Sens. Cruz, Rubio, Baldwin Pen Letter to Polish Prime Minister Regarding Proposed Holocaust-Era Property Restitution Legislation
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today joined Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), as part of a total of 59 Senate colleagues, in sending a letter to the Polish Prime Minster regarding Poland’s proposed Holocaust-Era property restitution legislation. A copy of the letter is available here.
“After more than 70 years since one of the darkest chapters in human history, the world must continue to right the terrible and evil injustices that occurred during the Holocaust,” Sen. Cruz said. “Unfortunately, Poland is considering a draft Holocaust-Era property restitution bill that fails to rectify one of the greatest historic injustices perpetrated by the Nazis: the systematic and widespread looting and stealing of private property. The Nazis destroyed 90 percent of Poland’s Jewish community, and approximately half of the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust were Polish. It is therefore outrageous Poland has proposed legislation that would exclude the majority of Polish Holocaust survivors and their heirs, including almost all American survivors and their family members, from being eligible to recover property that was rightfully theirs. Poland should be facilitating a way to return property stolen during the Holocaust to the rightful owners and their descendants, not keeping it from them.
“I am proud to join Sens. Rubio and Baldwin in standing up for victims of the Holocaust and their families, and call on Poland to work with the United States and the World Jewish Restitution Organization to ensure that any restitution legislation allows survivors and their families to receive the justice they deserve.”
Gideon Taylor, Chair of Operations at the World Jewish Restitution Organization, and Leah Mueller, Senior Adult Services Program Manager and Legislative Issues Liaison at the Jewish Family Service of Houston, applauded Sen. Cruz for his leadership on this issue.
“Senator Cruz has been a champion of the rights of Holocaust victims and their families and we are most grateful for his tremendous support for this critical effort to seek justice for Holocaust survivors," Taylor said.
“As a resident of Texas who works with and cares for Holocaust survivors, I want to thank Senator Cruz for standing up for them,” Mueller said.
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