Supporting Law Enforcement through Lessons of the Holocaust Act

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to offer House Concurrent Resolution 323, Ensuring that Holocaust Survivors Live with Dignity, Comfort, and Security. This important resolution recognizes the plight of Holocaust survivors, honors their unique needs, and pledges to help survivors attain the utmost comfort and well-being in their remaining years. And I want to thank my colleague from Virginia (Mr. Wolf) for cosponsoring it with me.

At the end of World War II, the Jewish population of Europe had been decimated through brutal, systematic annihilation by the Nazis. The atrocities perpetrated by the Nazi regime against Jews, Roma, the disabled, and other minority populations introduced a level of inhumanity previously unknown to this world. The Holocaust is a stain on our history which our society has pledged to never forget lest we risk repeating the barbarity of the past. The Jewish population around the world is still grieving from the loss of 6 million.

In the wake of this incomparable human destruction, thousands of survivors immigrated to America. Here, they hoped to secure a better future for themselves and their children. Escaping a ravaged Europe, survivors saw our Nation as a global example of freedom, liberty, and justice. They left the wreckage of the Holocaust and sought comfort on our shores. These brave survivors, who faced the terror of concentration camps, the trauma of fleeing Nazi occupation, and the grief of losing so many loved ones, embraced the American dream, raised families, and enriched our Nation and society in fields ranging from academia to medicine, art and government. Our country is stronger for their contributions, and our children have learned so much from the experiences of Holocaust survivors.

Now, more than 70 years later, there is more we can and must do to ensure that those who survived such atrocities live out their remaining years in peace. There are more than 127,000 Holocaust survivors still living in our Nation today, with more than three-quarters of them older than age 75, and a majority in their eighties and nineties. Roughly two-thirds of all survivors in America live alone, and many lack the financial resources for the most basic necessities, including proper housing and health care. In fact, a majority of Holocaust survivors fall below 200 percent of the Federal poverty line, equivalent to $21,660 per year, making this fragile community most at risk for being forced into a group living situation.

It is a little known tragedy that so many survivors of the death camps have aged in poverty and destitution in the United States. As a Nation that so strongly upholds the values of freedom and justice, we have a moral obligation to acknowledge the plight of these survivors and uphold their dignity to ensure their well-being in their remaining years. It is vital that we help this population, as a testament to what they have endured, and to fulfill the promise of justice that they sought in the United States.

As victims of terror and torture, these survivors have special needs that would benefit from the further development of social service programs to allow survivors to age in place in their current residences. Institutionalized settings, while appropriate and even beneficial for many older Americans, have a disproportionately adverse effect on Holocaust survivors, as these environments reintroduce the sights, sounds, and routines reminiscent of experiences during the Holocaust.

It is impossible for us to imagine the traumatic nightmares that survivors still experience. That is why it is so important for us to help this particular population secure alternatives to institutionalization such as aging in place, which may be more appropriate for a Holocaust survivor.

In introducing this legislation, we applaud those organizations that have already dedicated their tireless efforts to honoring and assisting Holocaust survivors in their communities across the country. These organizations strive every day to improve the difficult situations facing survivors in our communities. It is important that in coming years Congress work with the administration and the Department of Health and Human Services to provide Holocaust survivors with needed social services through existing programs, such as at the Administration on Aging.

It is fortuitous that this resolution comes to the floor the same week that we celebrate Chanukah, the Jewish festival of lights. This holiday is a time to dedicate ourselves to the ideals of justice. At a time of year when people of all backgrounds are exchanging gifts, we must remember those in our society who have had so much taken from them in their lifetimes. We must share these stories and proclaim these lessons in public, that ours is a Nation of freedom and justice for all.

Our children's generation will be the last to know Holocaust survivors and hear their stories firsthand. We must do all we can to honor their struggles and their lives by granting them the utmost peace in their remaining years.

I want to thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for their strong support; 102 Members are cosponsors of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Concurrent Resolution 323, to support the goal of ensuring that all Holocaust survivors in the United States are able to live with dignity, comfort, and security in their remaining years. Sixty-seven years ago, a brave group of Jewish resistance fighters rose up against their German occupiers in the Warsaw Ghetto when the Nazis attempted to transport the remaining population to Treblinka extermination camp. Launched on January 18, 1943, the bulk of the uprising took place from April the 19 through May 16. It was the largest single revolt by the Jewish people during the Holocaust.

