Evocative Museum

As a combat veteran of World War II, I thought the U.S. had a great deal to do with stopping the German onslaught and with freeing prisoners from the horrible Nazi death camps. For this reason, I feel strongly that the proposed Holocaust museum for Washington ((DESIGN, June 29)) is wrong: it is the wrong place, wrong country, wrong time.

William E. Gladstone

Burke, Va.

The Holocaust was horrendous. But we do not need a museum in Washington memorializing its victims. Architect James Ingo Freed's work would be highly appropriate in Jerusalem, where it would be more relevant.

Robert A. Tourigney

The Woodlands, Texas

Most of my Austrian Jewish family were killed in the Holocaust, as were the families of many first-generation Americans. For those of us who have been personally affected, Freed's deliberately disturbing design is appropriate. It is important for those who will visit the museum to feel the discomfort and sense the fear that the word Holocaust evokes in most Jews. The museum will be more than a group of static exhibits. It will be an actual experience that promotes a deeper understanding of the horrifying event it represents.

Valerie C. Maass

Boston