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[Page S198]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RECOGNIZING THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE WARSAW UPRISING
Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the
Senate proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 339, S. Res. 375.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
A resolution (S. Res. 375) recognizing the 75th anniversary
of the Warsaw Uprising.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the
resolution, which had been reported from the Committee on Foreign
Relations without amendment, and with an amendment to the preamble as
follows:
Whereas, October 2, 2019, marks the 75th anniversary of the
tragic conclusion to the Warsaw Uprising, a landmark event
during World War II, in which brave citizens of Poland
revolted against the German Nazi occupation of the city of
Warsaw in the face of daunting and seemingly insurmountable
odds;
Whereas the Warsaw Uprising, which was part of a nationwide
resistance against the German Nazi occupation of Poland and
lasted for 63 days, was started by the Polish Home Army, the
underground resistance effort that included many young and
brave individuals;
Whereas the Warsaw Uprising occurred just over a year after
the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in April 1943, which was the
single largest act of Jewish resistance against forces of
Nazi Germany;
Whereas, after the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, the remaining
Jewish Poles from Warsaw were sent to the Treblinka
extermination camp, the Majdanek labor camp, or other forced-
labor camps;
Whereas, beginning August 1, 1944, the Polish Home Army
fought against the German Nazi occupation of Warsaw, using
mostly homemade weapons and far outnumbered by the
overwhelming German Nazi force, at a cost of approximately
200,000 citizens of Poland killed, wounded, or missing;
Whereas Adolf Hitler ordered the annihilation of the city
of Warsaw and the extermination of its citizens as punishment
for the uprising, decimating 80 percent of Warsaw with no
regard for the lives of the citizens of Warsaw or for the
rich heritage of historic architecture in Warsaw;
Whereas a Soviet-led army halted its march toward the city
of Berlin at the banks of the Vistula River on the specific
orders of Stalin to allow the German Nazis to decimate the
Poles;
Whereas, throughout the Warsaw Uprising, many people fled
the city of Warsaw, remained in hiding, or were wounded or
killed, and the surviving population of Warsaw, which once
totaled more than 1,300,000 people, was then sent to prisoner
of war camps and endured harsh conditions;
Whereas, after World War II, thousands of Polish refugees
fled from Poland due to persecution and came to the United
States for safety, security, and new opportunities;
Whereas the deep, rich history and traditions of immigrants
from Poland who settled in the United States, particularly in
the States of Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan,
Illinois, and Wisconsin, have undeniably shaped the social
fabric and foundation of the United States;
Whereas, in the 20th century, Cleveland, Ohio; Buffalo, New
York; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Milwaukee, Wisconsin;
Detroit, Michigan; and Chicago, Illinois; served as the major
epicenters for immigrants and workers from Poland whose
remarkable contributions to industry led to the incorporation
of new towns and the subsequent growth of those towns;
Whereas the heroic actions of the Polish underground
resistance during World War II and the brave citizenry of
Poland provide a valuable lesson in perseverance and
patriotism;
Whereas the legacy of the Warsaw Uprising serves as one of
the most poignant reminders of the human cost of the Allied
war effort during World War II to defeat Adolf Hitler and the
German Nazis; and
Whereas the bravery demonstrated by the citizens of Poland
during the Warsaw Uprising continues to inspire people
throughout the world who are subjected to tyranny and
oppression and who join the fight for freedom, democracy, and
the pursuit of liberty: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) recognizes the 75th anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising;
(2) commends the bravery, heroism, and patriotism of the
individuals who fought as part of the Polish Home Army in
order to liberate Poland from German Nazi occupation; and
(3) honors the memory of the soldiers and civilians whose
lives were lost during the fighting, and the individuals who
suffered in concentration camps and death camps during World
War II and the Holocaust.
Mr. McCONNELL. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed
to; the committee-reported amendment to the preamble be agreed to; the
preamble, as amended, be agreed to; and that the motions to reconsider
be considered made and laid upon the table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The resolution (S. Res. 375) was agreed to.
The committee-reported amendment to the preamble was agreed to.
The preamble, as amended, was agreed to.
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