Never Again Education Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 2085 To authorize the Secretary of Education to award grants to eligible entities to carry out educational programs about the Holocaust, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JULY 10, 2019 Ms. ROSEN (for herself, Mr. CRAMER, Mr. RUBIO, and Mr. BLUMENTHAL) in- troduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Com- mittee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To authorize the Secretary of Education to award grants to eligible entities to carry out educational programs about the Holocaust, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Never Again Education 4 Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 The Congress finds the following: 7 (1) The United States has demonstrated a com- 8 mitment to remembrance and education about the 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:11 Jul 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2085.IS S2085 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •S 2085 IS Holocaust through bilateral relationships and en- 1 gagement in international organizations such as the 2 United Nations (UN) and the International Holo- 3 caust Remembrance Association (IHRA); the United 4 States works to promote Holocaust education as a 5 means to understand the importance of democratic 6 principles, use and abuse of power, and to raise 7 awareness about the importance of genocide preven- 8 tion today. 9 (2) The Congress has played a critical role in 10 preserving the memory of the Holocaust and pro- 11 moting awareness, including by authorizing the 12 United States Holocaust Memorial Museum as an 13 independent establishment of the Federal Govern- 14 ment to ensure that ‘‘the study of the Holocaust be- 15 come part of the curriculum in every school system 16 in the country’’, as well as by establishing a national 17 Holocaust Remembrance Day in 1978. 18 (3) The Congress has gone on record in support 19 of expanded Holocaust education to increase aware- 20 ness about Holocaust history, counter prejudice and 21 discrimination, and enhance efforts to teach its uni- 22 versal lessons about human behavior and societal co- 23 hesion. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:11 Jul 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2085.IS S2085 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •S 2085 IS (4) More than 70 years after the conclusion of 1 World War II, with the decreasing number of eye- 2 witnesses and growing distance of students and their 3 families from this history, it is important to institu- 4 tionalize education about the events of the Holocaust 5 such as the Nazis’ racist ideology, propaganda, and 6 plan to lead a state to war and, with their collabo- 7 rators, kill millions—including the systematic mur- 8 der of 6,000,000 Jewish people; as well as the perse- 9 cution and murder of millions of others in the name 10 of racial purity, political, ideological, and behavioral 11 grounds, among them Roma, the disabled, the Slavic 12 people, Communists, Socialists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, 13 and homosexuals. 14 (5) As intolerance, antisemitism, bigotry, and 15 all forms of hate are promoted by hate groups, Holo- 16 caust education provides a context in which to learn 17 about the danger of what can happen when hate 18 goes unchallenged and there is indifference in the 19 face of the oppression of others; learning how and 20 why the Holocaust happened is an important compo- 21 nent of the education of citizens of the United 22 States. 23 (6) Today, those who deny that the Holocaust 24 occurred or distort the true nature of the Holocaust 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:11 Jul 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2085.IS S2085 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •S 2085 IS continue to find forums, especially online; this denial 1 and distortion dishonors those who were persecuted, 2 and murdered, making it even more of a national 3 imperative to educate students in the United States 4 so that they may explore the lessons that the Holo- 5 caust provides for all people, sensitize communities 6 to the circumstances that gave rise to the Holocaust, 7 and help youth be less susceptible to the falsehood 8 of Holocaust denial and distortion and to the de- 9 structive messages of hate that arise from Holocaust 10 denial and distortion. 11 (7) Currently, many States, including Cali- 12 fornia, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Ken- 13 tucky, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Pennsyl- 14 vania, and Rhode Island, require by law that schools 15 teach students about the Holocaust; more schools 16 and teachers can and should deliver quality Holo- 17 caust education. 