Oklahoma City, Oklahoma - Monday, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland Delivers Remarks at the Oklahoma City Memorial Ceremony on the 26th Anniversary of the Oklahoma City Bombing:
Thank you so much for those kind words, Bob.
Every year, on the 19th of April, people gather here at this beautiful memorial to remember those who were killed, those who survived, and those who were changed forever, to commemorate the strength of the community that came together in the face of such great loss, and to celebrate the resilience that makes Oklahoma City a model for communities everywhere.
And every year on this day, wherever I am, I reflect on the loss so many of you endured – the loss that you continue to endure.
In the words of the late Nobel Prize winner Elie Wiesel, at the dedication of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington:
“‘For the dead and the living, we must bear witness.’ For not only are we responsible for the memories of the dead, we are also responsible for what we are doing with those memories.”
We bear witness so that younger generations – those who do not know firsthand about the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building – can understand and learn of the tragedy. We tell and retell the story, to instill in them the commitment to prevent tragedies like this from occurring again.
I am deeply humbled to bear witness with you today.