[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 39 Agreed to House (ATH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 39

Commending countries and organizations for marking the 60th anniversary 
of the liberation of Auschwitz and urging a strengthening of the fight 
 against racism, intolerance, bigotry, prejudice, discrimination, and 
                             anti-Semitism.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 25, 2005

 Mr. Lantos (for himself, Mr. Hyde, Ms. Pelosi, Mr. Blunt, Mr. Hoyer, 
 Mr. Cantor, Mr. Tancredo, Mr. Ackerman, Ms. Berkley, Mr. Berman, Mr. 
  Brown of Ohio, Mr. Burton of Indiana, Mr. Capuano, Mr. Cardin, Mr. 
 Cardoza, Mr. Chabot, Mr. Chandler, Mr. Crowley, Mrs. Jo Ann Davis of 
 Virginia, Mr. Dent, Mr. Dicks, Mr. Emanuel, Mr. Engel, Mr. Etheridge, 
  Mr. Faleomavaega, Mr. Filner, Mr. Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Mr. 
   Gallegly, Mr. Gene Green of Texas, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Hastings of 
 Florida, Mr. Israel, Ms. Kaptur, Mr. Kirk, Mr. Leach, Mr. Levin, Mr. 
    Lewis of Georgia, Mrs. Maloney, Ms. McCollum of Minnesota, Mr. 
    McCotter, Mr. McDermott, Mr. McNulty, Mr. Meek of Florida, Mr. 
Menendez, Mr. George Miller of California, Mr. Owens, Mr. Pallone, Mr. 
Payne, Mr. Pence, Mr. Pitts, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, Mr. Rothman, Mr. Royce, 
 Mr. Saxton, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Schiff, Ms. Schwartz of Pennsylvania, 
 Mr. Serrano, Mr. Sherman, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mrs. Tauscher, Mr. 
  Terry, Mr. Udall of New Mexico, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Visclosky, Ms. 
Wasserman Schultz, Mr. Waxman, Mr. Weiner, Mr. Weller, Mr. Wexler, Mr. 
 Wynn, Mr. Burgess, Mr. Calvert, Mr. Franks of Arizona, Mr. Honda, Ms. 
 Jackson-Lee of Texas, Mr. King of New York, Mr. Schwarz of Michigan, 
and Ms. Watson) submitted the following resolution; which was referred 
              to the Committee on International Relations

                            January 25, 2005

  The Committee on International Relations discharged; considered and 
                               agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Commending countries and organizations for marking the 60th anniversary 
of the liberation of Auschwitz and urging a strengthening of the fight 
 against racism, intolerance, bigotry, prejudice, discrimination, and 
                             anti-Semitism.

Whereas on January 27, 1945, the Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz, including 
        Birkenau and other related camps near the Polish city of Oswiecim, was 
        liberated by elements of the Soviet Army under the command of Field 
        Marshal Ivan Konev;
Whereas, according to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, at a minimum 
        1,300,000 people were deported to Auschwitz between 1940 and 1945, and 
        of these, at least 1,100,000 were murdered at that camp;
Whereas an estimated 6,000,000 Jews, more than 60 percent of the pre-World War 
        II Jewish population of Europe, were murdered by the Nazis and their 
        collaborators at Auschwitz and elsewhere in Europe;
Whereas in addition, hundreds of thousands of civilians of Polish, Roma, and 
        other nationalities, including in particular handicapped and retarded 
        individuals, homosexuals, political, intellectual, labor, and religious 
        leaders, all of whom the Nazis considered ``undesirable'', as well as 
        Soviet and other prisoners of war, perished at Auschwitz and elsewhere 
        in Europe;
Whereas the complex of concentration and death camps at Auschwitz has come to 
        symbolize the brutality and inhumanity of the Holocaust;
Whereas on January 24, 2005, the United Nations General Assembly, in response to 
        a resolution proposed by Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Russia, the 
        United States, and the European Union, convened its first-ever special 
        session marking the liberation of Auschwitz and other concentration 
        camps on the 60th anniversary of that event;
Whereas on January 27, 2005, the Government of Poland will host a state ceremony 
        at Auschwitz/Oswiecim, Poland, to mark the anniversary of the liberation 
        of the camps in which the Presidents of Israel, Germany, Poland, and 
        Russia, and the Vice President of the United States, and leaders of many 
        other countries will participate;
Whereas January 27 of each year is the official Holocaust Memorial Day in many 
        European countries, including Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Italy, 
        Sweden, and the United Kingdom, and has been designated by Israel as a 
        National Day to Combat Anti-Semitism; and
Whereas the Department of State in the Report on Global Anti-Semitism 
        transmitted to Congress in December 2004 noted that ``anti-Semitism in 
        Europe increased significantly in recent years'', ``Holocaust denial and 
        Holocaust minimization efforts'' have found increasingly overt 
        acceptance in a number of Middle Eastern countries, and anti-Semitism 
        has appeared ``in countries where historically or currently there are 
        few or even no Jews'': Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recalls with gratitude the sacrifices made by Allied 
        soldiers, as well as partisans and underground fighters, whose 
        service and dedication resulted in the defeat of the Nazi 
        regime and the liberation of Auschwitz and other concentration 
        camps during World War II;
            (2) expresses gratitude to those individuals and 
        organizations that assisted and cared for the survivors of Nazi 
        brutality and helped those survivors establish new lives;
            (3) commends those countries that are marking the 60th 
        anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, as well as the 
        United Nations General Assembly and other international 
        organizations, for honoring the victims of the Holocaust and 
        using this tragic anniversary to increase awareness of the 
        Holocaust;
            (4) urges all countries and peoples to strengthen their 
        efforts to fight against racism, intolerance, bigotry, 
        prejudice, discrimination, and anti-Semitism; and
            (5) urges governments and educators throughout the world to 
        teach the lessons of the Holocaust in order that future 
        generations will understand that racial, ethnic, and religious 
        intolerance and prejudice can lead to the genocide carried out 
        in camps such as Auschwitz.
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