You are viewing the culmination of some 25 years of planning and preparation, leading to the dedication of this monument on April 26, 1992. It was erected here to honor the memory of the six million who were murdered in the Nazi barbarism between 1933 and 1945.

Construction in the public park, at a cost of some $3 million was made possible by donations of generous, concerned individuals, organizations, foundations and corporations. Its location, on Los Angeles County Park land, allows everyone to view it without cost.

Although it can be seen from many areas of the beautiful Pan Pacific Park, the site is at the North end, apart from much of the ongoing park activities. This affords those visiting the monument a quiet place for contemplation, meditation or to be alone with their thoughts.

Created by renowned Los Angeles artist Dr. Joseph L Young, it contains a great deal of Holocaust symbolism.

As you approach the Los Angeles Holocaust Monument, you first observe the front stairs with railings that resemble railroad tracks. The stairs are black and white, reminding one of railroad ties. Climbing the stairs, along the "tracks" that carried millions in wretched freight cars to concentration camps, you begin a "journey" into what happened to the Jews, Gypsies and others during this period. Handicapped access is available on either side of the monument.

The dominant features of the site are the six 18-foot high, black, triangular granite columns reaching skyward, honoring the six million. In the center of the columns is an "invisible" seventh column, representing us, the living, who must carry on the memory of those who were martyred, urging us to create a better world, devoid of hatred and violence, as we learn to live together. The columns, which also symbolize the crematoria smoke stacks, stand on a base of red granite, depicting the blood of the departed.

The glass floor allows the monument to be lighted at night from below-from the earth giving a sense of new hope. Everyone should try to view this site both in the daytime and at night to gain full appreciation of this magnificent artwork. The hexagon shaped floor leads one to think of a pit of infinity. The abstract triangles can be interpreted in many ways, including the Star of David. The coloring goes from light blue to dark blue in gradations to the center. Many see this as the sky, while others see the flag of the State of Israel. Others see in the rotating floor plan a crazy quilt feeling of hysteria and some see the abstract swastika.

Each of the 18 panels on the columns will contain the history of the Holocaust Era from 1933 to 1945, The artist will integrate bronze bas-reliefs further depicting the era.

Once each year, on Yom Hashoah, the international day to remember the Holocaust as well as on solemn occasions throughout the year, a "Flame of Memory" will be lighted on top of each of the columns, to burn for 24 hours.

On the platform of the monument are names in three concentric hexagons. The outer hexagon lists the countries conquered by the Germans and the numbers of Jews annihilated in each. Moving to the left from the top of the stairs, the countries are listed in the order each fell before the German onslaught.

Along the center hexagon are the names of the concentration camps and the year each opened.

The inner hexagon contains the names of the death camps.

At the back of the monument is a black granite bench with hands held in the priestly symbol of peace or benediction at each end. Although the victims of the Holocaust did not have proper religious burials, many people use this bench to "sit Shivah" (mourning) for relatives or friends lost in the horror.

Behind the bench is a wall where the names of family members lost in the Holocaust can be memorialized. On another section of this wall are the names of those whose contributions made the creation of this monument possible.

Above the back wall is heavy gray granite. This depicts perhaps one of the cruelest of all the camps, Mauthausen in Austria, which was a rock quarry. It is here that prisoners were subjected to the worst of cruelties, Below the granite are strands of barbed wire and the posts that hold it, much as it looked in the camps.

The Monument is a place to mourn loved ones who perished in the Holocaust and have no known graves. At the right and left sides are other "doorways" into the monument. Wing walls on both sides contain indentations for Yahrzeit candles (mourning candles). Many light these candles in memory of individuals they knew. Some place pebbles, a tradition that some observe when leaving a cemetery.

Although this is not a cemetery, there is another accommodation for observant Jews. On both sides there are water fountains for those who observe the ritual of washing the hands following a visit to a cemetery.

Creation of the Los Angeles Holocaust Monument in Pan Pacific Park was made possible through the efforts of the American Congress of Jews from Poland and Survivors of Concentration Camps. This group appointed the Los Angeles Holocaust Monument Committee, composed of civic leaders of all faiths and backgrounds, all committed to making the truth about the Holocaust an imperishable part of humanity’s consciousness. For more information about tax deductible gift opportunities and inscriptions of names on the monument’s walls of remembrance, contact.