[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 194 (Wednesday, November 29, 2017)]
[House]
[Page H9478]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      HONORING RABBI WEISSMANDL WITH THE CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL

  (Ms. VELAZQUEZ asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of a man whose 
heroic legacy must never be forgotten.
  At a time when the stakes could not have been higher, Rabbi 
Weissmandl risked everything to save the Jewish people of Slovakia from 
the horrors of the Nazi regime. Forming an underground organization 
called the Working Group, Weissmandl led an effort to bribe German 
officials, ultimately succeeding to delay mass deportations.
  We cannot emphasize enough the great personal risk Rabbi Weissmandl 
took on. Had he bribed the wrong official or approached a Hitler 
supporter, he would have been killed. Yet, despite that real danger, he 
persevered and demonstrated an unyielding determination to stop the 
slaughter of the innocent.
  In 1945, Weissmandl reached the shores of America, ultimately 
settling in New York. Even after the war, he worked to improve 
Holocaust survivors' lives by establishing the first Yeshiva campus in 
America.
  Mr. Speaker, Rabbi Weissmandl is truly a hero. At great personal risk 
during the darkest of times, he helped those who were desperate. It is 
only appropriate we honor him with the highest civilian honor, a 
Congressional Gold Medal.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in paying tribute to 
Weissmandl's legacy by cosponsoring H.R. 2740.

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