Rio mayor sings to raise funds for Holocaust memorial

RIO DE JANEIRO — Thousands pay to watch the mayor of Rio sing at a concert where the box office is entirely donated to the construction of a Holocaust memorial.

Some 4,000 people listen to several gospel songs sung by Marcelo Crivella, who is a fervent Evangelical Christian and a longtime friend of the Jewish community. Last year, he laid the cornerstone for the memorial.

“A Holocaust memorial is important to prevent and defend humankind from such barbarisms. Experience shows if we are not vigilant about the past, it simply returns. The monument will be an alert in the consciousness of everyone who visits it,” Crivella told JTA after Thursday’s concert.

The politician, who is an enthusiast of the Jewish state, announced the donation of the public area to build the memorial before some 2,000 Jews attending a Yom Haatzma’ut celebration on April 22. Crivella reportedly has visited Israel 40 times.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil’s second largest city, is home to some 35,000 Jews. About half of Brazil’s 120,000-member Jewish community lives in Sao Paulo, the country’s financial center.

— JTA