10:58When Dwight Eisenhower first toured a concentration camp, he insisted that it be documented as
11:05meticulously as possible.
11:09And he said, and I'll quote, get it all on record now.
11:14Get it on the films.
11:16Get the witnesses, because somewhere down the road of history, someone will get up and
11:22say that this never happened, end quote.
11:28It is truly up to all of us to ensure that the memory of millions of innocent men, women,
11:35and children murdered in the Holocaust lives on.
11:40During their reign of terror, the Nazis made a concerted effort to not only destroy those
11:47they deemed inferior, but erase their memory and their cultures from the face of the earth.
11:55As a woman of color, an African American woman, I understand that on levels that many people
12:03will never understand.
12:06Millions of Jews, Poles, homosexual men, Roma, and even black people were sterilized, experimented
12:15upon, and murdered solely because of who they were and how and where they were born.
12:22At Yad Vashem, which I've had the honor of visiting in person, the Hall of Names serves
12:29as the only grave marker for millions of Jews murdered in the Holocaust.
12:36Of the six million dead, there are still roughly one million people that have yet to be identified.
12:45One million people who are denied justice in life and continue to be denied justice
12:52in their death.
12:55That is who we are fighting for with this legislation.
12:59This legislation like this today to ensure that we honor their memory and take steps
13:05to stop hate before it results in irreversible atrocities.
13:12In the words of Ellie Wiesel, and I quote her, to forget the dead would be akin to killing
13:18them a second time, end quote.
13:23I thank the chairwoman for marking this up today and I look forward to supporting it
13:29in committee today and look forward to passing it on the House floor.
13:33And I yield back.
13:34Thank you, Ms. McBath.
13:36Ms. McClain, you're recognized for five minutes.
13:41I speak in support of the Never Again Education and Reauthorization Study Act.
13:47The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is the gold standard in educating Americans
13:54about the evils of anti-Semitism and reminding us why never again must truly mean never again.
14:06This legislation directs the Holocaust Museum to study the types of Holocaust education
14:12programs across the nation to ensure we educate our children on anti-Semitism and more importantly
14:21how to fight against it.
14:23I thank Mr. Carter for sponsoring this bill and Chairwoman Fox and Ranking Member Scott
14:28for working with my office to include language directing the museum to compile criteria used
14:34by states and schools to evaluate the effectiveness of their Holocaust education programs because
14:42we must be focused on outcomes.
14:46I've been fortunate to have the opportunity to visit the Holocaust education programs
14:51and a few of them such as Morris Life in Florida.
14:54Morris Life's programs have been incredibly successful in educating children about the
15:00Holocaust and anti-Semitism.
15:03They support teachers with a fully developed curriculum using real stories from the Holocaust
15:08survivors and their descendants.
15:10See, it's not just enough to have a program, but we must put criteria in place that measures
15:16the outcome so we are getting the desired results.
15:21As the committee continues to investigate anti-Semitism in schools, it is critical that
15:26we look at which programs are most effective in educating children about anti-Semitism
15:32and use benchmarking to do so.
15:35We need to assess whether Holocaust curriculum is actually moving the needle, right, actually
15:42making sure we're getting value for our dollar.
15:44Do they understand the history and hatred fueled by the Holocaust?
15:48Does the curriculum give the students the tools to fight anti-Semitism and are the teachers
15:54being supported as they teach this very difficult subject?
16:00In Congress, it is important that we talk about most successful programs and promote
16:06those programs as models for states and school districts across the country.
16:12I thank Mr. Carter again for introducing this bipartisan legislation, and I look forward
16:17to working with the committee to promote effective Holocaust education programs across the country.
16:23And thank you.
16:24I yield back.
16:27Thank you, Ms. McClain.
16:28Ms. Bonamici, you're recognized for five minutes.
16:30Thank you.
16:31I move to strike the last word and speak in favor of the bill.
16:33You're recognized.
16:34Thank you, Madam Chair.
16:35I rise in support of the Never Again Education Reauthorization Act.
16:39My home state of Oregon does have Holocaust education, and we do have curriculum about
16:44the Holocaust, and it happened because of Alter Wiener.
16:49Alter Wiener, who died in 2018 at the age of 92 years old, was born in Poland and spent
16:58three years in five different concentration camps.
17:03And when he came to Oregon and settled there, he wrote a book called From a Name to a Number,
17:08a Holocaust Survivor's Autobiography.
17:11And because of the power of his story, he spoke in more than 1,000 places, including
17:17in Oregon schools.
17:19There he met Claire Samowski when she was only in elementary school.
17:24And his work was so powerful that she, in fact, wrote a book called Remember My Story,
17:30a Girl, a Holocaust Survivor, and a Friendship that Made History.
17:33So we know when we hear these stories, when students hear these stories, it makes a difference.
17:39I just wanted to raise that, Madam Chair, that my state of Oregon has this requirement,
17:46has curriculum in large part because of Alter Wiener.
17:49May his memory be a blessing, and I yield back.
17:53Thank you, Ms. Bonamici.
17:56Mr. Scott, you're recognized for five minutes.
17:59Thank you, Madam Chair.
18:00I want to thank the gentleman from South Carolina for introducing the amendment in the nature
18:04of a substitute.
18:05I was honored to work with our former colleague from New York, Carolyn Maloney, to get the
18:10original Never Again Education Act passed in the House, passed in 2020 by an overwhelming
18:17vote of 393 to 5, and was soon passed by the Senate and signed into law.
18:23It's important that we continue to recognize the need to educate our students about the
18:27horrors of the Holocaust.
18:28And as we saw in the celebrations of the 80th anniversary of D-Day earlier this month, the
18:33generation that has firsthand memories of World War II is nearly completely gone.
18:38And there will be a time in the near future when there will be no more living veterans
18:44liberated concentration camps and no more living survivors of the Shoah.
18:50It is up to us to make sure these stories live on and help educate our students so they
18:56can learn accurate, comprehensive history of these events, and so we must never forget.
19:03These lessons will be prepared by the Holocaust Museum, just like lessons on African American
19:11history are prepared by the African American Museum of History and Culture in the 400 Years
19:19of African American History Commission, and we're providing lessons this way so that they're
19:25made available to schools.
19:28We can maintain our policy of not mandating any curriculum, but this curriculum is certainly
19:35available.
19:36And as has been pointed out, many take advantage of this information, so I'll urge my colleagues
19:44to support the ANS and the underlying bill, and thank the Chair, and yield back the balance
19:49of my time.
19:51Thank you, Mr. Scott.
19:53Are there any other members who wish to be recognized for further discussion on the amendment
19:59in the nature of a substitute?
20:01There being no further discussion on the amendment in the nature of a substitute, the Committee
20:07will move to consideration of amendments.
20:11There being no amendments, the question now occurs on the amendment in the nature of a
20:16substitute to HR 8606.
20:20All in favor say aye.
20:21Aye.
20:22All opposed, no.
20:24In the opinion to share, the ayes have it, and the amendment in the nature of a substitute
20:28is agreed to.
20:29We'll now move to consider the next bill.