18 (8) While there are thriving professional devel- 19 opment programs across the United States delivered 20 by Holocaust education centers, such as members of 21 the Association of Holocaust Organizations, many 22 students still have little exposure to education about 23 the events of the Holocaust and its relevance to their 24 lives, in part due to the many financial and logistical 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:11 Jul 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2085.IS S2085 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •S 2085 IS barriers to getting resources from Holocaust edu- 1 cation centers to students in the classroom. 2 (9) The Federal Government, especially the De- 3 partment of Education, has a role to play in pro- 4 moting resources and training that can assist teach- 5 ers and primary and secondary schools incorporate 6 the study of the Holocaust into their curriculum, to 7 help ensure that students have access to accurate 8 and engaging historical information about the Holo- 9 caust, and the Department of Education is well-posi- 10 tioned to assist Holocaust education centers in over- 11 coming many of the barriers to expanding Holocaust 12 education, which will allow more students to learn 13 the lessons of the Holocaust. 14 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 15 In this Act: 16 (1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti- 17 ty’’ means— 18 (A) a local educational agency (as defined 19 in section 8101 of the Elementary and Sec- 20 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 21 7801)); 22 (B) an organization eligible to receive 23 funds under part B of title IV of such Act (20 24 U.S.C. 7171 et seq.); or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:11 Jul 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2085.IS S2085 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •S 2085 IS (C) a secondary school (as defined in sec- 1 tion 8101 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 7801)), that 2 is independent of any local educational agency. 3 (2) ANTISEMITISM.—The term ‘‘antisemitism’’ 4 means a certain perception of Jews, which may be 5 expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and 6 physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed 7 toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals or their 8 property, toward Jewish community institutions and 9 religious facilities. 10 (3) HOLOCAUST.—The term ‘‘Holocaust’’ 11 means the systematic, bureaucratic, state-sponsored 12 persecution and murder of approximately 6,000,000 13 Jews by the Nazi regime and its collaborators. Dur- 14 ing the era of the Holocaust, German authorities 15 also targeted other groups because of their perceived 16 ‘‘racial inferiority’’, such as Roma gypsies, the dis- 17 abled, and some of the Slavic people (Poles, Rus- 18 sians, and others). Other groups were persecuted on 19 political, ideological, and behavioral grounds, among 20 them Communists, Socialists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, 21 and homosexuals. 22 (4) HOLOCAUST DENIAL AND DISTORTION.— 23 The term ‘‘Holocaust denial and distortion’’ means 24 discourse and propaganda that deny the historical 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:11 Jul 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2085.IS S2085 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •S 2085 IS reality and the extent of the extermination of the 1 Jews by the Nazis and their accomplices during 2 World War II, known as the Holocaust or the USC 3 Shoah. Holocaust denial refers specifically to any at- 4 tempt to claim that the Holocaust did not take 5 place. Holocaust distortion refers to intentional ef- 6 forts to excuse or minimize the impact of the Holo- 7 caust or its principal elements, including collabo- 8 rators and allies of Nazi Germany, to blame the 9 Jews for causing their own genocide, or to portray 10 the Holocaust as a positive historical event. 11 (5) HOLOCAUST EDUCATION CENTER.—The 12 term ‘‘Holocaust education center’’ means an insti- 13 tution that furthers the teaching and learning about 14 the Holocaust by offering programs for students and 15 training for teachers and other types of professional 16 leadership audiences. 17 (6) HOLOCAUST EDUCATION PROGRAM.—The 18 term ‘‘Holocaust education program’’ means a pro- 19 gram that— 20 (A) has as its specific and primary purpose 21 to improve awareness and understanding of the 22 Holocaust and educate students on the lessons 23 of the Holocaust as a means to raise awareness 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:11 Jul 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2085.IS S2085 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •S 2085 IS about the importance of preventing genocide, 1 hate, and bigotry against any group of people; 2 (B) is delivered to students enrolled in 3 middle grades or high school (as such terms are 4 defined in section 8101 of the Elementary and 5 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6 7801)); 7 (C) uses stories, testimonies, photos, dia- 8 ries, and other educational tools to support un- 9 derstanding rather than for shock value or sen- 10 sationalism; and 11 (D) furnishes one or more of the following: 12 (i) Educational materials that are 13 age- and grade-appropriate. 14 (ii) Student- and school-based activi- 15 ties, including field trips. 