[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 119 (Wednesday, September 21, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1913]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            SIMON WIESENTHAL

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BRAD SHERMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 21, 2005

  Mr. SHERMAN. Mr. Speaker, Simon Wiesenthal refused to forget the 
horror he endured and witnessed in five Nazi death camps during the 
Holocaust. He would not let the world forget what the Jewish people and 
so many others suffered at the hands of Hitler's Third Reich. He 
dedicated his life to bringing Nazis to justice, educating the world 
about the Holocaust, and fighting to help ensure that the intolerance 
that brought it about would not be repeated. The spirit Wiesenthal 
brought to these lifelong pursuits will not end with his death.
  Along with millions of other Jews, Wiesenthal was imprisoned by the 
Nazis during the Holocaust. Unwilling to accept this fate, Wiesenthal 
daringly escaped in 1943, only to be recaptured in 1944. Wiesenthal was 
sent back to a concentration camp, and as the German Eastern front 
collapsed Wiesenthal was marched with other prisoners across Europe. 
The trek left him near death when finally liberated by the advancing 
American army.
  The moment his health returned, Wiesenthal sprang into action. He 
began to build a legal case against the Nazis, first for the American 
military's war crimes trials and then through an independent effort 
based in Vienna.
  Wiesenthal relentlessly searched for Adolf Eichmann, the infamous 
Nazi who headed Hitler's Gestapo, and other Nazis who had evaded trial 
by the allies. Wiesenthal's work led to the capture of Eichmann and 
other infamous Nazis years after the world had given up on bringing 
them to justice. Although the Holocaust was fading into the world's 
memory, Wiesenthal continued to fight its battles every day with his 
time, determination, and spirit.
  In Los Angeles, Simon Wiesenthal's memory lives on at the Simon 
Wiesenthal Center. The international organization works to preserve the 
memory of the Holocaust and to fight anti-Semitism and intolerance.
  I had the honor of working with the Wiesenthal Center earlier this 
year in asking the British Government to keep a known terrorist 
supporter, Yussuf Al-Qaradawi, out of Great Britain. Al-Qaradawi has 
given religious justification and encouragement for terrorist attacks 
against Americans and Israelis. These efforts against intolerant 
religious extremism in the 21st century are a clear extension of 
Wiesenthal's lifelong mission.
  Simon Wiesenthal's spirit, unbridled in life, will carry on in his 
memory through the Wiesenthal Center, its work, and the efforts of so 
many others fighting intolerance and preserving the memory of the 
Holocaust.

                          ____________________