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Nation's First Public Holocaust Memorial Expands On Ben Franklin Parkway

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PHILADELPHIA (CBS/AP) — The first public Holocaust memorial in North America has been expanded and modernized in Philadelphia.

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A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Monday morning at the new Holocaust Memorial Plaza located on the Ben Franklin Parkway. Fifty years ago, the original memorial was just a granite sculpture called "Six Million Jewish Martyrs." It was unveiled in 1964.

Holocaust Memorial Dedication3
Credit: CBS3

Many attended the historic event, including a Holocaust survivor. A new interactive app will allow visitors to hear testimonies from survivors, liberators, and witnesses associated with the Philadelphia community.

The new state-of-the-art plaza also features historical artifacts, including the original train tracks leading to Nazi concentration camps.

Holocaust Memorial Dedication
Credit: CBS3

With new displays, visitors can see train tracks that led to the Treblinka extermination camp and witness a sapling nurtured by children in the Theresienstadt camp.

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Also featured are six pillars are exhibited to contrast Nazi themes with American constitutional protections and values.

(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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