Hungary: Statue Planned for Anti-Semitic Minister

Via ABC News:

Protesters held a silent demonstration on Monday in central Hungary against a plan to unveil a statue of a former minister of religion and education who helped draft and supported anti-Semitic legislation in the 1930s.

The protest was held in the city of Szekesfehervar, where a statue commemorating Balint Homan is expected to be unveiled Dec. 29. The plan has been strongly criticized by local and international groups, including a Hungarian teachers' union, the World Jewish Congress and several U.S. members of Congress and government officials.

Art historian Andras Renyi, a speaker at the protest, said that while it was possible to draw a distinction between Homan's work as minister and historian and his anti-Semitic acts and views, "the statue legitimizes his whole historical figure."

"This includes his roles as an anti-Semitic lawmaker and a politician with serious responsibilities," Renyi said.

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