January 27, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 17 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session
All in House sectionPrev42 of 58Next
COMMEMORATING THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE LIBERATION OF AUSCHWITZ- BIRKENAU; Congressional Record Vol. 166, No. 17
(House of Representatives - January 27, 2020)
Text available as:
Formatting necessary for an accurate reading of this text may be shown by tags (e.g., <DELETED> or <BOLD>) or may be missing from this TXT display. For complete and accurate display of this text, see the PDF.
[Pages H558-H563] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] COMMEMORATING THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE LIBERATION OF AUSCHWITZ- BIRKENAU The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 3, 2019, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Weber) is recognized for the remainder of the hour. Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today also to commemorate what is an anniversary we shouldn't have ever had to commemorate and be here for, again, the 75th Anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz- Birkenau. Mr. Speaker, I have been to the concentration camps. I have seen the train tracks where they brought in loads of people in railcars and they herded people like they were cattle. I have seen the ovens. I have seen the gas chambers. Mr. Speaker, I saw where Dr. Josef Mengele performed experiments on people as if they were lab specimens; many of them women. It is something that we should never have experienced and should never experience again. Mr. Speaker, today, we do remember what the gentleman from New York said, the six million Jews who tragically lost their lives in the Holocaust. To keep that mind-numbing number in perspective, if we were to take a moment of silence for every Holocaust victim, I would stand up here for 11\1/2\ years. It is so imperative that we remember all of those who fought tirelessly to defeat the Nazi regime. With rising levels of anti- Semitic sentiment attacks spreading in the West today, we should emulate those brave men and women that my good friend, Lee Zeldin talked about, the Greatest Generation who, in their spirit, they fought, and many of them gave all to combat and liberating those downtrodden by the Nazis, those families who were forever destroyed under the German Nazis; liberating them from anti-Semitism in all forms. Anti-Semitism needs to be defeated today. So, Mr. Speaker, I join my colleagues today as we recommit ourselves to the protection of our Jewish brothers and sisters and the State of Israel against all those who seek to destroy them, no matter what form. Come what may, BDS, anti-Semitism, all of those, may God protect Israel and the Jewish people, as we proudly say; and remind our children--what I call the latest generation--who need to understand what the Greatest Generation knew, and that is that it can never be tolerated, never again. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey). Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in recognition of International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Last week, I was honored to join the Speaker's congressional delegation to Poland and Israel, where we visited Auschwitz and participated in the Fifth World Holocaust Forum. We cannot fight the scourge of anti-Semitism without remembering the horrors that can occur when hate is allowed to flourish. As we commemorate this important day, we remember those lost, and let the lessons from the Holocaust guide our work today. As a co-chair of the House Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Anti- Semitism, I will continue to work with my [[Page H559]] colleagues from both sides of the aisle to identify long-term solutions to this age-old problem. Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Marshall). Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, today, January 27, marks International Holocaust Remembrance Day and the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. As the world pauses to remember the greatest tragedy in human history, we must recommit ourselves to opposing the murderous and racist ideology of anti-Semitism which led to the genocide and death of over six million Jews and 11 million political prisoners at the hands of the Nazi regime. We must also remember our continuing responsibility to educate the world about the horrible truth of the Nazi atrocities and ensure the lives of those who were brutally murdered are never forgotten. My fellow Kansan, General Dwight Eisenhower, who, at the time was the Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in Europe, understood this responsibility. Upon receiving news of the concentration camps, he quickly visited for himself, stating: ``The things I saw beggar description. While I was touring the camp, I encountered three men who had been inmates and by one ruse or another had made their escape. I interviewed them through an interpreter. The visual evidence and the verbal testimony of starvation, cruelty, and bestiality were so overpowering as to leave me a bit sick. In one room, where they were piled up 20 or 30 naked men, killed by starvation, George Patton would not even enter. He said he would get sick if he did so. I made the visit deliberately, in order to be in position to give firsthand evidence of these things if ever, in the future, there develops a tendency to charge these allegations merely to `propaganda'.'' After his visit, General Eisenhower ordered the concentration camps to be visited by thousands of soldiers stationed off the front lines, as well as hundreds of German civilians, journalists, Allied forces, and Members of Congress, to ensure the truth reached the public. By the end of the war, the Nazi regime