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A Louisiana congressman is under fire after filming a five-minute video in and around a gas chamber at Auschwitz in he which he discussed the Holocaust and the need for America to maintain a strong national defense.

“The world’s a smaller place now than it was in World War II. The United States is more accessible to terror like this, horror like this,” said Clay Higgins, a Republican who represents a district stretching along the state’s southern coast, in the video. He cited the Holocaust as evidence that “homeland security must be squared away, why our military must be invincible.”

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His video earned condemnation on the Web and from the authorities who operate the Auschwitz site.

“Everyone has the right to personal reflections. However, inside a former gas chamber, there should be mournful silence. It’s not a stage,” wrote the Auschwitz Memorial and Museum on Twitter. It also pointed that a sign near the gas chamber encourages visitors to remain silent.

Posting selfies and videos from Auschwitz and other Nazi death camps has become increasingly common in recent years — and has provoked strong reaction from Jewish and other groups.

Contact Daniel J. Solomon at [email protected] or on Twitter @DanielJSolomon

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