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Amid U.S. Racial Divisions, Auschwitz Memorial Issues Warning

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The memorial site of Auschwitz-Birkenau appears to have weighed in on the debate over U.S. President Donald Trump's response to the outpouring of anti-Semitic and racially charged hatred in Charlottesville, Virginia.

The state museum wrote Thursday on Twitter: "One of the hardest lessons for us today. Perpetrators were people. They accepted an ideology that rationalized and promoted hatred & evil."

Beneath the words is a photo of Auschwitz officers and guards smiling and having fun.

The message was posted in several languages two days after Trump made comments which appeared to rationalize the actions of neo-Nazis and white supremacists who marched in Virginia.

A museum spokesman told The Associated Press that people are free to interpret the message as they wish.

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(© Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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