August 2, 2012 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S5957 

And he was also very wise. 

He realized that one of the best ways 

to change the cruel and repressive 

Cuban regime was to work from within. 

He used a provision in Cuba’s constitution to seek peaceful political 

change and openness. 

More specifically, he and his team 

created the Varela Project to gather 

more than 11,000 signatures of Cuban 

citizens on a petition that called for a 

more open political system. 

Keep in mind that putting one’s 

name on a petition to the Cuban Government is a courageous thing to do on 

that island. It puts that person and his 

or her family at great risk. 

Nonetheless, in May 2002, he bravely 

presented the petition to the Cuban 

National Assembly for action exactly 

as allowed for in the Cuban Constitution. 

What did the Cuban Government do 

in response to a heroic and reasonable 

call for change allowed for under the 

country’s own laws? 

It harassed Paya ́ and his followers. It 

began its own referendum that made 

the island’s socialist system ‘‘irrevocable,’’ even after an additional 14,000 

signatures were added to the Varela 

Project petition. 

A year later many of Paya ́’s allies 

were arrested in a crackdown that sent 

many dissidents, writers, and even librarians to prison. 

Can you believe this craven response? 

The Cuban Government couldn’t 

blame this Cuban-born effort on the 

United States, on other outside forces, 

on any of the usual suspects on which 

it blames all the island’s woes. 

Thousands of brave Cubans asking 

for political reform within the bounds 

of their own constitution were simply 

belittled, ignored, and harassed. 

Paya ́ was a modest man. I had hoped 

to meet him on my trip to the island 

earlier this year, but we were unable to 

visit—you see, the Cuban government 

doesn’t want outsiders to visit people 

like Paya ́. 

His peaceful and tireless efforts for 

peaceful change earned him the European Parliament’s Sakarov Prize for 

Freedom of Thought in 2002, the National Democratic Institute’s W. Averell Harriman Democracy Award in 2003, 

and a nomination for the Nobel Peace 

Prize from Va ́ clav Havel in 2005. 

Paya ́’s daughter Rosa Maria said 

amid her loss and tears last week that 

her father never gave up hope that the 

country could be changed from within 

and that ‘‘he just wanted for Cubans to 

have their rights . . . that’s all he ever 

wanted.’’ 

Tragically the Cuban Government 

even arrested almost 50 Cubans who 

showed up to pay their respects at 

Paya ́’s funeral. 

Can you imagine—arresting people at 

a peaceful memorial service? 

My colleagues, Senators BILL NELSON, MENENDEZ, and RUBIO, have introduced a Senate resolution recognizing 

his work and calling for the peaceful 

democratic changes in Cuba that Paya ́

spent his life pursuing. I am pleased to 

be a cosponsor of that resolution and 

was happy to see that it passed the 

Senate just yesterday. 

Lastly, let me note that Paya ́ was 

often concerned for his safety—sadly, 

given the Cuban Government’s treatment of those wanting political freedom, not an unwarranted fear. 

So I want to emphasize an important 

point in the Senate resolution on Mr. 

Paya ́. Specifically, I call on the Cuban 

Government to conduct a credible and 

transparent investigation into the auto 

accident that caused his death. 

The Cuban Government owes this 

Cuban patriot and the Cuban people 

nothing less than a full accounting of 

his death. It also owes them the basic 

freedoms he tirelessly stood for. 

Mr. President, I want to also take 

this opportunity to talk about another 

tragedy that continues day after day in 

Cuba—that of the detention of American citizen Alan Gross. 

Alan was arrested more than 21⁄2

years ago while trying to help the 

Cuban people have greater ability to 

communicate with one another. 

When you go to Cuba, you realize the 

Castro regime not only blames the 

United States for all its woes but cynically makes it difficult for everyday 

Cubans to communicate or connect to 

the outside world using the Internet. 

That is why thousands upon thousands of Cubans use a free Internet library every year at the U.S. Interests 

Section in Havana. 

Alan Gross was arrested initially as a 

spy and eventually sentenced to 15 

years in prison. 

That is right—15 years. 

Mr. Gross apologized for his actions 

and has asked for Cuban compassion to 

allow him to visit his 90-year old mother suffering from inoperable lung cancer in the United States. The United 

States recently let a former Cuban detainee who was out on supervised release in the United States visit his ailing brother in Cuba, but the Cuban 

Government has shown no such decency in return. 

I met Alan in January in Cuba, and I 

am appreciative of the Cuban Government for allowing me that visit. He 

tried to remain in good spirits, but it 

wasn’t easy. He has lost more than 100 

pounds since his incarceration. He 

struggles to keep busy and healthy in 

jail, but it is not easy. Quite simply, he 

has been separated from his family for 

far too long. 

Alan Gross is a kind, decent man. He 

is no spy. He is no threat to anyone. In 

fact, despite all that has happened, he 

noted to me how deeply he still cares 

for the Cuban people. 

Let me say this as clear as I can: 

Alan Gross should no longer be a pawn 

of the Cuban Government in its disagreements with the United States. 

