Mayor Adams, Boro Pres Announce Plans for Holocaust Memorial in Queens Borough Hall

Mayor Eric Adams and Queens Borough President Donovan Richards announced Tuesday that a new “Queens Holocaust Memorial” will rise on the grounds of Queens Borough Hall, a project meant to safeguard history and push back against a surge in antisemitism.

Backed by $3 million from the city and the Queens Borough President’s office, the memorial is intended to honor the six million Jews murdered in the Holocaust while recognizing the survivors who rebuilt their lives in New York.

Queens State Asssmblyman Sam Berger also attended the event.

City officials said the memorial is designed to be more than a monument, but rather a place for education, reflection, and communal strength during a tense moment for Jewish communities.

“It is not enough to say ‘never again’ — we have to live it with our actions too,” Mayor Adams said in announcing the effort. “By preserving the stories of both victims and survivors, by creating a permanent space for remembrance and reflection, by promoting understanding and solidarity across generations, this memorial will live out the meaning of ‘never again.’”

With Jews remaining the most frequently targeted community for hate crimes in New York City, Adams said the need for this initiative is urgent.

“As our city and our country confront the rising tide of antisemitism, our administration will not remain silent,” he said. “We will use our office to call out hate wherever we find it, encourage compassion wherever we need it, and create a city where everyone can live side by side in harmony.”

Richards underscored the importance of placing the memorial at a central civic location, saying its presence at Borough Hall carries symbolic weight.

“No matter how much time passes since the evils of the Holocaust, New York City’s commitment to the pledge of ‘Never Again’ must never waver,” he said. “That is why, in the face of rising tides of heinous anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial across our society, I could not be prouder to lead this effort alongside the administration and the Queens’ Jewish community in creating this critically important memorial here at Queens Borough Hall.”

“The Queens Holocaust Memorial will not only pay a touching tribute to the six million innocent Jews murdered by the Nazis and the survivors who settled in our borough afterward, but it will also serve as daily inspiration for our fight to forge a future free of anti-Semitism,” Richards said. “I thank all our city and community partners for their commitment to see this memorial through.”

New York City continues to have the world’s largest population of Holocaust survivors, many of whom arrived in Queens after World War II and became part of the borough’s social and cultural foundation.

Moshe Davis, executive director of the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism, said the memorial is a necessary response to the hostility facing Jewish communities today.

“When hate crimes, vandalism, and extremist rhetoric targeting Jewish communities are happening both nationally and globally, this memorial will stand not only as a powerful testament to those lost and to those who rebuilt, but also as a rebuke to intolerance and a reminder of our imperative to confront hatred with moral clarity,” Davis said.

The initiative originated with the Queens Jewish Community Council, working alongside local leaders. The QJCC will lead additional fundraising efforts to advance the memorial’s design and construction.

According to the announcement, DCAS will manage the site designation, while the Department of Cultural Affairs’ Percent for Art program will handle the artist selection. Historians, survivors, and artists will be consulted during the design phase.

When finished, it will become Queens’ first major Holocaust memorial and will host commemorations, student learning programs, and community events.