United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum opened in 1993. It serves as a memorial to those who perished during the Holocaust and as a research and documentation center.

Visitors encounter the sculpture Loss and Regeneration at the entrance to the museum. The main exhibition space at the museum occupies three floors, beginning at the top floor and then descending to the main floor. The top floor exhibit, entitled Nazi Assault, describes the rise of Nazism and increasingly violent actions against Jewish and other targeted peoples. The next exhibit, entitled Final Solution, documents the implementation of the concentration camps and mass genocide campaign, as well as attempts at escape and intervention. Last Chapter, on the lower level, shows the liberation of the camps and the aftermath of the Holocaust. Throughout, one is confronted with stark images and documentation, objects both real and reproduced, and personal narratives. One cannot remain only an observer, the exhibits challenge one to consider the enormity of the Holocaust and the people and communities who were swept up by it and vanished. At one point, you must enter and walk through one of railway boxcars used to transport victims to the concentration camps. At another, floor to ceiling photos document the ordinary lives of people from a village that disappeared.

I found the use of color photos and film clips to be the most surprising part of the exhibit. One has seen many of the black and white images before: Hitler, Nazi rallies, Kristallnacht, the camps, the victims. However, encountering restored color footage shrinks the distance of time and makes the events surrounding the Holocaust take on a new degree of reality, presence, and malevolence.

Admission to the main exhibit is by timed entry. Visitors must obtain a free ticket with a specified admission time at the information desk. While waiting, there are other exhibits to see, including Remember the Children: Daniel’s Story, documenting the experience of a middle-class boy in Germany. He survived, but his sister and parents did not. The exhibit is especially directed towards children visiting the museum, but all visitors will want to see it. The Hall of Remembrance offers an eternal flame and quiet place for reflection.

A visit to the Holocaust Museum is a profoundly moving experience.