The Cuban Government has made its 

point. It will get nothing but international shame from holding Alan any 

longer. 

Let me also note that I do not support the failed U.S. embargo against 

Cuba and think the best way to see 

change on the island is to flood it with 

American ideas and people. 

But I will have to think long and 

hard before I do anything further to 

ease our relations while Alan remains 

so cruelly behind bars. 

To Oswaldo Paya ́’s family and brave 

colleagues and to Alan Gross, please 

know that you are not forgotten here 

in the Senate and around the world. 

f 

TRIBUTE TO REPRESENTATIVE 

PAUL FINDLEY 

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, today I 

wish to honor former Congressman 

Paul Findley—a great American who 

served his country in war and in the 

hallowed halls of Congress, a son of Illinois, a prolific writer and Lincoln 

scholar, a former political adversary, 

and my now friend. 

Paul Findley was born in Jacksonville, Illinois, on June 23, 1921. And at 

91 years of age, today Paul is as active 

and involved as he has ever been. Paul 

earned a bachelor’s degree from his beloved Illinois College in his hometown 

in 1943, where he was inducted into the 

prestigious Phi Beta Kappa society. 

After college, Paul served as a lieutenant in the Navy in the Pacific Theater 

from 1943 to 1946. His honorable service 

and that of the dwindling number of 

living Americans who served during 

World War II—one of the most difficult 

periods in our country’s history is 

something we should all take time to 

reflect on and thank them for. 

After the war, Paul became president 

of Pike Press, Inc., in Pittsfield. He 

spent several years as editor of this 

small town weekly newspaper. In 1952, 

Findley lost a bid for the Republican 

nomination for State senator—something he and I have in common, having 

lost our first campaigns for public office—but it didn’t stop either of us. 

In 1960 Paul Findley was elected to 

the U.S. House of Representatives representing the 20th Congressional District of Illinois. He served in the House 

honorably for more than 20 years, until 

in 1982 a young lawyer from Springfield 

and a long shot to win surprised a lot 

of people, including many of his supporters, by unseating the incumbent 

Findley. Though Paul Findley and I 

were opponents in that campaign, I always respected him and his public service. Notwithstanding what is often a 

bitter and rancorous climate of partisan politics, I am proud to call Paul 

Findley my friend. 

One of Paul Findley’s greatest accomplishments during his long and distinguished congressional career was his 

dogged, ultimately successful effort to 

preserve a great American treasure— 

the Springfield home of our beloved 

son of Illinois, Abraham Lincoln. 

Strolling today through this historic 

neighborhood at the heart of Springfield, as thousands of visitors do each 

year, it would be almost inconceivable 

that preserving Lincoln’s home was 

ever a matter of debate. But it once 


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S5958 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE August 2, 2012 

was. Back in the 1950s, the site visitors 

see today looked very different. 

Where now-restored historic homes 

line a gravel street in a stately and 

peaceful neighborhood, then stood souvenir shops surrounded by a neighborhood that Paul Findley would later recall was, ‘‘rundown and decaying in all 

directions.’’ The Lincoln home itself— 

what Lincoln’s own private secretary 

once called ‘‘the precious heirloom of 

the republic’’—was then the property 

of the State of Illinois. 

For years, developers had tried to encroach on the historic site with the 

goal of exploiting the area for commercial opportunities. Some wanted a 

theme park. Others tried to build wax 

museums or hotels or buffet restaurants in close proximity. Still others had been trying unsuccessfully to 

ensure the home’s restoration and the 

preservation of the historical integrity 

of the surrounding area. In Congressman Paul Findley, those who wanted 

to honor this piece of history found 

their champion. 

Findley traces his own interest in 

this project back to a presentation at a 

meeting of the Pittsfield Chamber of 

Commerce in 1955 well before he held 

elected office. At the meeting, a 

Springfield resident presented a case 

for preserving the Lincoln Home and 

developing the site commercially. 

While the plan for development never 

got off the ground, the presenter did 

make a point that Findley never forgot—that the Lincoln Home had largely been neglected compared to other 

Presidential homes. This, Findley regarded as ‘‘shameful, awful, scandalous.’’ It was in 1967, as the congressman representing the district that encompassed the Lincoln site that Findley became directly involved and took 

up the mantle of this effort. After 

years of lining up local, state, and national support, Congressman Findley 

announced in 1969 at a Springfield dinner that he would introduce legislation 

in Congress to make the site part of 

the National Park System. At that dinner was New York Governor Nelson 

Rockefeller, whom Findley had successfully enlisted in the effort, 

The late Senators Charles Percy and 

Everett Dirksen introduced companion 

legislation in the Senate. The bills had 

the support of every member of the Illinois congressional delegation. But even 

with all this support, as those of us 

who have been around here long 

enough know, the fight wasn’t over. 

Money, as always, was an issue. People 

began trying to raise private funds. 

Congressman Findley worked tirelessly 

to get the attention of the relevant 

committee and subcommittee chairs— 

Democrats held the majorities in both 

Chambers at the time. Among other 

things, he invited key members to 

Springfield to tour the site after which 

they usually agreed to support his efforts. 

