Statement of Council Member Dan Garodnick calling on International Olympic Committee to honor memory of Israeli Olympians slain in 1972

We must never forget the tragedy that befell the Israeli athletes and their coaches at the hands of terrorists at the Munich Olympic Games in 1972. Such a cruel and vicious attack has no place in this world, and because it happened during a celebration of our common human values, it deserves special recognition on its 40^th Anniversary. 

While the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games is certainly a cause for celebration, it is also one of the few times that athletes from all represented countries are gathered in the same place. It is the right moment to honor the memory of those who died in a senseless act of terror. These murders devastated the world, and were an affront to the core values of what the Olympic Games embody.  

This is why it imperative that the entire Olympic community, and audience members around the world, openly and publicly be able to remember these young Olympians through a minute of silence. We must never forget this vicious attack, and today more than ever, we cannot let senseless acts of violence go without a response from people of good will. 

So far, more than 100,000 people from at least 150 countries have demonstrated their support for this important symbol of remembrance. The Olympics inspire pride within us all: pride for our hometown athlete, pride for our country, and pride for athletes from cities and towns of which we’ve never heard.   Let us not dampen this pride by denying the respect that these 11 Olympians deserve.