The United States officially commemorates the Holocaust during the Days of Remembrance, which is held each April, marking the anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. For the Holocaust survivors admitted or emigrated to the United States in the wake of the horrific atrocities during World War II, these events are a stark reminder of the darkness and hate they endured on a daily basis for more than 12 years.

Today, there are more than 36 million people in the United States who are over the age of 65, making it the fastest growing age group in the country. Of this total, more than 127,000 are Holocaust survivors remaining in the United States. All Holocaust survivors are at least 65 years old, and approximately three-quarters of them are older than 75 years of age, and a majority in their eighties and nineties. As more of these survivors age every year, our Federal, State, and local governments must provide them with the needed services they need to maintain their health and independence in their homes and communities.

The U.S. Administration on Aging, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and responsible for administering the Older Americans Act, plays an important role in organizing and delivering social services for elderly Americans. The Older Americans Act is the first stop for seniors and their families to identify home- and community-based long-term care options, as well as transportation, nutrition, and referral to home care, health, and other social services.

When Congress, led by the Education and Labor Committee, last reauthorized the law in 2006, we strengthened the act to promote consumer choice, as well as home- and community-based supports to help older individuals avoid institutional care, improve health and nutrition programs, and educational and volunteer services, increase Federal, State, and local coordination, and reform employment-based training for older Americans. These important changes will ensure the quality and effectiveness of Federal programs aimed at assisting the elderly, including the Holocaust survivors still living and residing in the U.S.

Mr. Speaker, today we honor 127,000 survivors of the Holocaust currently living in the United States, and we pay tribute to those brave souls who have passed away over the last six decades. We applaud the work of nonprofit organizations and agencies that have worked and continued to work tirelessly to honor and to assist Holocaust survivors in their local communities. And we must commit to providing those survivors with needed social services so they are able to live with dignity, comfort, and security in their remaining years.

I urge my colleagues to support House Concurrent Resolution 323.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to my distinguished colleague from Virginia (Mr. Wolf).

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to associate my last remarks with the gentleman from New York and the remarks that have been made.

I think one of the greatest blights in world history is the history of the Holocaust. The world stood by and watched the murder of millions of innocent men, women and children. We just a moment ago spoke about child advocacy, and look at the families that were dislodged, displaced. It's one of the most horrific events in world history, I believe, and should never, ever, be allowed to be repeated on this Earth.

So I strongly encourage my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this resolution. It's a privilege to be here and be on the House floor to speak on behalf of that.

With that, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 323) supporting the goal of ensuring that all Holocaust survivors in the United States are able to live with dignity, comfort, and security in their remaining years.

Mr. Speaker, I request 5 legislative days during which Members may revise and extend and insert extraneous material on House Concurrent Resolution 323 into the Record.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Concurrent Resolution 323, which supports the goals of ensuring that all Holocaust survivors in the United States are able to live with dignity, comfort, and security in their remaining years.

During the Holocaust, which took place between 1933 and 1945, the Nazis and their partners murdered an estimated 6 million Jews and other targeted groups. Those who survived torture and forced labor under Nazi occupation continue to live with the scars of this horrible tragedy.

This resolution supports the goal of ensuring that all Holocaust survivors in the United States are able to live with dignity and comfort in their remaining years. I applaud the nonprofit organizations and agencies that work extensively to honor and assist the Holocaust survivors in their communities.

This resolution urges the administration and the Department of Health and Human Services, in conjunction with the Administration on Aging, to provide Holocaust survivors with needed social services through existing programs.

Lastly, the resolution encourages the Administration on Aging to develop and implement programs that ensure Holocaust survivors are able to age in place in their communities and avoid being institutionalized during their remaining years.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague, Representative Wasserman Schultz, for introducing this resolution, and once again express my support. I urge my colleagues to support this important resolution.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz), who is the author of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Schakowsky).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Quigley).

I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel).

Mr. Speaker, the Holocaust was one of the most unspeakable tragedies in history. The amount pain and suffering of those individuals who endured the terror of the Nazi regime can never be quantified.

