Res. No. 799 Title Resolution commemorating Yom H'atzmaut, Israeli Independence Day on May 7th, 2003. Body By Council Members Nelson, Brewer, Clarke, Comrie, Davis, Felder, Fidler, Gerson, Jackson, Katz, Koppell, Lopez, Quinn, Recchia, Reed, Rivera, Sanders, Sears, Weprin, Yassky, DeBlasio and The Public Advocate (Ms. Gotbaum) Whereas, When Israel was officially recognized as a state on May 14, 1948 on the 5th day of the Hebrew month of Iyar, for the first time in over 2,000 years of wandering, the Jewish people finally had a homeland; and Whereas, Prior to the founding of the State of Israel, Jews had been displaced, persecuted and subjected to institutional bigotry in country after country, century after century; and Whereas, Anti-Semitism reached its most horrific height with the onset of the Holocaust, perhaps the worst act of genocidal persecution in the history of man, and a dark period that we will soon commemorate on April 29th of this year, Yom H'ashoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day; and Whereas, When the United Nations proclaimed Israel the Jewish homeland and a nation of the modern world, a hopeful new era was born while the ashes of a war-torn Europe, where six million Jews were executed at the hands of the Nazis, would forever serve as a foundation of the mission of Israel - to provide a safe haven for all Jews; and Whereas, Today, Israel is indeed a refuge for its citizens and for Jews all over the world, many of who fled anti-Semitic persecution in countries like the former Soviet Union and Ethiopia; and Whereas, Now over a half-century old, the State of Israel has made vast contributions and advancements to fields such as medicine, technology, agriculture and the arts; and Whereas, A perfect contrast of new and old, Israel offers a singular wealth of history and culture, which has not escaped the millions of religious pilgrims and tourists that visit every year; and Whereas, Since its inception, Israel has faced great adversity from neighboring nations, but it has persevered and has managed to create a society built on the very freedoms and principles that the Jewish people have been carrying with them for thousands of years; and Whereas, Yom H'atzmaut, a national holiday in Israel, which is preceded by Yom Hazikaron, a day of remembrance for fallen Israeli soldiers, is a time for all New Yorkers and all Americans to join the Israeli people and Jews everywhere in celebrating the birth of the great State of Israel; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York commemorates Yom H'atzmaut, Israeli Independence Day on May 7th, 2003. WA:bg LS#2204 |10
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