Op Ed in Washington Jewish Week |
The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum made a terrible mistake when it chose to give honor to Scott Simon (Portraying evil”, WJW, Oct. 28) at its Washington dinner. In doing so, it used the memory of Shoah victims in an inappropriate manner. When the Holocaust museum honored Simon, they were fully aware of the bitter controversy surrounding an anti-Jewish and anti-religious interview that Simon conducted on national Public Radio on July 12. So egregious was the interview that Simon was forced to apologize on air. Many in the Jewish community were still not satisfied with the apology, which sounded half-hearted and weak. The museum’s selection of Simon in the midst of this raging controversy had the effect – one can also wonder if it was the intent – of kashering Simon. The museum’s role is to protect the memory of the victims, not to use the victims’ memory as a means of providing cover for reporters. The museum owes the victims an apology. Rabbi Shmuel Herzfeld President, Amcha-Coalition of Jewish Concerns, rabbi, Ohev Sholom and Talmud Torah, Washington |