[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 80 (Tuesday, June 10, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1170]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         SUPPORT WWII ALLIED AIRMEN HELD AS POLITICAL PRISONERS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. DAVE WELDON

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 10, 1997

  Mr. WELDON of Florida. Mr. Speaker, 52 years is a long time to wait, 
but the Federal Government should finally recognize the bravery and 
sacrifice of a group of World War II airmen who were held as German 
political prisoners. These airmen were different from other Allied 
prisoners because they were held at Buchenwald, a Nazi concentration 
camp--and therefore not subject to the protections of the Geneva 
Convention.
  Today I am submitting a bill that would give these airmen their long-
overdue recognition, and I am proud to say that it has already garnered 
the bipartisan support of 21 of our House colleagues. Representative 
Peter Deutsch assisted me in this important effort, and I thank him for 
his early support of this bill. An identical bill will be introduced 
this week by Senators Tim Hutchinson and Joseph Lieberman.
  The Nazi concentration camps will forever occupy a ignominious place 
in our human history, and we have long recognized the bravery and 
daring of many prisoners who fought their Nazi oppressors and struggled 
to win political and religious freedom. But tragically, the United 
States has never formally recognized the service, sacrifice, and 
bravery of these American airmen while they were held as political 
prisoners at the Buchenwald Concentration Camp.
  My bill, which is endorsed by the American Ex-Prisoners of War and 
the Veterans of Foreign Wars, would recognize these 82 American airmen 
and ask that the President issue a proclamation commending them, by 
name, for their service. I have also included a list of these airmen, 
by name, that I would ask be inserted in the Congressional Record.
  I encourage all of my colleagues to join us in support of this 
important measure, so that those veterans still living, and the 
families and friends of those who have passed on, can fully realize the 
public recognition these brave men so surely deserve.

   List of WWII American Airmen Held at Buchenwald Concentration Camp


                              NOT LOCATED

     Freeman, E.C.
     Hanson, J.T.
     Horrigan, R.J.
     Scharf, B.T.
     Scott, G.W.


                                DECEASED

     Alexander, William
     Beck, Levit C.
     Crouch, M.E.
     Duncan, James H.
     Heimerman, L.A.
     MacLenahan, J.H.
     Mauk, W.E.
     Pecus, Steve
     Pennel, Sam
     Smith, J.W.
     Vance, Ira E.
     Wilson, P.J.
     Zeiser, J.
     Chapman, Park
     Suddock, D.E.
     Horwege, G.L.
     Edge, W.L.


                              STILL LIVING

     Bauder, W.F.
     Bedford, R.L.
     Bowen, C.E.
     Brown, R.H.
     Carr, F.W.
     Chalot, J.A.
     Chessir, D.
     Coats, B.A.
     Cowan, F.K.
     Coffman, J.D.
     Dauteul, D.F.
     Denaro, Joe
     Fore, J.W.
     Hastin, J.D.
     Hilding, R.D.
     Hunter, H.F.
     Johnson, R.T.
     King, Myles A.
     Larson, M.E.
     Little, B.S.
     Ludwig, E.F.
     McLaughlin, D.G.
     Mitchell, G.E.
     Moser, J.F.
     Pacha, A.M.
     Paxton, S.K.
     Powell, W.
     Raynolds, N.L.
     Richey, G.T. Sr.
     Ritter, E.W.
     Roberson, C.W.
     Ryherd, W.H.
     Shearer, D.R.
     Straulka, P.A. Jr.
     Sypher, L.H.
     Thompson, W.A.
     Vratney, Frank
     Watson, J.P.
     Ward, Robert
     Williams, W.J.
     Zander, A.E.
     Phelps, B.F.
     Pelletier, A.J.
     Friel, Edward J.
     Petrich, M.R.

     

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