[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 316 Introduced in House (IH)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 316

Recognizing that November 2, 2003, shall be dedicated to ``A Tribute to 
      Survivors'' at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 30, 2003

  Mr. Cannon (for himself, Mr. Lantos, Mr. LaTourette, Mr. Frost, Mr. 
Bell, Mr. Wexler, Mr. Berman, Mr. Waxman, Mr. Crowley, Ms. Schakowsky, 
Mr. Israel, Ms. Berkley, Mr. Nadler, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, Mr. Cantor, Mrs. 
    Lowey, Mr. Frank of Massachusetts, Mr. Hastings of Florida, Mr. 
     Deutsch, and Mr. Ackerman) submitted the following concurrent 
      resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
Recognizing that November 2, 2003, shall be dedicated to ``A Tribute to 
      Survivors'' at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Whereas, in 1945, American soldiers and other Allied forces, defeated Nazi 
        Germany, ending World War II in Europe and the systematic murder of 
        Europe's Jews and other targeted groups;
Whereas 6,000,000 Jews were killed during the Holocaust, and after World War II 
        hundreds of thousands of survivors immigrated to the United States, 
        where in spite of their enormous suffering, they rebuilt their lives, 
        and embraced and enriched their adopted homeland;
Whereas, in 1978, President Jimmy Carter created the President's Commission on 
        the Holocaust to make a recommendation regarding ``the establishment . . 
        . of an appropriate memorial to those who perished in the Holocaust'';
Whereas President Carter said: ``Out of our memory . . . of the Holocaust we 
        must forge an unshakable oath with all civilized people that never again 
        will the world stand silent, never again will the world . . . fail to 
        act in time to prevent this terrible crime of genocide. . . . [W]e must 
        harness the outrage of our own memories to stamp out oppression wherever 
        it exists. We must understand that human rights and human dignity are 
        indivisible.'';
Whereas, in 1979, the Commission recommended ``a living memorial that will speak 
        not only of the victims' deaths but of their lives, a memorial that can 
        transform the living by transmitting the legacy of the Holocaust'';
Whereas, in 1980, the United States Congress unanimously passed legislation 
        authorizing the creation of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum 
        as a ``permanent living memorial'' on Federal land in the Nation's 
        Capital;
Whereas, in 1983, Vice President George Bush designated the Federal land on 
        which the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum would be built;
Whereas Vice President Bush said: ``Here we will learn that each of us bears 
        responsibility for our actions and our failure to act. Here we will 
        learn that we must intervene when we see evil arise. Here we will learn 
        more about the moral compass by which we navigate our lives and by which 
        countries navigate the future.'';
Whereas, in 1985, Holocaust survivors participated in the groundbreaking 
        ceremony at the site of the future United States Holocaust Memorial 
        Museum;
Whereas, in 1988, President Ronald Reagan dedicated the cornerstone of the 
        United States Holocaust Memorial Museum;
Whereas President Reagan said: ``We who did not go their way owe them this: We 
        must make sure that their deaths have posthumous meaning. We must make 
        sure that from now until the end of days all humankind stares this evil 
        in the face . . . and only then can we be sure it will never arise 
        again.'';
Whereas, in 1992, replicas of 2 of the milk cans that hid the Oneg Shabbat 
        archive under the Warsaw Ghetto were buried beneath the Museum's Hall of 
        Remembrance, with a Scroll of Remembrance signed by Holocaust survivors;
Whereas, in 1993, President Bill Clinton opened the United States Holocaust 
        Memorial Museum;
Whereas President Clinton said: ``[T]his museum will touch the life of everyone 
        who enters and leave everyone forever changed; a place of deep sadness 
        and a sanctuary of bright hope; an ally of education against ignorance, 
        of humility against arrogance, an investment in a secure future against 
        whatever insanity lurks ahead. If this museum can mobilize morality, 
        then those who have perished will thereby gain a measure of 
        immortality.'';
Whereas, in 2001, President George W. Bush delivered the keynote address at the 
        first Days of Remembrance ceremony after he assumed office.
Whereas President Bush said: ``When we remember the Holocaust and to whom it 
        happened, we must also remember where it happened. . . . The orders came 
        from men who . . . had all the outward traits of cultured men, except 
        for conscience. Their crimes showed the world that evil can slip in, and 
        blend in, even amid the most civilized surroundings. In the end, only 
        conscience can stop it. And moral discernment, decency, tolerance--these 
        can never be assumed in any time, or any society. They must always be 
        taught.'';
Whereas the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has had more than 19,000,000 
        visitors in the first 10 years of its existence;
Whereas, in 2003, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, on the occasion 
        of its 10th Anniversary, wishes to pay tribute to America's Holocaust 
        survivors, who worked tirelessly to help build the Museum and whose 
        committed support and involvement continue to make the institution such 
        an extraordinary memorial and a vital part of life in the United States; 
        and
Whereas the United States Holocaust Museum has a sacred obligation to preserve 
        and transmit the history and lessons of the Holocaust and, together with 
        the Holocaust survivors, must ensure that the legacy of the survivors is 
        passed on to each new generation: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That the Congress--
            (1) recognizes that a day shall be dedicated to ``A Tribute 
        to Survivors'' at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum 
        and shall be devoted to honoring our Nation's Holocaust 
        survivors, as well as their liberators and rescuers, and their 
        families;
            (2) recognizes that on that day, the United States 
        Holocaust Memorial Museum shall be devoted in its entirety to 
        special programs about and for the survivors of the Holocaust;
            (3) commends the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum 
        for its first decade of education dedicated to the memory of 
        the victims of the Holocaust;
            (4) endeavors to continue to support the vital work of the 
        United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; and
            (5) requests that this resolution shall be duly recorded in 
        the official records of the United States Holocaust Memorial 
        Museum.
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