Reps slam Supreme Court position of Holocaust-era artwork restitution
The representatives argue that Wall's position on the case, Republic of Germany vs. Alan Philip, fails to incorporate "bipartisan Congressional action and understanding of the Holocaust."
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFA woman walks past artworks at the exhibition "Gurlitt: Status Report. An Art Dealer in Nazi Germany" during a media preview at Martin-Gropius Bau in Berlin, Germany, September 13, 2018(photo credit: REUTERS/FABRIZIO BENSCH)
State Representatives Grace Meng, Ted Deutch and Brendan Boyle penned a letter to the US Acting Solicitor General Jeffrey Wall, requesting him to change the US position within the realms of a Supreme Court case involving the restitution of Holocaust-era artwork.The representatives argue that Wall's position on the case, Republic of Germany vs. Alan Philip, fails to incorporate "bipartisan Congressional action and understanding of the Holocaust."This includes when the Holocaust began as well as what counts as permissible under "expropriation."Nazi Germany committed horrendous crimes against its own Jewish citizens and European Jews through outright murder and organized thefts. While we often, and rightfully, focus on the murder of millions of Jews, Germany’s economic coercion robbed Jews of the ability to keep property that was rightfully theirs," said Meng.Adding that: "This wasn’t some accident; it was intentional when the Nazi’s curtailed the rights of Jewish citizens in 1933 and it laid the groundwork for their murderous campaign to kill and steal from the Jews. Congress has passed many laws—on a bipartisan basis—making it clear what options Jews have to right those wrongs; the Acting Solicitor General’s brief before this case stands with the German government which is in contradiction to past Congressional action and intent. We urge him to amend the brief."Boyle notes that while Congress has acted on numerous occasions to return stolen property looted by the Nazi regime during the Holocaust, there are currently thousands of pieces of missing art that has yet to be returned to its rightful owners or next of kin.Deutch added that he hopes Wall will take into consideration the previous Congressional action as a basis for a change in position that reflects the American public.Republic of Germany vs. Alan Philip seeks to determine whether art that was owned by Jewish art dealers but possibly looted by Nazi Germany would be subject to the fall under expropriation exception of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act - allowing possible victims to file a court claim in a foreign government to reclaim the stolen property from Germany.Oral arguments will be heard by the Supreme Court on December 7, 2020.
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