Gov. Ed Rendell urged Pennsylvania citizens today (Jan. 27) to “take a moment to reflect on the horrors of the past so that the lessons of the Holocaust are not forgotten by future generations.”

The governor's statement in Philadelphia coincided with international ceremonies in Poland marking  the 60^th anniversary of “the liberation of the nazi extermination camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau.”

He said “the name Auschwitz will forever be a powerful reminder of the tragic events of the Second World War” and that it is “a symbol of terror, genocide, and the Holocaust itself.”

“We renew our pledge to never forget that two-thirds of all Europe’s Jews, including one and a half million children, were murdered and an entire civilization was uprooted and destroyed.”

—Gail Umeham