United States Holocaust Memorial Council

The United States Holocaust Memorial Council (USHMC) is the Board of Trustees of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The

Composition

The council has 68 members, including 55 appointed at the pleasure of the President of the United States.

Since being established by an act of the 96th United States Congress in 1980, ^[1] the council has been led by the following officers. ^{[2] [3]}

• Chairman Elie Wiesel; 1980–1986
• Chairman Harvey M. Meyerhoff, appointed by President Ronald Reagan; 1987–1993 ^[4]
• Chairman Miles Lerman and Vice Chairman Ruth B. Mandel, appointed by President Bill Clinton; 1993–2000
• Chairman Rabbi Irving Greenberg, appointed by President Clinton; 2000–2002
• Chairman Fred S. Zeidman, appointed by President George W. Bush in 2002; and Vice Chairman Joel M. Geiderman, appointed by President Bush, 2005–2010
• Chairman Tom A. Bernstein; 2010–2017 ^[5]
• Chairman Howard M. Lorber, appointed by President Donald J. Trump; 2017–2022 ^{[6] [7]}
• Chairman Stuart Eizenstat, 2022–present ^{[8] [9]}

The council has appointed the following as directors of the museum: ^[2]

• Jeshajahu Weinberg, 1987–94
• Walter Reich, 1995–98
• Sara J. Bloomfield, 1999–present ^[10]

History

Quran oath controversy of the 110th United States Congress

Main article: Quran oath controversy of the 110th United States Congress

In 2006, USHMC member Dennis Prager criticized Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, for announcing that he would use the Quran for the reenactment of his swearing in ceremony. ^[11] In response, former New York City Mayor Ed Koch called for Prager to end his service on the USHMC. ^[12]

The Council's executive committee subsequently issued a resolution that the Council "disassociates itself from Mr. Prager's statements as being antithetical to the mission of the [Holocaust] Museum as an institution promoting tolerance and respect for all peoples regardless of their race, religion or ethnicity". ^[13]

Second Trump Administration

In April 2025, President Donald Trump fired a number of council members appointed during the previous Biden administration, including former Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff. ^{[14] [15] [16]} Kevin Abel, appointed to the council in 2023, characterized the firings as part of Trump's "campaign of retribution". ^[14] In May 2025, the editorial board of the Washington Jewish Week described the firings as "A political purge at the USHMC". ^[17]

Trump subsequently appointed a number of members to the council, including Betty Schwartz, Fred Marcus, Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz, Sid Rosenberg, Ariel Abergel, Barbara Feingold, Alex Witkoff, and Robert Garson. ^{[18] [19]} Garson previously served as Trump's attorney in his 2023 lawsuit against journalist Bob Woodward, and Witkoff is the son of Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. ^[19]

References

1. "United States Holocaust Memorial Council (Board of Trustees)". United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Retrieved April 29, 2025.
2. "United States Holocaust Memorial Museum". Encyclopaedia Judaica. Gale. 2007. HighBeam Research. 14 April 2013
3. 96th Congress, Sess 2 (1981-10-07). "An Act To establish the United States Holocaust Memorial Council". Smithsonian Institution Archives. Retrieved 2026-01-27.
4. "Holocaust panel chief named". Tampa Bay Times. February 5, 1987. p. 6A.
5. "United States Holocaust Memorial Council (Board of Trustees) — United States Holocaust Memorial Museum". www.ushmm.org. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 8 March 2021.
6. Hernandez, Laura Figueroa (August 16, 2018). "Trump due Friday for LI fundraiser". Newsday. p. A4.
7. "Howard M. Lorber — United States Holocaust Memorial Museum". www.ushmm.org. Archived from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
8. "Amb. Stuart Eizenstat Appointed Museum Chairman". www.ushmm.org. 26 January 2022. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
9. House, The White (2022-01-26). "President Biden Announces Appointees for the United States Holocaust Memorial Council". The White House. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
10. "Sara J. Bloomfield — United States Holocaust Memorial Museum". www.ushmm.org. Archived from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
11. "Holocaust Museum Rebukes Member for Koran Comment (Published 2006)". 2006-12-22. Archived from the original on 2025-08-26. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
12. "Koch Calls for Pundit's Ouster from Shoah Council". The Jewish Daily Forward. December 8, 2006. Archived from the original on October 19, 2013. Retrieved September 24, 2013.
13. James Besser (December 22, 2006). "U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council distances itself from Prager". The Jewish Journal. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved December 22, 2006.
14. "Holocaust Museum Board Clashes Over Silence on Trump Firings". 2025-05-09. Archived from the original on 2025-07-02. Retrieved 2026-01-27.
15. Falconer, Rebecca (2025-04-30). "Trump fires Doug Emhoff and other Biden appointees from Holocaust Memorial Council". Axios. Retrieved 2026-01-27.
16. Chao-Fong, Léonie (2025-04-29). "Trump fires Doug Emhoff and others from US Holocaust Memorial Council". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2026-01-28.
17. Board, WJW Editorial (2025-05-06). "A Political Purge at the USHMC". Washington Jewish Week. Archived from the original on 2025-07-26. Retrieved 2026-01-27.
18. "Trump names allies to Holocaust Museum board after firing Biden appointees". The Washington Post. 2025-05-02. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved 2026-01-28.
19. "Who are the Trump-allies appointed to US Holocaust Memorial Council? | The Jerusalem Post". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2025-05-07. Retrieved 2026-01-28.