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A monument to one of human history's darkest chapters has been officially inaugurated in Canada's capital by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Canada had been the only Allied nation without a holocaust monument in its capital city, an undesirable position that has now been rectified with the unveiling of a photogenic memorial designed by Daniel Libeskind.
Honouring the victims and survivors of the Holocaust, the monument is located at the corner of Wellington and Booth streets in Ottawa, just steps from the Canadian War Museum. A stylized star created by the intersection of six triangular concrete masses envelops a central gathering space where large ceremonies can be held. The star has symbolized the Holocaust after millions of Jews were coerced into wearing the image as a way for Nazi's to identify and shame them as members of the Jewish population.
The stark grouping of angled walls are inscribed with large-scale monochromatic photographs of death camps, killing fields and forests, a humbling reminder of the Holocaust's brutal reality. A surrounding forest of coniferous plantings sprouting from the pebbled ground will come to represent the innumerable contributions of Canadian survivors and their children.
"This monument, so close to our Parliament and Supreme Court, is a reminder of the devastating cost of allowing hatred and tyranny to overcome openness, inclusion, and freedom," echoed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. "Today we reaffirm our unshakeable commitment to fight anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia, and discrimination in all its forms, and we pay tribute to those who experienced the worst of humanity. We can honour them by fighting hatred with love, and seeking always to see ourselves in each other."
Award-winning architect Daniel Libeskind joined the winning design team, which is led by Gail Dexter Lord, co-president of Toronto-based Lord Cultural Resources. Landscape architect Claude Cormier, photographer Edward Burtynsky and subject matter advisor Doris Bergen were also members of the team.
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