May 24, 2006 Contact: Leslie Phillips (202) 224-2627 LIEBERMAN CELEBRATES CONNECTICUT HERO AT STAMP UNVEILING Harry Bingham Saved Thousands of Refugees Fleeing the Holocaust   Senator Joe Lieberman (D-Conn.) spoke today at the unveiling of a stamp to celebrate the heroic acts of Hiram Bingham IV during World War II. Documents that emerged after his death show that Bingham helped save thousands of refugees during World War II, when he worked as Vice-Counsel at the U.S. Embassy in Marseilles, by surreptitiously providing visas to refugees that had been denied by State Department policy. Senator Lieberman has been working with Bingham’s children and others for the past nine years to ensure Bingham received the recognition he deserved for his actions. This effort culminated in the unveiling of Bingham’s stamp today. “The stamp unveiled today will bring the honor due to Harry Bingham for his courageous acts that saved thousands of people from the horrors of the Holocaust,” Senator Lieberman said. “Connecticut, and America, should be proud today to celebrate Harry Bingham, who did all he could to save people’s lives, even when doing so violated State Department guidelines. As we gather today to honor him, we must continue to tell his remarkable story and to live by the example set by this honorable and righteous man.” While granting visas to refugees fleeing the Holocaust, Bingham violated State Department policy at the time. He is being posthumously recognized and applauded by the State Department for his dedication to saving refugees’ lives. Bingham, who lived in Salem, Conn., was the son of Connecticut Governor and U.S. Senator Hiram Bingham III, a Yale archeologist who led the discovery of Macchu Picchu.   ###   Printable Version   « previous Press Release next Press Release »   1998 - 1999 - 2000 - 2001 - 2002 - 2003 - 2004 - 2005 May 2006 Press Releases   May 31 - Lieberman Assails Homeland Security Grant Distribution   May 25 - Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Approves Nominees R. David Paulison and Lurita Alexis Doan   May 25 - Lieberman Warns of Active Hurricane Season in Northeast   May 25 - Lieberman Demands Answers about Information Theft   May 25 - Lieberman Calls for Second Extension of Unemplyoment Benefits for 2005 Hurricane Victims   May 25 - Homeland Security Committee to Vote on Nomination of R. David Paulison to Head FEMA   May 24 current Press Release   May 24 - Lieberman Demands Answers in Joint Hearing on Stolen Vet Data   May 24 - Lieberman Says FEMA Recovery is Fraught with Problems   May 23 - Senator Lieberman's Statement on the Nomination of Lurita Alexis Doan for Administrator of the General Services Administration   May 23 - Lieberman Comments on Security Breach Against Veterans   May 17 - Senator Lieberman Delivers Statement at Robert Portman's Confirmation Hearing   May 17 - Lieberman Challenges OMB Nominee on Administration’s Fiscal Irresponsibility   May 11 - Senate and House Homeland Security Committees Stress Importance of Keeping FEMA Capabilities Within DHS   May 9 - Lieberman Seeks Probe Into HUD Secretary's Cancellation of Contract to Man Who Disliked Bush   May 9 - Senators Collins, Lieberman Say Emergency Response Must Be Part of DHS   May 8 - Lieberman Presses Norquist on Halliburton Redactions to DOD Audit of Iraqi Contracts   May 3 - Lieberman Calls House Bill Unworthy of Name "Reform"   May 2 - Hurricane Katrina Report and Recommendations Pass Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee   May 2 - Port Security Legislation Authored by Senators Collins, Murray and Lieberman Passes Homeland Security Committee   May 2 - Committee Responds to Senator Clinton's Request that FEMA Be Returned to an Independent Agency
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