Rep. Maloney applauds historic U.S.-French deal to compensate Holocaust victims deported on SNCF trains
WASHINGTON – Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) today released the following statement applauding a historic agreement reached between U.S. and French diplomats to compensate Holocaust victims who were deported on Société nationale des chemins de fer français (SNCF) trains. Maloney’s efforts helped bring the French to the negotiating table. Maloney authored the Holocaust Rail Justice Act (H.R. 1505) to allow Holocaust victims living in the U.S. to sue SNCF and had led opposition to public rail contracts for SNCF until the company paid for its crimes.
“This is a breakthrough in a decades-long struggle for justice waged by Holocaust survivors who were brought to death camps on SNCF trains hired by the Nazis. This settlement will deliver fair compensation to these victims and to the loved ones of those who did not live to see this deal finalized.
“I applaud Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat and the French negotiators who worked tirelessly to find agreement. The world made a promise to never forget the Holocaust’s unspeakable horrors. That is why, nearly 70 years after the end of World War II, we are still making sure that those who participated in the Holocaust pay just compensation to those they harmed.
“Today far too many Holocaust survivors are living in poverty, sometimes as a direct result of the atrocities they experienced. It is long past time for these victims to receive compensation for all that they endured“
Background:
Maloney worked aggressively to bring the French to the bargaining table by working to block government contracts with SNCF subsidiaries in the United States and by pursuing legislation that would have exposed SNCF to lawsuits from victims living in the United States. Similar agreements were previously struck for survivors living in France, Belgium, Poland, the United Kingdom and the Czech Republic.
Timeline of Maloney Actions:
April 28, 2014 - Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) joined City Council Members Mark Levine and Benjamin Kallos in support of a New York City Council resolution in support of barring contracting with companies that profited from the Holocaust, but have never compensated victims.
March 12, 2014 – Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) write to Secretary of State John Kerry to stress the urgency of delivering fair and reasonable reparations to Holocaust survivors and their families.
February 5, 2014 – Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) applaud new legislation introduced in the Maryland state legislature to deny contracts to companies that were complicit in the Holocaust unless those companies have paid restitution to the victims.
January 30, 2014 – Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) visits the rail lines in Poland that brought over a million men, women and children to their death. Maloney was in Poland to observe the 69th anniversary of liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp.
January 27, 2014 - Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) send a letter to Maryland’s Department of Transportation requesting that the state sever ties with a French rail firm that aided the Nazi’s during World War II. SNCF subsidiary Keolis had been selected to bid on the Purple Line rail extension project in Maryland.
April 11, 2013 - Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) re-introduce the Holocaust Rail Justice Act (H.R. 1505), which would provide Holocaust survivors their day in court against SNCF, the French rail company that transported more than 75,000 Jews and thousands of others-- including U.S. air pilots—to concentration camps during World War II.
November 16, 2011 - Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) testifies before the House Foreign Affairs Committee in support of her bill, the “Holocaust Rail Justice Act” (H.R. 1193), which would provide Holocaust survivors their day in court against the French rail company, SNCF, for its role in transporting thousands to their deaths during World War II.
March 17, 2011 - Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY14) re-introduces bipartisan legislation (H.R. 1193) to hold railroad companies that worked with the Nazis accountable in U.S. courts.
December 9, 2009 - Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY14) re-introduces bipartisan legislation (H.R. 4237) to hold railroad companies that worked with the Nazis accountable in U.S. courts.
October 9, 2007 - Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY14) re-introduces bipartisan legislation (H.R. 3713) to hold railroad companies that worked with the Nazis accountable in U.S. courts.
February 1, 2005 - Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY14) re-introduces bipartisan legislation (H.R. 474) to hold railroad companies that worked with the Nazis accountable in U.S. courts.
July 25, 2003 - Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY14) introduces bipartisan legislation (H.R. 2954) to hold railroad companies that worked with the Nazis accountable in U.S. courts.