House Concurrent Resolution 323 is an important resolution that calls on our Nation to ensure that Holocaust survivors are afforded appropriate resources in order to live their remaining years with dignity.

I am thankful that we live in a country that continues to cherish individual freedoms and maintains an unbreakable bond with Israel. It's imperative that our Nation teach lessons from the past, be a force for tolerance, and build upon shared democratic values and desire for security and stability.

With this in mind, I was proud to introduce H.R. 6363, the Supporting Law Enforcement through Lessons of the Holocaust Act earlier this Congress.

This legislation creates a new 4-year grant at the Department of Justice, our State and local law enforcement agencies, to carry out the programs that will teach these officers about the implications of the Holocaust for modern day law enforcement professionals.

Stories of personal struggle from the Holocaust live on through our historic records, families, friends and survivors of that horrific time. Our Nation owes it to the survivors to ensure their security and safety with utmost priority.

With that, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Klein).

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Con. Res. 323 and thank the gentleman for yielding.

I believe we have a moral obligation to ensure that all members of our society are able to age with grace and dignity and to speak out, to speak out if we notice that a particular group within our society is facing unique barriers toward this goal.

As many have noted earlier, there are approximately 127,000 Holocaust survivors living in the United States today. Despite being victims of unfathomable crimes, and crimes that unfortunately the world stood by and looked the other way for years and years and years, these individuals immigrated and assimilated into the United States to become valuable members and contributors to our society.

Nursing homes and assisted care settings provide many of my constituents with an invaluable service and caring homes. However, we are noticing that a disproportionate number of Holocaust survivors, many of whom are now in their eighties and nineties, are not able to easily transition to these facilities.

This is specifically due to their horrific past experiences. Just remember the movie, Schindler's List. Many facilities simply do not have the additional resources that would be necessary to care for most of these survivors.

Given this challenge, it is important we work to raise awareness of existing opportunities to minimize this emerging situation. Many Holocaust survivors and the nonprofit organizations and agencies that work with them daily have found that aging-in-place programs help to alleviate this problem.

I urge that the administration, the Department of Health and Human Services, in partnership with the Administration on Aging, and nonprofit groups, work with the Holocaust survivors to address their needs through existing programs and also to work on developing innovative and efficient solutions to address this challenge.

I am pleased to work again with my colleague from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz), to introduce this resolution to highlight this issue. Again, as I said, for the longest time in the thirties and forties, the world looked the other way.

Just go to the Holocaust Museum and see many times people were crying out and the word was coming out of Germany and yet people looked the other way.

So I strongly urge support of this and I hope when it's voted on, if there is a roll call vote, it will be a unanimous vote.

Mr. Speaker, I rise as an original sponsor of H. Con. Res. 323, a bipartisan resolution conceived with the purpose of ensuring that all Holocaust survivors in the United States are able to live with dignity, comfort, and security in their remaining years.

During the Holocaust, an estimated 6,000,000 Jews and other targeted groups were murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators. Approximately 96,000 Holocaust survivors were admitted to the United States immediately after the war. Another 100,000 Holocaust survivors were admitted after 1952. Today, approximately 127,000 Holocaust survivors live in the United States.

The majority of Holocaust survivors are at least 65 years old and approximately two-thirds of them are elderly women. Many of them face the risk of isolation and financial insecurity.

Holocaust survivors are 5 times more likely to be living below the poverty line than other older people living in the United States. They are more reliant on social service programs and most of them live alone. Living alone puts these survivors at increased risk of institutionalization.

While institutionalized settings are beneficial for some older people, institutionalization has a disproportionate adverse effect on Holocaust survivors by reintroducing sights, sounds, and routines that are reminiscent of their experiences during the Holocaust.

This bill encourages the Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services, in conjunction with the Administration on Aging, to provide Holocaust survivors with needed social services through existing programs. The bill also urges the Administration to expeditiously develop and implement programs that ensure Holocaust survivors are able to live their remaining years in place in their communities.

Mr. Speaker, the United States is a nation that values freedom, liberty, and justice. As such, we are morally obligated to acknowledge the plight and encourage the dignity of our citizens, such as survivors of the Holocaust, who have suffered and who are in need.

I encourage my colleagues to join me in support of this resolution.