[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 8] [Senate] [Pages 10600-10601] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS ______ SENATE RESOLUTION 111--RECOGNIZING JUNE 6, 2009, AS THE 70TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE TRAGIC DATE WHEN THE M.S. ST. LOUIS, A SHIP CARRYING JEWISH REFUGEES FROM NAZI GERMANY, RETURNED TO EUROPE AFTER ITS PASSENGERS WERE REFUSED ADMITTANCE TO THE UNITED STATES Mr. KOHL (for himself and Mr. Voinovich) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary: S. Res. 111 Whereas on May 13, 1939, the ocean liner M.S. St. Louis departed from Hamburg, Germany for Havana, Cuba with 937 passengers, most of whom were Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi persecution; Whereas the Nazi regime in Germany in the 1930s implemented a program of violent persecution of Jews; Whereas the Kristallnacht, or Night of Broken Glass, pogrom of November 9 through 10, 1938, signaled an increase in violent anti-Semitism; Whereas after the Cuban Government, on May 27, 1939, refused entry to all except 28 passengers on board the M.S. St. Louis, the M.S. St. Louis proceeded to the coast of south Florida in hopes that the United States would accept the refugees; Whereas the United States refused to allow the M.S. St. Louis to dock and thereby provide a haven for the Jewish refugees; Whereas the Immigration Act of 1924 placed strict limits on immigration; Whereas a United States Coast Guard cutter patrolled near the M.S. St. Louis to prevent any passengers from jumping to freedom; Whereas following denial of admittance of the passengers to Cuba, the United States, and Canada, the M.S. St. Louis set sail on June 6, 1939 for return to Antwerp, Belgium with the refugees; and Whereas 254 former passengers of the M.S. St. Louis died under Nazi rule: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate-- (1) recognizes that June 6, 2009, marks the 70th anniversary of the tragic date when the M.S. St. Louis returned to Europe after its passengers were refused admittance to the United States and other countries in the Western Hemisphere; (2) honors the memory of the 937 refugees aboard the M.S. St. Louis, most of whom were Jews fleeing Nazi oppression, and 254 of whom subsequently died during the Holocaust; (3) acknowledges the suffering of those refugees caused by the refusal of the United States, Cuban, and Canadian governments to provide them political asylum; and (4) recognizes the 70th anniversary of the M.S. St. Louis tragedy as an opportunity for public officials and educators to raise awareness about an important historical event, the lessons of which are relevant to current and future generations. Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, seventy years ago the M.S. St. Louis, a German ocean liner, sailed from Hamburg, Germany to Havana, Cuba with 937 passengers, mostly Jewish refugees searching for the freedom and safety of [[Page 10601]] the American dream. Those passengers left their homes because of state supported anti-semitism including violent pogroms, expulsion from public schools and service, and arrest and imprisonment solely because of Jewish heritage. Some passengers were released from prisons at Buchenwald and Dachau only because they were immigrating out of the country. With their freedom and safety stripped away by Nazi persecution, these refugees sailed for Cuba, a way station to wait for entry visas to the U.S. When the M.S. St. Louis arrived in Cuba, only 28 passengers were allowed to disembark. Corruption and political maneuvering within the Cuban government invalidated the transit visas of the other passengers. Those individuals waited with great hope for a remedy that would provide refuge far from Nazi persecution. Before returning to Europe, the ship sailed towards Miami in hopes of a solution. The ship sailed so close to Florida that the passengers could see the lights of Miami. One survivor remembers his father commenting that ``Florida's golden shores, so near, might as well be 4,000 miles away for all the good it did them.'' The US Immigration and Nationality Act of 1924 strictly limited the number of immigrants admitted to the U.S. each year and in 1939 the waiting list for German-Austrian immigration was several years long. While the press was largely sympathetic to the plight of the passengers of the M.S. St. Louis, no extraordinary measures were taken to permit the refugees to enter the United States. The passengers were told that they must ``await their turns on the waiting list and qualify for and obtain immigration visas''. On June 6 the M.S. St. Louis sailed back to Europe with nearly all of its original passengers. Refuge for the passengers was eventually obtained in Great Britain, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. World War II started three months later and those countries, with the exception of Great Britain, fell to Nazi occupation. Two hundred and fifty-four of those passengers died during the Holocaust and many others suffered under Nazi persecution and in concentration camps. During this week when we remember the Holocaust, it is appropriate and right to acknowledge the voyage of the M.S. St. Louis and the lives and the dreams of those refugees who made a trip towards freedom only to be returned to Europe. This Senate Resolution acknowledges the 70th anniversary of the voyage of the M.S. St. Louis and honors the memory of those passengers, 254 of who died during the Holocaust. This resolution also provides an opportunity for public officials and educators to reflect on this historic event and lessons that are relevant to current and future generations. ____________________