WASHINGTON, DC (April 14, 2010) – Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-IL, made the following statement on the House floor in response to the tragic plane crash that killed Poland’s President Lech Kaczynski and others.

“I rise this morning to express my sincere condolences to the people of Poland as they mourn the death President Lech Kaczynski and his wife Maria, and to the families and friends of the other ninety-four men and women who lost their lives in Saturday’s airplane crash near Russia’s Katyn forest.

“Chicago is the second largest Polish city in the world, second only to Warsaw.  Among those killed was Wojciech Seweryn, a Chicago sculptor who emigrated from Poland over three decades ago. Seweryn’s father was one of over 20,000 Poles killed by Soviets Union in the Katyn forest in 1940.  He was traveling with the Polish President to mark the 70th anniversary of the massacre.

“I join with Chicago’s vibrant Polish-American community, and with Poland’s friends around the world, in mourning the loss of the ninety-six men and women who lost their lives on Saturday.”