II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 91 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to 60 diplomats, in recognition of 

their bravery and heroism during the Holocaust. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 26, 2023 

Mr. HAGERTY (for himself and Mr. KAINE) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

A BILL 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to 60 diplomats, in 

recognition of their bravery and heroism during the Holocaust. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Forgotten Heroes of 

5 the Holocaust Congressional Gold Medal Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The following diplomats will be honored 

9 posthumously: Per Anger (Sweden), Jose Maria 


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1 Barreto (Peru), Lars Berg (Sweden), Philippe 

2 Bernardini (Vatican/Italy), Hiram (Harry) Bingham 

3 IV (United States), Friedrich Born (Switzerland), 

4 Manuel Antonio Mun ̃oz Borrero (Ecuador), Carlos 

5 de Liz-Texeira Branquinho (Portugal), Eduardo 

6 Propper de Callejo ́n (Spain), Samuel del Campo 

7 (Chile), Aracy Moebius Carvalho de Guimara ̃es Rosa 

8 (Brazil), Jose ́ Arturo Castellanos (El Salvador), Carl 

9 Ivan Danielsson (Sweden), Luis Martins de Souza 

10 Dantas (Brazil), Georg Ferdinand Duckwitz (Ger11 many), Harald Feller (Switzerland), Francis 

12 (Frank) Foley (United Kingdom), Jean-Edouard 

13 Friedrich (Switzerland), Carlos Almeida Afonseca de 

14 Sampaio Garrido (Portugal), Raymond Herman 

15 Geist (United States), Feng-Shan Ho (China), 

16 Constantin Karadja (Romania), Alexander Kasser 

17 (Sa ́ndor Kasza) (Sweden/Hungary), Elow Kihlgren 

18 (Sweden), Joseph Willem (Joop) Kolkman (Nether19 lands), Julius Ku ̈hl (Switzerland), Aleksander 4ados ́

20 (Poland), Valdemar Langlet (Sweden), Charles 

21 (Carl) Lutz (Switzerland), George Mandel-Mantello 

22 (El Salvador), Florian Manoliu (Romania), Aristides 

23 de Sousa Mendes (Portugal), Salomon Jacob (Sally) 

24 Noach (Netherlands), Giorgio (Jorge) Perlasca 

25 (Spain/Italy), Ernst Prodolliet (Switzerland), Franjo 


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1 Puncˇuch (Yugoslavia/Slovenia), Sebastia ́n de Ro2 mero Radigales (Spain), Konstanty Rokicki (Po3 land), Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli (Vatican/Italy), An4 gelo Rotta (Vatican/Italy), Albert Emile Routier 

5 (Turkey), Stefan Ryniewicz (Poland), Gilberto 

6 Bosques Saldı ́var (Mexico), Jose ́ Ruiz Santaella 

7 (Spain), A ́ngel Sanz-Briz (Spain), Abdol-Hossein 

8 Sardari (Iran), Henryk Slawik (Poland), Robert 

9 Smallbones (United Kingdom), Ja ́n Spisˇiak (Slo10 vakia), Chiune (Sempo) Sugihara (Japan), 

11 Ireanaeus Typaldos (Spain), Alexander (Sa ́ndor) 

12 U ́jva ́ry (Vatican/Hungary), Selahattin U ̈lku ̈men 

13 (Turkey), Gennaro Verolino (Vatican/Italy), 

14 Vladimı ́r Vochocˇ (Czech Republic), Ernst Vonrufs 

15 (Switzerland), Raoul Wallenberg (Sweden), Guelfo 

16 Zamboni (Italy), Peter Zu ̈rcher (Switzerland), and 

17 Jan Zwartendijk (Holland). 

18 (2) On September 1, 1939, Adolf Hitler and 

19 the Nazis began their invasion of Europe, which 

20 started World War II and threw the world into 

21 chaos. The Nazi plan of mass murder of the Jewish 

22 population was in full motion. As battles were being 

23 fought between countries, Jews were being rounded 

24 up and sent to concentration camps throughout Eu25 rope. This process began a mass exodus of people 


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1 out of Europe, especially those in the Jewish com2 munity. 

