2020 & 2021

Sara J. Bloomfield

Director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Sara J. Bloomfield has led the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum for 20 years, working to build a global institution that raises Holocaust awareness, deepens understanding of the lessons of the Holocaust, confronts denial, and advances genocide prevention.

HEBREW UNION COLLEGE-JEWISH INSTITUTE OF RELIGION HEREBY CONFERS
THE 2021 ROGER E. JOSEPH PRIZE
UPON

Sara J. Bloomfield

Who, as Director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum since 1999, has advanced a living memorial that teaches the history and lessons of the Holocaust to audiences worldwide and inspires leaders and citizens to confront hatred, prevent genocide, and promote human dignity,

Whose leadership since 1986, when the Museum was still a project in development on the National Mall, has seen its fulfillment in welcoming over 46 million visitors since its opening in 1993, including more than 100 heads of state,

Whose vision has ensured the Museum’s impact on millions more every year through its outreach programs, travelling exhibitions, and multi-lingual website, ushmm.org, the world’s leading online authority on the Holocaust,

 Whose dedication to building a global institution has brought forth the Museum’s Institute for Holocaust Documentation; the Levine Institute for Holocaust Education; the Jack, Joseph, and Morton Mandel Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies; and the Simon-Skjodt (pronounced SKOTE) Center for the Prevention of Genocide,

Who has played a vital role in international negotiations leading to the 2007 opening of the International Tracing Service Archive in Bad Arolsen, Germany, which holds over 30 million pages of records on 17 million victims of Nazism, the largest closed Holocaust archive in the world, and for the Museum’s 10th Anniversary, obtained the first-ever loan of Anne Frank’s original writings, including parts of her diary,

Who, during the Balkan wars of the 1990s, worked with U.S. diplomats, Croatian and Serbian officials, and representatives of the Serbian Orthodox Church in America, to negotiate an understanding to rescue endangered artifacts and archives that document the Holocaust in Croatia, 

Who, as a member of the International Auschwitz Council, board member of the International Council of Museums/USA (ICOM/USA), and advisor to museums around the world that address traumatic history, has been recognized with the “Light of Remembrance” Award by the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum and the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland,

 And who, as a passionate advocate for Holocaust memory, carries the legacy of those who perished, and those who survived to be witnesses for future generations, in her heart.

April 15, 2021
City of New York

The 2020 & 2021 Roger E. Joseph Prize is awarded to Sara J. Bloomfield. Presentation of the award with Hebrew Union College was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak. It was be awarded instead in a virtual presentation on April 15th, 2021 at 3 pm.

A recording of the event will be available in the following weeks.

Sara J. Bloomfield has led the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) for 20 years, working to build a global institution that raises Holocaust awareness, deepens understanding of the lessons of the Holocaust, confronts denial, and advances genocide prevention. She serves on the International Auschwitz Council and is a recipient of the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland and five honorary doctorates. She joined the planning staff of the Museum in 1986 when it was a project in development and served in a variety of roles before becoming director in 1999.  She is also a founder of the Levine Institute for Holocaust Education and the Mandel Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies at the USHMM. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Ms. Bloomfield holds a bachelor of arts degree in English literature from Northwestern University, a master’s degree in education from John Carroll University, and has studied business administration at the graduate level.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Dedicated in 1993 as a living memorial to the Holocaust, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) inspires citizens and leaders worldwide to confront hatred, prevent genocide, and promote human dignity. 

Located among the national monuments to freedom on the National Mall, the Museum provides a powerful lesson in the fragility of freedom, the myth of progress, and the need for vigilance in preserving democratic values. With unique power and authenticity, the Museum teaches millions of people each year about the dangers of unchecked hatred and the need to prevent genocide. And encourages them to act, cultivating a sense of moral responsibility among citizens so that they will respond to the monumental challenges that confront our world. 

To learn more about the USHMM please visit their website: www.ushmm.org

The Holocaust Encyclopedia on the USHMM website is an extensive and significant repository of information on WWII and Holocaust history, terminology, and survivor remembrances. It is of note that Roger E. Joseph served as captain of the Headquarters Division (36-Hq) within the 36th Tank Battalion. The 36th was part of the 8th Armored Division - called the Thundering Herd - which receives special mention in the Holocaust Encyclopedia for its important role in the liberation of Nazi concentration camps associated with Buchenwald in 1945.

LINKS

Read Bloomfield’s article on Medium commemorating V-E Day on May 8, 2020, “Liberating Humanity, Preserving Freedom—75 Years Ago.”

Film:
Roger E. Joseph z”'l: A Tribute by Linda Karshan

This short film was included in the 2021 Joseph Prize online presentation. In this moving footage Roger E. Joseph’s daughter, Linda Karshan, describes her father’s battle with polio and how the experience resonates with the Covid-19 pandemic. This film is an edited sequence pulled from a larger, award-winning documentary by Ishmael Fiifi Annobil called, Linda Karshan: Covid-19 Conversation. The full film is available to view at lindakarshanstudio.com.