Assembly marks Holocaust Remembrance Day with bipartisan floor tributes
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Summary
The Assembly adopted HR 98 recognizing April 14, 2026, as California Holocaust Memorial Day following floor remarks by members who shared family histories and warned about rising antisemitism; the resolution passed by voice vote with 76 co-authors.
The California State Assembly adopted House Resolution 98 on April 14, recognizing Yom HaShoah/Holocaust Remembrance Day and prompting floor remarks by members across caucuses reflecting on history, survivors, and contemporary threats of antisemitism.
Assemblymember Bauer Kehan, sponsor of HR 98, opened the debate with a personal account of family survival and the moral obligation to remember victims and resist hatred. "The silence of those people in her life...and worse, the ones who are complicit in the mass extermination of a people," Bauer Kehan said, recounting family history and urging colleagues to stand against hatred. She asked for the Assembly's "aye" vote.
Members from different caucuses — including Assemblymembers Carrillo, Ward, Bridal, Fong, Ramos and Gabriel — offered brief remarks connecting the day's remembrance to contemporary concerns about rising antisemitism and the importance of intercommunity solidarity. Assemblymember Ward noted that LGBTQ people were also targeted during the Holocaust, and Assemblymember Bridal cited FBI statistics of anti-Jewish hate crimes.
The Clerk opened the roll for co-authors; the record shows 76 co-authors were added before the Assembly took a voice vote and adopted the resolution. The measure is ceremonial and intended to commemorate victims, honor survivors and underscore the legislature's commitment to combatting hate.
Several speakers stressed the continued need for education and vigilance, with members describing the ritual importance of remembrance and the challenges of preserving survivor testimony as the population of survivors declines.
The resolution was adopted by voice vote and will be printed in the Assembly Journal.