had succeeded in murdering one-third of the Jewish people in Europe. Its capacity to perpetrate absolute evil and hatred was on a scale never before seen. Today, this hatred continues to manifest itself in different contexts and ideologies. Just in the past year, we have witnessed violent attacks and the murder of Jews at synagogues and other Jewish institutions. Increasingly, we have watched as Members of Congress have promoted anti-Semitic slurs, stereotypes, and tropes, spreading lies about Jews controlling Congress in the media. It is the responsibility of every American to speak out against the hatred of these anti-Semites and educate others on the evil such hatred can bring. While the Nazi's ``Final Solution'' is unlikely to ever return in the form of concentration camps, in the words of Auschwitz survivor, Primo Levi: ``It happened. Therefore, it can happen again.'' Every American across our great country would be wise to carry the same responsibility passed along by Eisenhower: To remember those who perished in the hellish nightmare of the Holocaust, to teach others their stories, and to ensure it never happens again. Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Gottheimer). Mr. GOTTHEIMER. Mr. Speaker, I am humbled to be here this evening to commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day and, this year, the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. I would like to recognize all of my colleagues and fellow members of the Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Anti-Semitism for participating in this Special Order Hour; especially my friends, Congressman Ted Deutch, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and Congressman Lee Zeldin, for their excellent leadership. Mr. Speaker, today we remember the six million Jews, and millions more murdered in the Shoah. We must always remember the Holocaust and recommit to learning the lessons of the attempt to eliminate European Jewry. We all have an obligation to teach future generations about this evil, and to pledge ``Never Again.'' This day is deeply significant to my family and to me. I am the grandson of a World War II veteran who fought the Nazis, and my wife's grandparents lost their entire family in the Holocaust. It is critically important that we have come together to commemorate this solemn day, not just to remember the victims of the Holocaust killed by the Nazis in gas chambers and concentration camps simply for being Jews; but also because our history teaches us that we have a responsibility to confront bigotry, hatred, and intolerance wherever it can be found. Therefore, we cannot, and must not, ignore the stunning rise in anti- Semitism and Holocaust denial across Europe, around the world and, increasingly, here at home in the United States, including the violent anti-Semitic attacks we have experienced in New York and New Jersey in recent months. Furthermore, the mounting evidence that knowledge about the Holocaust is beginning to fade should alarm us. As Elie Wiesel said: ``Indifference, after all, is more dangerous than anger or hatred.'' According to a recent survey by Pew Research Center, too many Americans know too little about the Holocaust. For instance, less than half of all adult respondents knew that approximately six million Jews were killed during the Holocaust; and just 43 percent knew that Adolf Hitler became chancellor of Germany through a democratic political process. Unfortunately, these findings echo a series of surveys conducted in the United States, Canada, Austria, and France in recent years, which also found significant gaps in knowledge about the Holocaust. We know how critical education, visiting a Holocaust museum, and meeting with survivors can be. That is why I am very proud to cosponsor H.R. 943, the Never Again Education Act, bipartisan legislation introduced by Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney and Congresswoman Stefanik, to help support Holocaust education across the country. This legislation was endorsed last year by the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus and has been cosponsored by nearly 300 Members of Congress. And I am very pleased that the House voted to pass this legislation earlier this evening. I also believe it is more important than ever for our government to commemorate the Holocaust and educate citizens about its history. That is why I worked with my colleagues, Representatives Ted Deutch and Brad Schneider, to ensure that our country properly remembers the horrors of the Holocaust as part of the United States' commemoration of the 75th anniversary of World War II. Additionally, I am proud to be a cosponsor of the TIME for Holocaust Survivors Act, which would provide better care to approximately 80,000 survivors currently living in the United States. Finally, I am deeply grateful for, and very proud to support the critical, ongoing work of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the U.S. State Department's Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues and for Combating Anti-Semitism, and the Holocaust Survivor Assistance Program. This past fall, a bipartisan group of Members of Congress visited the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum to tour the permanent exhibition. As President Clinton observed at the opening of the museum: ``One of the eternal lessons to which this museum bears strong witness is that the struggle against darkness will never end and the need for vigilance will never fade away.'' Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleagues from both sides of the aisle who have gathered here today to commemorate this very solemn day. Given the rise of anti-Semitism here at home and around the world, we need leaders willing to stand up now, and to stand together against anti-Semitism, and all forms of bigotry, hatred, and intolerance, which have no place in our country or world. Together, as we talk to our families, when I talk to my children, we should always remember the victims of the Holocaust and take care of the survivors and their descendants. May God continue to bless the United States of America, watch over them; and let us always remember. [[Page H560]] {time} 2000 Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Diaz-Balart). Mr. DIAZ-BALART. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, today we stand in support of the international day of commemoration in the memory of those victims of the Holocaust. January 27 is also the day, again, 75 years ago, when Auschwitz was liberated, a day to remember the atrocities of the Holocaust so we may never allow such a horror to happen again anywhere on this planet. We must rededicate ourselves to ensuring that we confront evil and oppose all forms of anti-Semitism. Mr. Speaker, inconceivably, some have the audacity to deny that the Holocaust happened. Others advocate for boycott, divestment, and sanctions in regard to our democratic ally, the State of Israel. We have seen shocking anti-Semitic attacks waged against Jewish communities all over the world and even here in the United States. That is why I am so proud to join with my colleagues here in the House from both sides of the aisle in remembering our responsibility to confront indifference to evil whenever evil raises its head. Last week, I met with friends from the American Jewish Committee back home in the district, and I learned that 25 percent of Jews are afraid to visit their place of worship or to proudly display their deeply held beliefs in public because they are concerned or potentially afraid for their safety. Seventy-five years ago, the world saw this horrific revelation of the depths of human depravity. That is why, today, on the House floor, we stand united, together. Despite our potential differences, our religious traditions, our backgrounds, we stand united, together, to reiterate that anti-Semitism will not be tolerated, Mr. Speaker, and that Israel will always have the support of the United States of America. Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline). Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise today on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp, to honor the memories of the 6 million Jews and 5 million others murdered during the Holocaust and to tell the world that we will never forget. Today, we remember the lives lost during this incredibly dark period in human history. Jewish children of my generation grew up seeing the dark numbers etched into the arms of friends, neighbors, and family. We heard the stories directly from survivors about the families they loved and lost, the unspeakable brutality they endured, and the freedom they felt so lucky to have secured here in America. But today's children are the last generation who will have the opportunity to see and hear for themselves the stories of survivors. It is, therefore, our responsibility to keep their voices alive, to tell their stories, to be certain they know this history, and, most importantly, to absorb the lessons of the Holocaust so we can prevent future evil, inhumanity, and brutality. Sadly, we know that, in the United States today, fewer people are learning about the Holocaust. A Pew Research survey recently found that only 38 percent of American teens knew that 6 million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust. At the same time that Holocaust education is declining, we see a significant rise of neo-Nazi and white supremacist movements being fueled by the ability to communicate online and a rise in anti-Semitic attacks in the United States and around the world. If there is anything we can do to honor the lives of those murdered in the Shoah, it is to ensure that we don't allow time to erase their stories, their memories. We can't just look back. We must apply the lessons learned from the Holocaust, as painful as they are, to fight against hatred, bigotry, intolerance, and to remember the words of Dr. King: ``Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.'' Our burden as policymakers is to make certain that we are engaged in that fight against hatred, bigotry, and intolerance. I pray on this day of remembrance that we honor those who suffered and died at the hands of Nazi Germany by standing up to injustice wherever we see it. I thank my colleagues for their support on this somber day, and I urge Americans everywhere to never forget. Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Kustoff). Mr. KUSTOFF of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman for helping organize this evening. Mr. Speaker, today, as we commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day and the 75 years since the liberation of Auschwitz, it is important that we honor the 6 million Jewish victims of the Holocaust and the millions of other victims of the evil Nazi regime--we honor their memory, we honor their bravery, and we honor their spirit. It is also important that we pay tribute to the survivors who continue to share their stories to ensure that all of us, especially the younger generations, never forget the grave tragedy that took place. As Elie Wiesel said: ``For the dead and the living, we must bear witness.'' Sadly, the frequency and the scale of anti-Semitic incidents in our Nation and across the globe have increased, causing deep alarm. We must continue to speak up, and we must continue to play a role in shining a spotlight on the ugly resurgence of this hate. Today, on the annual day of commemoration, my colleagues and I came together and we passed legislation, the Never Again Education Act, which will ensure our children, tomorrow's leaders, are taught about the horrors of the Holocaust. I appreciate my colleagues for joining me in being united in our mission to combat the rise of anti-Semitism around the world, as well as taking this time to honor the victims of the Holocaust. We must take this opportunity to reflect on the past in hopes of preventing this type of evil from reoccurring. Let us remember those who perished in the Holocaust and pray that this never happens again. Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Schneider). Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Weber) for yielding. I thank all of my colleagues as we join today and we remember, as we rise in recognition of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, memorializing the genocide of more than 6 million Jews, including 1\1/2\ million children. This year's observance holds special meaning, as it is the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. Auschwitz-Birkenau was the largest Nazi death camp, where more than 1.1 million people--men, women, and children--were brutally murdered. The Nazis sent many people, including political dissidents, intellectuals, Roma, and LGBTQ people to Auschwitz; but the vast majority, 90 percent of the victims, were Jewish. Last week, I had the solemn and profound honor to visit Auschwitz with a bipartisan congressional delegation led by Speaker Nancy Pelosi. We walked through the gas chambers. We stood before the ovens built to burn up to 1,800 bodies each day. We visited the barracks where people slept five to a rack, three racks high. We saw what seemed like infinite piles of suitcases, shoes, eyeglasses, even human hair collected from the victims by their Nazi killers. Notably, in a place representing humanity's greatest crime, where people were denied the ability to even pray to their God, we joined with our Polish hosts to honor the memories of the martyrs by reciting the Kaddish, the Jewish mourners' prayer. At Auschwitz in the days that followed, we all asked ourselves: How could the Holocaust happen? Could it happen in today's world? And how do we ensure that such evil never happens again? A key lesson of the Holocaust is that we cannot remain silent in the face of rising anti-Semitism. Right now, that lesson is more important than ever in the face of a dramatic increase in anti-Semitism around the world, including here in the United States. In 2018, a gunman walked into the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh and killed 11 people. It was the worst anti-Semitic attack in our Nation's [[Page H561]] history, but it was not the last: a synagogue in Poway, California; a kosher grocery in New Jersey; a Hanukkah celebration in Monsey, New York; across the country, a staggering increase in verbal and physical assaults, vandalism, and other acts of Jewish hate. The numbers are horrifying. Globally, Jews are being told to not publicly wear a yarmulke or other outward symbols of their Jewish identity. Throughout Europe and increasingly here at home, armed guards are posted outside synagogues, Jewish schools, and community centers. Entire communities are living in fear. We cannot remain silent. All of us, no matter who we are, where we live, or how we worship, all of us must speak out and condemn both anti-Semitic words and actions whenever and wherever hate raises its ugly head. In the House of Representatives, we have and will continue to take action to confront anti-Semitism. Last year, the House passed the strongest resolution in our history to clearly state we reject anti- Semitic stereotypes and considered anti-Semitic acts and statements to be hateful expressions of intolerance that are contrary to American values. We passed a bill to secure $90 million in funding to defend vulnerable houses of worship. Congress continues to help fund the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum to preserve the memory, teach the lessons, and lead the work to stop future genocides. Today, this House passed legislation to increase our commitment to teaching the next generation about the Shoah. Congress isn't just focused on anti-Semitism here at home. In 2016 and 2017, the House pressured the administration to fill the long vacant position of Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism. Finally, last year, President Trump appointed Elan Carr to this role to coordinate America's response to anti-Semitism around the world. As for our trip, after visiting Auschwitz on Tuesday, our group flew to Israel to join delegations from 49 different nations, including 41 heads of state, at a historic commemoration ceremony at Yad Vashem on Thursday. In the largest diplomatic gathering in Israel's history, flanked by Kings, Prime Ministers, and Presidents, we spoke with one common voice to honor the memories of the 6 million people lost. We celebrated the survivors and the righteous gentiles who defied the Nazis to save thousands of lives, and we renewed our commitment to fight anti-Semitism now and forever. Finally, before returning home, the group had the chance to meet with several Holocaust survivors and hear their stories. It is said that, by hearing the testimony of a living witness to the Holocaust, we are made witnesses ourselves. As the remaining survivors age, soon we will be at a point where we will have lost the last survivor's voice. We, the living, must work to preserve their stories for future generations. Only by remembering the lives lost and speaking out against intolerance in our own time can we live up to our sacred promise: Never again. We remember. We will live up to our promise: Never again. Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Hill). Mr. HILL of Arkansas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I commend our bipartisan group of Members on this floor tonight to rise on Holocaust Remembrance Day to pay tribute to all those who were affected by the enormity, the calamity, and the horrors of the Holocaust. Today marks the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the camp at Auschwitz on January 27, 1945. ``For ever let this place be a cry of despair and a warning to humanity, where the Nazis murdered about one and a half million men, women, and children, mainly Jews from various countries of Europe. Auschwitz-Birkenau 1940-1945.'' Two years ago, I will never forget reading those words as I paid my respects on a visit to this enormous Nazi death machine. This side of humanity's greatest failure amongst millennia of human failure was a manufacturing facility. The Nazi's product: murder. Laying a wreath at the death wall, kneeling in prayer before the memorial all failed to comfort the visitor from the nightmares imposed by the pile of shoes, a tiny sample of 43,000 pairs of shoes, or the fantasy of encouraged belongings from stacks of suitcases, or the physical horror of hair cut from the heads of those to be gassed. {time} 2015 Mr. Speaker, millions of Jews, Roma, Poles, and Serbs stepped off the trains there at Auschwitz, only days later to have their souls severed from their earthly forms. Mr. Speaker, I share the concern and the voice of my colleagues today. I stand with friends on both sides of the Atlantic, urging rejection of anti-Semitism, rejecting the rising boycott and divestiture movement against Israel, and speaking the truth. All of us on this House floor tonight are united in speaking that truth and voting today overwhelmingly to teach our children the truth of the Holocaust. Never again, Mr. Speaker. Never again. Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his comments. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Levin). Mr. LEVIN of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Weber) for yielding. Mr. Speaker, when we remember the Holocaust, we look backward and forward. We look backward to remember those who perished, 6 million Jewish men, women, and children, every one of whom has a story and loved ones who may have survived the horrors of the Holocaust but were left with the searing wounds of these losses. Many other people--Slavs, LGBTQ people, political dissidents, disabled people, and others--would lose their lives to Nazi terror before the war ended. At the same time, we must look forward. We can't simply pledge ``never again''; we must live ``never again'' day after day. Why is this so important? Kurt Messerschmidt, a Holocaust survivor, recalled encountering a crowd of people in the aftermath of what we now call Kristallnacht, or the Night of Broken Glass, one of the most horrific anti-Jewish attacks in history. Over 2 days in November 1938, mobs across Germany and parts of Austria and Czechoslovakia destroyed synagogues, Jewish-owned businesses, homes, schools, and cemeteries. Under instructions from the Gestapo, local authorities did nothing to stop the violence and destruction. The crowd Messerschmidt came across was watching an older man who had been ordered by Nazi soldiers to clean up the broken glass outside his own store. Messerschmidt, who helped the man, would later say: ``I am sure that some of the people standing there disapproved of what the Nazis did, but their disapproval was only silence, and silence is what did the harm.'' Today, let us remember the danger of silence. We must loudly and consistently call out anti-Semitism in all its forms, whether it comes from our adversaries or our friends and whether it is promulgated intentionally or unknowingly. We must strive to do so in a way that truly fosters understanding. Let us also recommit never again to allow people, any people, to be obliterated by otherness. Let us fight the rising menace of ethnonationalism across the globe, and let us do everything in our power to protect all those who have been deemed ``other,'' from the Rohingya people of Burma to the Iraqi nationals in my own district facing deportation and grave danger. Only when we have done this can we truly say that we lived up to our promise of ``never again.'' Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his remarks. Mr. Speaker, I now yield to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Trone). Mr. TRONE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Today, we remember one of the darkest chapters in our history, the Shoah, when 6 million Jews were brutally murdered in a genocide that left an indelible mark on humanity. This year marks 75 years since the liberation of the Auschwitz- Birkenau Nazi death camp. There alone, 1.1 million people, mostly Jews, were killed. Today, we remember them, and we say again: ``Never again.'' International Holocaust Remembrance Day serves as a reminder of what depravity humans are capable of [[Page H562]] when we don't make it a priority to end hate and intolerance. We must remember the victims now and always, and that includes making Holocaust education a priority in our schools. I am thankful that today my colleagues and I passed legislation to do just that. There is no place for anti-Semitism, racism, hate, or intolerance in 2020. I join with my colleagues today in saying: ``Never again.'' Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for being here tonight. