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INFAMOUS CHAPTER IN U.S. HISTORY COMES TO A CLOSE IN WILLIAMSBURG
New York City - The Jews of Hungary were ravaged in the Holocaust. Over 40,000 perished at the hands of the Nazis from 1941 to 1945, and the survivors were victimized again – by the United States.
This is the story of the Hungarian Gold Train – and it’s the bittersweet final chapter that is being written today in Brooklyn.
In addition to systematically exterminating the Jews of Europe, the Nazis plundered all they could from their victims, and the victims in Hungary were no different.
The Nazis and the pro-Nazi government of Hungary stole heirlooms, fine art and other possessions from the Hungarian Jewish community, and loaded them onto a train—the so called “Hungarian Gold Train.”
In 1945, at the end of World War II, the U.S. Army intercepted the train in Austria. On board they found $200 million in valuables belonging to Hungarian Jews, but the property was never returned to its rightful owners.
In fact, some was requisitioned for the personal use of U.S. Generals and others. Many items were auctioned in 1948 by the U.S. government while the rest was lost or destroyed.
In May of 2001, Hungarian Holocaust survivors sued the federal government, seeking compensation for their loss. Instead of paying a debt which was decades overdue, the United States immediately resorted to denial and legal maneuvering, adding to the pain and suffering of the Gold Train survivors.
The Department of Justice sought to dismiss the case claiming that the statue of limitations had passed and that survivors lacked “due diligence.” It was an abysmal failure of the country’s moral duty to right this wrong.
In October 2003, Rep. Weiner called on then Attorney General Ashcroft to resolve the suit quickly and fairly, to no avail.
A year later, in December 2004, Rep. Weiner hoped for a more receptive audience in Attorney General-Nominee Alberto Gonzales, and he led a group of 11 Members of Congress who urged the United States to reach a swift and equitable resolution to the case.
A breakthrough finally came in September 2005 when the U.S. government announced that it had reached a $25.5 million settlement with the approximately 60,000 Holocaust survivors worldwide seeking restitution.
Twenty-one million in the settlement fund will provide social service programs over 5 years for Hungarian Holocaust survivors and their heirs. $500,000 will fund an archival project to collect documents and artifacts relating to the case. The remaining funds will cover attorneys’ fees and compensation to named plaintiffs.
The settlement is long overdue justice, justice that Hungarian Jews in New York City can celebrate today as the first $4.2 million funds social services – medical assistance, home care or emergency cash assistance – at non-profit organizations.
Of the $4.2 million, $553,000 has gone directly to New York City organizations serving Holocaust survivors, including the United Jewish Organization (UJO), Bikur Cholim of Boro Park, Selfhelp Community Services Inc. and Blue Card Inc.
The payouts will continue for four more years, and after decades of wrangling, this story has come to a close.
“60,000 Holocaust survivors fought for too long for justice,” said Rep. Weiner. “And it’s a battle they never should have had to fight. Those who endured the suffering of the Holocaust did not deserve the added pain of a protracted fight to claim what was rightfully theirs.”
Congressman Anthony D. Weiner
