--- title: HR 50. International Holocaust Remembrance Day; January 27, 2025; recognize collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hr50 cite_as: HR 50, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr50 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr50.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr50/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69492 date: 2025-01-27 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13 license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr49.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr51.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 131 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr50.md?full=1 bill_number: HR 50 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: resolution status_date: 2025-01-27 last_action: House Read and Adopted sponsors: - Deborah Silcox text_version: Introduced has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HR50/2025 upstream_id: 1943375 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - Holocaust remembrance - Georgia House resolutions - historical commemoration - antisemitism --- # HR 50. International Holocaust Remembrance Day; January 27, 2025; recognize ## Text House Resolution 50 By: Representative Silcox of the 53rd A RESOLUTION Recognizing January 27, 2025, as International Holocaust Remembrance Day; and for other purposes. WHEREAS, the Holocaust was the state-sponsored, systematic persecution and annihilation of European Jews by Nazi Germany and its collaborators between 1933 and 1945, resulting in the murder of six million Jews as well as the oppression and deaths of millions of others, including Roma, people with disabilities, and Poles; and WHEREAS, in 1998, HB 1664 was passed by the Georgia state legislature, establishing the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust as a permanent state agency charged with creating educational programs for Georgia citizens and operating as a secular, non-partisan entity; and WHEREAS, the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust is tasked with preserving the memory of the Holocaust, promoting public understanding of its history, and reminding citizens to remain vigilant against hatred, racism, antisemitism, persecution, and genocide; and WHEREAS, January 27, the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, is observed as International Holocaust Remembrance Day to memorialize the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust and the millions of other victims of Nazi persecution; and WHEREAS, January 27, 2025, marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, a critical time to honor the victims, survivors, and liberators while recognizing the lessons of Holocaust history amidst an alarming global rise in antisemitism; and WHEREAS, located in German-occupied Poland, Auschwitz consisted of three camps, including Birkenau, a killing center where over a million victims were systematically murdered by individuals and professionals involved in its operation; and WHEREAS, trains carrying Jews from across Nazi-occupied and allied Europe regularly arrived at Auschwitz, where its leadership and workers conducted these systematic killings over nearly five years; and WHEREAS, in mid-January 1945, as Soviet forces approached Auschwitz, SS units forcibly evacuated nearly 60,000 prisoners on death marches under brutal winter conditions, resulting in thousands of deaths from starvation, exposure, and violence; and WHEREAS, on January 27, 1945, the Soviet army liberated Auschwitz, freeing the remaining 7,000 prisoners, many of whom were sick and dying, and ending the camp's operation; and WHEREAS, we, the people of Georgia, join communities throughout the world in commemorating International Holocaust Remembrance Day and honoring the victims, survivors, and liberators of the Holocaust. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that the members of this body recognize January 27, 2025, as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized and directed to make appropriate copies of this resolution available for distribution to the public and the press. ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary. A Georgia House resolution formally recognizes January 27, 2025, as International Holocaust Remembrance Day, marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. ### Plain-language summary This resolution from the Georgia House of Representatives designates January 27, 2025 as International Holocaust Remembrance Day, aligning the state with a date observed worldwide to commemorate the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp by Soviet forces in 1945. The resolution recounts the history of the Holocaust, the role of Georgia's Commission on the Holocaust (created in 1998 to run educational programs), and the events at Auschwitz, including the death marches and the camp's liberation. It does not create new law, funding, or agency duties. It directs the Clerk of the House to make copies available to the public and press. As a resolution rather than a bill, it carries symbolic and commemorative weight but does not change the Official Code of Georgia. ### What it does - Formally recognizes January 27, 2025, as International Holocaust Remembrance Day in Georgia. - Recounts the history of the Holocaust and the 1945 liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau to explain the significance of the date. - References the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust, created by a 1998 law, without altering its duties or funding. - Directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to distribute copies of the resolution to the public and press. ### Who it affects This resolution mainly affects the public record and commemorative activities in Georgia. It references the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust and its educational mission, and it is directed at Georgians generally as a statement of remembrance rather than a regulation on any specific group. ### Why it matters Because this is a resolution, it does not change any Georgia law, create funding, or impose requirements on anyone. Its practical effect is symbolic: it puts the House on record commemorating the Holocaust and its victims and directs copies to be shared publicly. ### Key provisions - The resolution's whereas clauses describe the history of the Holocaust and the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau on January 27, 1945. - The resolving clause designates January 27, 2025, as International Holocaust Remembrance Day recognized by the House of Representatives. - A further resolving clause directs the Clerk of the House to prepare and distribute copies of the resolution to the public and press. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-01-27) - Last action: House Read and Adopted (2025-01-27) - Sponsors: Deborah Silcox - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69492 > The history, votes, and amendments (131 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr50.md?full=1