3 (3) During the war, members of the Jewish 

4 community used every tool and means at their dis5 posal to flee Nazi tyranny. Thousands tried to flee 

6 on trains or boats to escape from Europe. 

7 (4) While the armies of countries were fighting 

8 each other, a handful of diplomats, from around the 

9 world, stepped forward and took heroic actions to 

10 save Jews fleeing Europe. This was an incredibly 

11 dangerous process. If the Nazis discovered the ac12 tions of these diplomats they would be expelled, as 

13 a few of them were. Also, while worrying about the 

14 Nazis, diplomats had to worry about their careers 

15 and livelihoods back home. Many of them had strict 

16 orders from their home countries to not aid the Jew17 ish population in any way. 

18 (5) These diplomats used every means at their 

19 disposal to help Jews fleeing persecution. One of the 

20 most powerful tools the diplomats had to use was 

21 the issuing of passports and travel visas contrary to 

22 the instruction of the governments of the diplomats. 

23 This process alone is responsible for saving hundreds 

24 of thousands of Jewish families in Europe. This was 

25 not the only tool used as many of the diplomats were 


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1 connected with the local populations and were great 

2 communicators for Jews trying to travel under3 ground. They were able set up safehouses and 

4 getaways to hide Jews and especially Jewish children 

5 from Nazi authorities. In the most dangerous of 

6 times, several of these diplomats confronted the 

7 Nazis directly on behalf of the Jews and personally 

8 put themselves in grave danger. 

9 (6) Every diplomat knew the dangers and knew 

10 what they were up against, and still pushed forward 

11 to save those in the most danger. 

12 (7) The Congressional Gold Medal authorized 

13 under this Act will help remind humanity that when 

14 the diplomats were faced with terrible crises, they 

15 went beyond the fold, including risking their careers 

16 and the lives of themselves and their families, to en17 gage in this humanitarian mission. The diplomats of 

18 today and future generations can look towards these 

19 heroes and be inspired by their lives of heroism and 

20 sacrifice. 

21 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

22 (a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of 

23 the House of Representatives and the President pro tem24 pore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements 

25 for the presentation, on behalf of Congress, of a single 


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1 gold medal of appropriate design in honor of the 60 dip2 lomats identified in section 2(1), in recognition of their 

3 brave and vital service of saving Jews during World War 

4 II. 

5 (b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For purposes of the 

6 presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary 

7 of the Treasury (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Sec8 retary’’) shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, 

9 devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Sec10 retary. 

11 (c) PRESENTATION OF MEDAL.—The gold medal pre12 sented under subsection (a) shall be presented to the eld13 est next of kin of each of the 60 diplomats identified in 

14 section 2(1), who shall receive the medal as part of a dele15 gation consisting of a senior official representative of the 

16 country that each diplomat served and the cochairs of the 

17 Forgotten Heroes of the Holocaust Committee. 

18 (d) UNITED STATES HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL MU19 SEUM.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the 

21 gold medal in honor of the 60 diplomats identified 

22 in section 2(1), the gold medal shall be given to the 

23 United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, where 

24 it will be available for display as appropriate and 

25 available for research. 


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1 (2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 

2 Congress that the United States Holocaust Memo3 rial Museum should make the gold medal awarded 

4 pursuant to this Act available for display elsewhere, 

5 particularly at appropriate locations associated with 

6 Holocaust remembrance. 

7 SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

8 The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

9 bronze of the gold medal struck under section 3, at a price 

10 sufficient to cover the costs of the medals, including labor, 

11 materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses. 

12 SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS. 

13 (a) NATIONAL MEDAL.—Medals struck pursuant to 

14 this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 

15 of title 31, United States Code. 

16 (b) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of section 

17 5134 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck 

18 under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items. 

19 SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF 

20 SALE. 

21 (a) AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS.—There is 

22 authorized to be charged against the United States Mint 

23 Public Enterprise Fund such amounts as may be nec24 essary to pay for the costs of the medals struck under 

25 this Act. 


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1 (b) PROCEEDS OF SALE.—Amounts received from the 

2 sale of duplicate bronze medals authorized under section 

3 4 shall be deposited into the United States Mint Public 

4 Enterprise Fund. 

Æ 


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