16 (iii) The hiring of professional Holo- 17 caust educators to lead programming. 18 (iv) Teacher training. 19 (v) Programming that includes the 20 following subjects where appropriate in in- 21 struction: 22 (I) The breadth of the history of 23 the Holocaust, including, the Third 24 Reich dictatorship, concentration 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:12 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2085.IS S2085 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •S 2085 IS camp system, persecution of Jews and 1 non-Jews, Jewish and non-Jewish re- 2 sistance, and post-World War II 3 trials. 4 (II) Antisemitism, racism, and 5 the abridgement of human and civil 6 rights. 7 (vi) Instruction in the content of Hol- 8 ocaust education that includes— 9 (I) presentation of historically ac- 10 curate information; 11 (II) correct terminology, vocabu- 12 lary, and labels, and encouraging stu- 13 dents to use this vocabulary; and 14 (III) primary documents, includ- 15 ing personal testimony and sound his- 16 torical research from respected re- 17 sources. 18 (vii) Supplementary resources re- 19 quired for teacher training, including 20 transportation for teachers to and from 21 training programs, housing at training pro- 22 grams, payment for substitute teachers 23 while teachers are at training, and trans- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:11 Jul 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2085.IS S2085 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •S 2085 IS portation of trainers to schools to provide 1 training. 2 (viii) Goods or services designed to 3 improve awareness and understanding of 4 the Holocaust. 5 (7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 6 the Secretary of Education. 7 SEC. 4. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 8 (a) FUND ESTABLISHED.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the 10 general fund of the Treasury a separate account 11 which shall be known as the ‘‘Holocaust Education 12 Assistance Program Fund’’. Amounts deposited into 13 the Holocaust Education Assistance Program Fund 14 shall remain available until expended to the Sec- 15 retary to carry out the purposes of this Act in ac- 16 cordance with subsection (d). 17 (2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 18 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Holo- 19 caust Education Assistance Program Fund, 20 $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2020 and each of the 4 21 succeeding fiscal years. 22 (b) ACCEPTANCE OF DONATIONS.—In furtherance of 23 the purposes of this Act, the Secretary is authorized to 24 accept donations of funds and in-kind contributions. Any 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:11 Jul 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2085.IS S2085 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •S 2085 IS funds donated under this subsection, and any proceeds 1 from the sales of other property received as gifts or be- 2 quests pursuant to this subsection, shall be deposited in 3 the Holocaust Education Assistance Program Fund. 4 (c) LIMITATION.—A donation may not be accepted 5 under subsection (b) in exchange for a commitment to the 6 donor on the part of the Secretary or which attaches con- 7 ditions inconsistent with applicable laws and regulations 8 or that is conditioned upon or will require the expenditure 9 of appropriated funds that are not available to the Sec- 10 retary, or which compromises a criminal or civil position 11 of the United States or any of its departments or agencies 12 or the administrative authority of any agency of the 13 United States. The Secretary shall ensure that each dona- 14 tion is subject to an agreement that contains provisions 15 setting forth the criteria to be used in determining wheth- 16 er the acceptance of a donation is prohibited because the 17 donation would reflect unfavorably upon the ability of the 18 Department, or any official or employee of the Depart- 19 ment, to carry out its responsibilities or official duties in 20 a fair and objective manner, or would compromise the in- 21 tegrity or the appearance of the integrity of its programs 22 or any official or employee involved in those programs. 23 (d) USE OF FUNDS.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:11 Jul 17, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2085.IS S2085 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •S 2085 IS (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 1 to use funds from the Holocaust Education Assist- 2 ance Program Fund— 3 (A) to award grants to eligible entities to 4 carry out Holocaust education programs; 5 (B) to conduct periodic regional work- 6 shops, in partnership with Holocaust education 7 centers when and where appropriate, to provide 8 teachers with technical assistance on how to 9 structure curricula to incorporate Holocaust 10 education in a manner that satisfies challenging 11 State academic standards, as described in sec- 12 tion 111 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]