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Shalala). Ms. SHALALA. Mr. Speaker, today, on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we mark the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. We remember the 6 million Jews, as well as millions of other minority populations, who were systematically murdered by the Nazi regime and its collaborators. We remember the families who were separated and the sacrifices made by those who protected Jewish lives. Pure evil was committed against Jews, Roma, Catholics, LGBTQ individuals, people with disabilities, and others. We honor the 10,000 Holocaust survivors who live in south Florida and the nearly 70,000 more who live around the United States. Mr. Speaker, I also want to honor my friend, Dr. Miriam Klein Kassenoff, who fled Nazi Europe as a child in 1941. An educational specialist for Holocaust studies at Miami-Dade County Public Schools and director of the Holocaust Institute at the University of Miami, Miriam has dedicated her life to educating the new generation of teachers and students about the horrors of the Holocaust. Mr. Speaker, as we enter this new decade, we recommit ourselves to ensuring that ``never again'' means never again. We will never stop fighting virulent, hateful anti-Semitism and discrimination wherever and whenever it appears. In this House, the people's House, we stand together, united against hate. We stand together in pledging ``never again.'' Never again. Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Florida for her comments, and I yield to another gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz). Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, today, we remember the 6 million Jews and millions of others who were systematically murdered in the darkest chapter of human history. Last week, I had the privilege of traveling with a bipartisan delegation led by Speaker Nancy Pelosi to two nations forever interlaced into the fabric of Jewish history: the first, a monument to tragedy; the second, a beacon of hope. In Poland at Auschwitz-Birkenau, we saw firsthand the painful cruelty of the Nazi regime. We walked the train tracks that transported innocent people to captivity and the gas chambers, which led to their cruel and inhumane slaughter. After our time in Poland, I, like so many Jews escaping the horrors they experienced in Europe, traveled to the Holy Land with my colleagues. In Israel, we witnessed hope, the homeland of the Jewish people. I continue to be inspired to see that such generational trauma experienced by our people could be harnessed into something as powerful as democracy. At Yad Vashem, Israel's national memorial to Holocaust victims, we participated in a solemn commemoration to those who did not live to see a homeland that would be theirs. We heard the stories of the lives lost to hate and of the men and women who managed to survive that torture. I represent one of the largest survivors of the Holocaust populations in the United States. As the last generation of survivors ends their twilight years, it is even more important now that we keep their memories alive and recorded for future generations. In the face of rising hate and anti-Semitism at home and abroad, we all have a role to play in fighting bigotry wherever and whenever it rears its ugly head. The legislation the House passed today, the Never Again Education Act, which provides teachers with resources to teach children the important lessons of the Holocaust and the consequences of bigotry and hate, is a critically important and vital step. As co-chair of the Latino-Jewish Caucus and the Congressional Caucus on Black-Jewish Relations and a proud member of the Task Force on Combating Anti-Semitism, I am proud that we have all come together today to organize this Special Order in honor of International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for making this a priority so that we could give voice to the notion of ``never again.'' Today, we remember to ensure that never again will the horrors of the past be repeated. Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for being here for tonight's Special Order, and I yield to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Deutch). Mr. DEUTCH. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Texas for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I am so honored to be here on International Holocaust Remembrance Day with colleagues, Democratic and Republican alike, who understand the importance of giving real meaning to the words ``never again.'' Standing at Auschwitz-Birkenau as we did with a bipartisan delegation last week, what you can't help but be struck by is the effort, the enormous effort that the Nazis went to, to try to destroy the Jewish people, to wipe them from the face of the Earth. Yet, they failed. The State of Israel is strong, the strong homeland of the Jewish people. In a world that Adolf Hitler could never have imagined, that the Nazis could never have imagined, Jewish Members of the House, like myself, have the opportunity like the one now to remind America why this is so important. Like my colleague from Florida, Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz, I represent a lot of survivors. Twice a year, our local Jewish family service organization has a program called Cafe Europa. They bring together the survivors from our community for lunch and the opportunity to socialize, to enjoy music, and to be with one another. They sit the survivors at tables based on the communities in Europe that they came from, communities where the Nazis tried to eradicate all the Jews. Here they are now, most in their nineties, coming together, in this case in south Florida, with the opportunity to be with one another. What is so remarkable is that at virtually every one of these meetings, there is a moment when a survivor from a community in Europe is able to reunite with another survivor from that community that he or she has not seen since before World War II. They have the chance to share their stories not just with each other, but they get to share their stories with all of us. Some, like Norman Frajman, a dear friend of mine who lost 126 family members in the Holocaust, was clear when he said, in speaking about Cafe Europa: ``We are disappearing, but when I see