I have no doubt that the commitments of these members to support his 

bill had as much to do with Findley’s 

tenacity, passion, and determination as 

it did the power of seeing the Lincoln 

Home in person. 

Then the Nixon administration threw 

its support behind Findley, and even 

asked that the bill be amended to fully 

authorize the appropriation required 

for the site—so the private fundraising 

was unnecessary. The House passed the 

bill first, and it enjoyed, as Findley 

says, ‘‘swift approval’’ in the Senate we 

can’t say that about too many matters 

around here anymore. On August 18, 

1971, years of efforts culminated in a 

ceremony in the Old State Capitol in 

Springfield, just blocks away from the 

Lincoln Home. With Congressman Findley looking on, President Richard 

Nixon signed the Findley bill authorizing the establishment of the Lincoln 

Home National Historic Site. 

Think about it, this was an effort 

championed by a Republican Congressman, passed by a Congress controlled 

by Democrats, and signed by a Republican President. It was a different time. 

One year after the signing ceremony, 

then-President of the Illinois State 

Senate, Paul Simon, signed legislation 

transferring the title for the Lincoln 

home to the National Park Service. 

Thanks to the leadership of Congressman Paul Findley and the many local 

supporters of his efforts—including 

then-Springfield Mayor Nelson 

Howarth, the first superintendent of 

the Lincoln Home National Historic 

Site Albert Banton, the architect of 

the Lincoln Home Visitor Center and 

early supporter of preservation efforts 

Wally Henderson, and countless others—visitors to the site today can 

stroll the street Lincoln once strolled 

and take in the neighborhood in much 

the same way it would have looked to 

him more than 150 years ago. 

The experience of visiting the Abraham Lincoln National Historic Site 

will undoubtedly inspire generations of 

young Americans to serve their country, just as Paul Findley has and as 

Abraham Lincoln did. 

This is Paul Findley’s legacy. 

It is a legacy that forever will be 

intertwined with President Lincoln— 

an honor that Paul richly deserves. 

Throughout his 91 years on this 

Earth, my friend and this great American, Paul Findley, has made an indelible mark on our State of Illinois and 

our country—and he has not done yet. 

f 

CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF 

PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES 

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, last 

week, the Senate Foreign Relations 

Committee reported out the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. 

How fitting that this treaty was considered and passed by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the 22nd 

anniversary of the enactment of Americans with Disabilities Act. 

If anyone questions how important 

this treaty is to the millions of Americans living with disabilities, all they 

needed to do was look around the room 

at the hearing earlier this month. The 

hearing room was filled to capacity— 

standing room only—with people urging the Senate to ratify this important 

document. 

The United States has led the world 

in creating the legal framework, building the infrastructure, and designing 

facilities that ensure inclusion and opportunity for those living with disabilities. We celebrated the 22nd anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities 

Act—‘‘ADA’’—by reporting the treaty 

out of the Foreign Relations Committee on a strong bipartisan basis. I 

thank Sen. Kerry for holding that 

hearing and moving the treaty through 

the committee process. 

As the majority leader has made 

clear, the Convention on the Rights of 

Persons with Disabilities will soon be 

considered on the Senate floor. The 

Members of this body will have an opportunity to affirm our Nation’s leadership on disability issues by ratifying 

this important treaty. I hope that we 

will do so. And I hope we will ratify 

this treaty with the strong bipartisan 

support that has always characterized 

the Senate’s work on disability issues. 

For the 54 million Americans living 

with a disability, laws like the ADA 

have provided an opportunity to learn, 

travel, work, and live independently. 

Perhaps no one knows that better than 

Ann Ford of Springfield, Illinois. Ann 

had polio as a child and for many years 

she commuted on crutches. This challenging and energy-consuming task required Ann to meticulously plan every 

trip. At the grocery store, Ann would 

purchase all she needed in 20 minutes, 

in order to be home before becoming 

exhausted. 

After the ADA was enacted, the store 

manager invited Ann to use a recently 

purchased electric scooter. Ann remembers that day clearly, in part because she shopped for an hour and a 

half going up and down every aisle in 

the store. 

Most of us don’t give a second 

thought to buying groceries. But for 

Ann and millions like her, our Nation’s 

commitment to removing physical barriers has expended their world. Now, we 

have an opportunity to demonstrate 

our commitment and advance disability rights around the world by ratifying this treaty. 

The support for this treaty is broad 

and bipartisan. I thank my friend, Senator JOHN MCCAIN, for leading this effort with me. Heis a great ally and 

without him we would not have made 

such great progress. 

I also thank Senator BARRASSO, HARKIN, TOM UDALL, MORAN, and COONS for 

their bipartisan support and dedication 

to the ratification effort. 

This treaty is supported by 165 disability organizations, including the 

United States International Council on 

Disabilities, the American Association 

of People with Disabilities, Disability 

Rights Education & Defense Fund, and 

the National Disability Rights Network, and 21 veterans groups, including 


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