A Catholic diocese in Pennsylvania has apologized for Holocaust imagery that appeared on a Catholic school’s Halloween parade float on Thursday.
In a statement Friday, Bishop Timothy C. Senior of the Diocese of Harrisburg condemned the float, which was presented by St. Joseph Catholic School in Hanover, Pennsylvania, at the town’s Halloween parade. He said he was “shocked and appalled” it included a replica of the Auschwitz concentration camp gate bearing the words “Arbeit Macht Frei.”
The German phrase translates to “work makes you free,” according to the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial website. “It has become almost a symbol of the concentration camp,” the website says. The motto was introduced at the Dachau concentration camp in 1933 and was quickly adopted by other Nazi camps including Auschwitz.
“The inclusion of this image — one that represents the horrific suffering and murder of millions of innocent people, including six million Jews during the Holocaust — is profoundly offensive and unacceptable,” he said.
The original, approved design for the float did not include the Holocaust imagery, according to Senior.
“On behalf of the Diocese of Harrisburg, I express my sincere apology to our Jewish brothers and sisters and to all who were hurt or offended by this display,” Senior said. “I strongly condemn the inclusion of this symbol on the float.”
Senior said that he will work with the school community to review the approval processes to prevent “such a grievous incident” from happening again.
The apology comes amid heightened sensitivity around antisemitic acts. Days earlier, a man wearing a Nazi uniform was accused of assaulting a Jewish student outside a bar near the University of Georgia after being denied entry for his costume. He was later arrested and charged.
St. Joseph Catholic School did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.