faces here, it does my heart good. There are still witnesses to this tragedy, and younger generations must learn of these atrocities that occur when hatred toward one another occurs. We must replace hate with love.'' Norman is right. {time} 2030 Sylvia Richter, also from south Florida, was at Cafe Europa and said this in describing what happened to her, she said: My sisters and I were chosen by Dr. Mengele. I was forced to lie about my age and say I was 17 instead of 14. A female Nazi officer wiped black soot off her arm and told me it was my mother, father and siblings that she was wiping away and if I didn't keep lying, this would be me too. As she wiped away those ashes, she wiped away my smile. I never smiled again until 1946. There are people in America, there are people in the world who deny the Holocaust. There are far too many people who don't know the details of what happened during the Holocaust, and, sadly, these voices, these survivors will not be with us for too many more years. That is why this is so important today. That is why it is so important for all of us to come together, to pledge [[Page H563]] ``Never again'' and to make it mean something. Mr. Speaker, I am grateful for the opportunity to be here today with my colleagues from both sides of the aisle. There is nothing partisan about standing up to hatred and bigotry and fighting anti-Semitism. That is what we are showing here tonight. Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his comments, and I yield to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Cohen). Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Today, I had the opportunity to attend the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau celebration that was held at the United Nations. It was a stirring program with testimony from two survivors who told of the awful situation they had to survive, the loss of their parents, the atrocious conduct of the Nazis, and a systematic attempt to destroy the Jewish community. There were survivors, a lady and a man, and the lady said: ``Hitler did not win.'' She had her family with her, and she said that her family is a sign that Hitler did not win. And he did not win. But there is anti-Semitism in this world and in this country that is in greater numbers and greater volume and greater threats than any time since the Holocaust. We must stand up to it. Many of the speakers talked about the importance of education and, indeed, that is important. In 1984, I passed a Holocaust education program in the Tennessee Holocaust Commission, which exists to this day and is now a standing program. We need those programs in States, and we also need education in the classroom. The bill we passed today was important and good. But we need to do more than just talk about it. When the Klan raises its ugly head in Charlottesville, Virginia, and other places, we have to condemn the Ku Klux Klan whose whole basis is against African Americans and against Jews because of their race and because of their religion. Every person who is against anti-Semitism should be against racism, should be against all kinds of intolerance and discrimination because it starts with the Jews, but it never ends with the Jews. The Jews are, indeed, a canary--African Americans have been, too--of other problems in the society and the ugly head of racism and ethnic oppositions based on xenophobic conduct, so we have to be concerned. When the Klan speaks up, we can't say in any way at all that there are fine people among the Klan's people. Nor can we do that with other groups. And when David Duke speaks up, we have to realize that David Duke hates Blacks and hates Jews and needs to be condemned by all people on both sides. I want to read a quote that I saw on social media. I am not a big fan of social media. I use it to some extent, but much of it is hateful. But this is from a man who goes by the name of Julius Goat. I think his real name is A. R. Moxon: ``Historians have a word for Germans who joined the Nazi party, not because they hated Jews, but out of a hope for restored patriotism, or a sense of economic anxiety, or a hope to preserve their religious values, or dislike of their opponents, or raw political opportunism, or convenience, or ignorance, or greed. ``That word is `Nazi.' Nobody cares about their motives anymore.'' The motives which brought about the Nazi Party and the Holocaust need to be confronted in its nascent stages, and we need to do it when the Klan speaks, when David Duke speaks, and others. So I want to thank everybody who has participated in this Special Order and Mr. Weber for sponsoring it. It was an honor to be in New York with so many distinguished speakers, and an emotional program about the Holocaust. ``Never again.'' Mr. WEBER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his comments. Mr. Speaker, I am grateful to my friends on both sides of the aisle for being here to express those sentiments. Mr. Speaker, President Roosevelt said that December 7, 1941, was a day that would live in infamy. On this day, 75 years ago, a horrific infamy was revealed--one that should never have been allowed and one that should never ever be allowed. Mr. Speaker, 6 million Jews and their families were subjected not just to a day of infamy, but a lifetime of the memory of that kind of infamy and the effect it had on their families. They will be remembering that horror for a long time. My friend from Florida talked about the people who come back and meet each other since before World War II. Anti-Semitism, BDS, that kind of infamy should not be allowed anywhere at any time. Mr. Speaker, let us covenant together that not now, not tomorrow, and not ever, never again will it be allowed. I yield back the balance of my time. ____________________
All in House sectionPrev42 of 58Next