New York's Westchester delegation to Congress has secured $100,000 in state funding for the Holocaust and Human Rights Education Center, a nonprofit based in White Plains.
The center conducts programs for schools and teachers throughout the county.
“We have speakers, Holocaust survivors and second-generation survivors like me, speaking at schools, civic events, all kinds of places,” explains Michael Gyory, the center's president.
The ADL announced that anti-Semitism in New York state is at the highest level it has ever reported. A poll by The Economist magazine found that one in five young Americans believes the Holocaust was a hoax.
The center plans to use the funding to expand its reach beyond Westchester and Rockland counties.
“The more students we reach, the better, because I think it's hard to dislike someone you know,” Gyory said.
Congresswoman Amy Paulin helped secure the funding.
“It's scary for Jews to see anti-Semitism. This is the anti-Semitism that started in Germany, and by understanding it through the eyes of people who lived it, when you see something around you… “I hope we can educate people to stop and say something,” she said. .
Gyory says one of the most effective tools against anti-Semitism is education.
“It is clear that education is the cure for all human rights violations, including anti-Semitism,” he said.