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K00627 Summary:

BILL NOK00627
 
SAME ASNo Same As
 
SPONSORBarclay
 
COSPNSR
 
MLTSPNSRBlake, Braunstein, Crouch, DeStefano, D'Urso, Fahy, Fitzpatrick, Galef, Jaffee, Johns, Lupardo, McDonald, Morinello, Norris, Ortiz, Raia, Reilly, Smullen, Weprin
 
 
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K00627 Actions:

BILL NOK00627
 
06/18/2019introduced
06/19/2019adopted
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K00627 Committee Votes:

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K00627 Floor Votes:

There are no votes for this bill in this legislative session.
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K00627 Text:

 
Assembly Resolution No. 627
 
BY: M. of A. Barclay
 
        COMMEMORATING  the  75th  Anniversary  of the Fort
        Ontario Emergency Refugee  Shelter  in  Oswego,  New
        York
 
  WHEREAS,  It  is the sense of this Legislative Body to recognize the
efforts of those organizations that seek to illuminate  historical  time
periods,  places  and  events  within  the  State of New York and, in so
doing, help to ensure that the complete history of our State and  Nation
is  preserved,  to  be  shared  with  present  and future generations of
citizens; and
 
  WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and  in  full  accord  with  its
long-standing  traditions,  this  Legislative  Body  is  justly proud to
commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the Fort Ontario  Emergency  Refugee
Shelter in Oswego, New York; and
 
  WHEREAS, On Monday, August 5, 2019, the Safe Haven Holocaust Refugee
Shelter  Museum,  Fort  Ontario  State  Historic  Site,  Friends of Fort
Ontario and the greater community will celebrate the 75th Anniversary of
the arrival of the 982 World War II refugees who came to Oswego and were
given shelter at Fort Ontario; and
 
  WHEREAS, Attending the 75th Anniversary Commemoration Ceremony  will
be  former refugees of the Holocaust, their families, religious leaders,
Jewish groups, historians, public  officials,  U.S.  Holocaust  Memorial
Museum  Curator  and  Historian  Rebecca Erbelding, Safe Haven Holocaust
Refugee Shelter Museum President Kevin Hill, and others; and
 
  WHEREAS, President Franklin D. Roosevelt announced his  proposal  to
create an emergency shelter at Fort Ontario for victims of the Holocaust
and  war  refugees on June 12, 1944; this was the first and only refugee
center established in the United States during World War II; and
 
  WHEREAS, To carry  out  President  Franklin  D.  Roosevelt's  order,
Secretary  of  the  Interior,  Harold Ickes, sent Special Assistant Ruth
Gruber to Italy to bring back war refugees to the United States; it took
over two weeks to cross the rough Atlantic Ocean, however, according  to
documented  accounts  from the refugees, the hardship of the journey was
well worth the wait when the refugees first caught glimpse of the Statue
of Liberty; and
 
  WHEREAS, In the early morning of August 5, 1944, the 982 men,  women
and children from war torn Europe arrived at Fort Ontario in Oswego; and
 
  WHEREAS,  The  982  refugees  were  from  18  different countries in
Central Europe that were liberated from the Nazis; most of the  refugees
were  Jewish  and  priority  was  given  to  those  refugees who were in
concentration camps and  had  escaped  or  who  lost  relatives  in  the
Holocaust; and
 
  WHEREAS,  'Fort  Ontario is where the Holocaust came to America' and
where Americans first encountered the persecution  and  horrors  of  the
Nazis through the victim's eyes; and
 
 
  WHEREAS,  Due  to  their undefined immigration status, refugees were
not allowed  to  leave  Fort  Ontario,  however,  the  Oswego  Community
welcomed  these  guests;  over  time,  children  were  allowed to attend
schools and the refugees were permitted daily access into  the  City  of
Oswego; and
 
  WHEREAS,  First  Lady  Eleanor Roosevelt visited the refugees at the
Fort Ontario Emergency Refugee Shelter on September 20, 1944; and
 
  WHEREAS, Advocates  for  the  refugees  at  Fort  Ontario  Emergency
Refugee  Center  petitioned  Congress  and  the  President  to grant the
refugees immigration status; their persistence  paid  off  as  President
Harry  Truman  signed an Executive Order allowing the refugees to remain
in the country; and
 
  WHEREAS, In January and February of  1946,  the  refugees  made  the
historic  trip  across  to  Canada  and  back  into the United States to
receive their immigration visas; and
 
  WHEREAS, The stories of these 982 men, women and children is a story
of tragedy, suffering and the  will  of  the  human  spirit;  it  is  an
important  piece of our history that should be retold for generations to
come and never forgotten; and
 
  WHEREAS, In 1989, the Save Haven, Inc. was founded with the  mission
of  honoring and keeping alive the story of these brave 982 refugees who
survived the terror of the Nazi reign during World War II; on October 6,
2002, the Safe Haven Museum and Education Center was  dedicated  in  the
former  Administration  Building  for the Fort Ontario Emergency Refugee
Center; and
 
  WHEREAS, The quality and character of  our  great  Empire  State  is
greatly   enhanced  by  institutions  that  engage  communities  in  the
exploration of New York's history and culture, instilling in them a deep
appreciation for the richness and breadth of our cultural heritage; and
 
  WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is pleased to have  this  opportunity
to  express  its highest admiration for the Safe Haven Holocaust Refugee
Shelter Museum, Fort  Ontario  State  Historic  Site,  Friends  of  Fort
Ontario  and  for all of the individuals who have worked to bring proper
attention to a place and time which  merits  recognition  in  the  grand
panorama of the history of our State and Nation; now, therefore, be it
 
  RESOLVED,  That  this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the Fort Ontario  Emergency  Refugee
Shelter in Oswego, New York; and be it further
 
  RESOLVED,  That  copies  of  this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to the Safe Haven Holocaust  Refugee  Shelter  Museum,  Fort
Ontario State Historic Site, and Friends of Fort Ontario.
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