President Biden will speak at the Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Days of Remembrance event Tuesday on Capitol Hill, where he is expected to build on the Oct. 7 Hamas attack and address the rise in anti-Semitic incidents.
“We can hope that the President will make clear that during these holy days of remembrance, we honor the memory of the 6 million Jews killed in the Holocaust and recommit ourselves to heeding the lessons of this dark chapter. Never again,” said Karine Jean-Pierre, White House press secretary, during a briefing with reporters on Monday.
The event will also feature remarks from Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and Democratic House Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
The speech comes at a time when American college campuses are embroiled in protests against Israel’s war in Gaza, which has left at least 35,000 Palestinians dead. The speech comes as Biden has come under increasing criticism for his administration’s support for Israel as the death toll rises.
See more information: ‘Gaza Calls, Columbia Falls’: College Protesters Defy Suspension Threats, Occupy Hall
On April 17, Columbia University students set up about 50 tents known as the Gaza Solidarity Camp, demanding a ceasefire and divestment from companies with ties to Israel or arms manufacturers. After negotiations with the university failed, the NYPD in riot gear eliminated the camp on April 30. and arrested dozens of pro-Palestinian students.
Protests have since spread across the country and led to the cancellation of several graduation ceremonies.
In some cases, protests were marked by anti-Semitic incidents and Jewish students reported feeling unsafe. “It is completely normal to protest the war in Gaza or be horrified by the various actions of the Israeli government,” said Jacob Schmeltz, a student at Columbia University. told the Associated Press. But “Jewish students at Columbia right now do not feel physically or emotionally safe to be on campus.”
Student protests spread across Europe. On Tuesday, Dutch police arrested around 125 pro-Palestinian activists at the University of Amsterdam. Police broke a similar protest at the Free University of Berlin on the same day.
Protests or encampments have also been held in Australia, Canada, the Middle East and South America.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
