[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 67 (Tuesday, May 11, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E911-E912]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      ADDRESS OF THE HONORABLE MILES LERMAN AT THE NATIONAL CIVIC 
                COMMEMORATION OF THE DAYS OF REMEMBRANCE

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 11, 1999

  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, on Tuesday, April 13, Members of Congress 
joined with representatives of the diplomatic corps, executive and 
judicial branch officials, and Holocaust survivors and their families 
to commemorate the National Days of Remembrance in the Rotunda of the 
United States Capitol.
  The ceremony coincided with the 60th anniversary of the voyage of the 
SS St. Louis, which set sail from Germany in April 1939, carrying more 
than 900 Jews away from Nazi terror. Denied entry to both Cuba and the 
United States, the St. Louis was forced to send its frightened 
passengers back to Europe just months before the onset of World War II. 
Many of them were eventually murdered in Auschwitz, Treblinka, and the 
other death camps of Hitler's Holocaust.
  While we cannot rectify the wrongs of generations ago, we can apply 
the lesson of the St. Louis to the crises of today. In the Europe of 
1999, innocent civilians are once again being deported, abused, raped 
and murdered. While the scale of Serbian atrocities in Kosovo does not 
approach the enormity of the Holocaust, the precedent that would be set 
by ignoring this ethnic cleansing cannot be tolerated.
  Miles Lerman, the Chairman of the United States Holocaust Memorial 
Council since 1993, eloquently expressed the moral cost of inaction at 
the Days of Remembrance ceremony. ``As we remember the victims of the 
St. Louis and all of the eventual victims of the Holocaust, we have a 
better understanding why we are in Kosovo and why the free world cannot 
afford to stand with their hands folded while murder and mass 
atrocities run rampant. This is a lesson that the world has learned in 
the past and cannot afford to forget.''
  In addition to his responsibilities with the Holocaust Memorial 
Council, Miles Lerman serves as a member of the Advisory Board of the 
President's Commission on the Holocaust. Prior to his appointment to 
lead the Council, Mr. Lerman directed its International Relations 
Committee and served as National Chairman of the Campaign to Remember. 
During the Holocaust, he fought as a partisan in the forests of 
southern Poland. He and his wife, Chris, a survivor of Auschwitz, 
rebuilt their lives in the United States. They have two children.
  Mr. Speaker, I submit the full text of Mr. Lerman's address to the 
Days of Remembrance ceremony to be placed in the Congressional Record.

              Remarks by Miles Lerman, Days of Remembrance

       The greatness of the United States of America rests on the 
     fact that America and its people have the courage to 
     acknowledge its mistakes of the past and draw lessons for the 
     future. This virtue is reflected in today's program.
       The theme of today's commemoration is to remember the St. 
     Louis, a ship with more than 900 Jewish refugees who were 
     promised safe harbor in Cuba but as the ship approached 
     Havana, their entry visas were rejected. The desperate pleas 
     of the passengers not to be sent back to Germany and to be 
     granted temporary entry to the United States fell on deaf 
     ears.
       When all pleas were exhausted, the St. Louis with its 
     passengers had to return to Europe where many of them 
     eventually perished in the Holocaust.
       Very few countries in the World would lend their national 
     rotunda to recall a moment in their nation's history, which 
     should have been different than it was.
       This is what makes America the great country that it is 
     because it understands that nations must have the strength to 
     come to terms with their own history.
       America clearly understands that if it is to be the world 
     leader among nations, it must lead the way in acknowledging 
     its own shortcomings. It must be the first among nations to 
     acknowledge the fact that standing by idly while genocidal 
     crimes are being committed, is tantamount to being a partner 
     to these crimes.
       When we look back to the early years of Hitler's rise to 
     power, it becomes clear that had the leaders of the Western 
     nations of those days been more decisive in their actions, 
     the outcome of history could have been quite different.
       These are facts that the world can never forget.
       Remembering the tragic lessons of the past can only have 
     meaning if we apply these lessons to today and to the future.
       It is encouraging to know that our nation remembers the 
     wrongs of yesteryear and is leading the way in finding 
     solutions to injustices that have been lingering on for over 
     50 years.
       Last December, the State Department jointly with the United 
     States Holocaust Memorial Council, co-chaired an 
     International Conference on Holocaust-era assets.
       Forty-four nations participated in this Conference, which 
     produced very encouraging results. These results can be 
     attributed to the fact that the U.S. Government has set the 
     tone by creating a Presidential Advisory Commission on 
     Holocaust Assets in the United States. This Commission was 
     charged by the President to explore whether all U.S. agencies 
     have acted judiciously regarding the restitution of all Nazi-
     era assets to the rightful owners.
       This Presidential Commission is hard at work to ensure that 
     just and legal procedures will be applied to all cases at 
     hand and will not rest until a proper resolution is found.
       However, it is essential that we bear in mind that no 
     matter how important it is to deal with the material issues 
     and find a way to compensate the rightful owners for what is 
     justly theirs, the last word on the Holocaust cannot be bank 
     accounts or insurance policies.
       The last word on the Holocaust must be remembrance and an 
     ongoing process of Holocaust education.

[[Page E912]]

       We must create a global educational initiative--a process 
     that will serve as a lesson and a warning to future 
     generations to the dangers of racism, xenophobia and 
     indifference.
       The Holocaust Memorial Museum and its Center for Advanced 
     Holocaust Studies stands ready to lend its expertise in this 
     field and we hope to be one of the leading factors in 
     implementing a worldwide educational network on all levels, 
     ranging from middle schools to graduate schools.
       So as America remembers the St. Louis, America is saying to 
     the world, we too are not totally free of some guilt. In the 
     early years, we had an opportunity to set examples, which we 
     did not set.
       These are facts from which we must draw lessons for the 
     future.
       We remember this unfortunate event of sixty years ago, not 
     for the purpose of chastising ourselves but to learn from it. 
     If we want a better world for tomorrow, we must look back and 
     remember the past. Today, as we remember the victims of the 
     St. Louis and all of the eventual victims of the Holocaust, 
     we have a better understanding why we are in Kosovo and why 
     the free world cannot afford to stand with their hands folded 
     while murder and mass atrocities run rampant. This is a 
     lesson that the world has learned in the past and cannot 
     afford to forget.

     

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