A Message from the Executive Director
The past few days have provided disturbing reminders of how our nation still struggles with violence and racism born in the past from slavery and discrimination of immigrants, yet still present today. The murder of George Floyd is the most recent and visible act in this sad history and cannot go uncommented on. Even as we experience economic, social, and political upheaval due to a new foe, the COVID-19 virus, and are learning new ways to live and operate our institutions, we have not escaped the legacy of intolerance based on race and ethnicity. It is therefore necessary that we confront them, using our knowledge of the past to address the problems of today.
At the New Mexico Holocaust Museum and Gellert Center for Education we teach our students to be upstanders, because racism, discrimination and violence only continue when people say nothing. The struggle to eliminate hate and intolerance is ongoing. Each of us must work within the law to stand up to intolerance and to forge a future where it will be eliminated.
We join the Secretary of the Smithsonian Lonnie G. Bunch in expressing “deepest sympathy to the families and communities of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and the far too many preceding them whose needless deaths were brought about by unjustified violence.” As Secretary Bunch has stated “History is a guide to a better future and demonstrates that we can become a better society—but only if we collectively demand it from each other and from the institutions responsible for administering justice.”
Leon Natker MA, RPA
Executive Director
Chinese Exclusion Act Virtual Exhibit
In 1882 the American government signed into law the Chinese Exclusion Act, the first immigration law to exclude an entire ethnic group. Our new virtual exhibit shows how these discriminatory policies developed, were resisted and have continued to be part of the American cultural and political landscape.
Visit the virtual exhibit...
Our Mission
At the New Mexico Holocaust Museum, our mission is to shine a light on historic and current acts of hate and intolerance through education, exhibits, and collaborative outreach in order to build communities of upstanders dedicated to social justice and human dignity.
Our Museum
We are unique. Our purpose is to educate visitors as well as teach about other genocides and forms of bullying that have affected people around the world. We are not limited to one religion, culture, geographic area, or time.
Education is our focus. A critical component of our mission is educating children about bullying, prejudice, and hate. Our outreach programs encourage empathy for others —to become “upstanders,” rather than bystanders–and befriend those in their communities who need their support.
Our exhibits educate. The museum welcomes thousands of visitors annually. We include exhibits on the Holocaust, the African American Experience, and others through ongoing development of new and pertinent exhibits.
