Holocaust
The Louvre and Musee d’Orsay museums in Paris maintained custody of the works after World War II until their legal owners or heirs could be tracked down.
The funding of about $1,400 per person is part of a Supplemental Hardship Fund Payment that was negotiated last year and originally planned to be distributed in two payments by the end of 2022.
Stuart Eizenstat has previously held the position of Special Advisor on Holocaust Issues during the Obama administration and served as Expert Advisor on Holocaust Issues during the Trump administration.
“These fees impose a significant burden on elderly Holocaust survivors, victims and heirs who often rely on these payments to meet their everyday needs,” Acting Superintendent Adrienne Harris said in a press release on Wednesday.
The museum shared a link to their guidelines and resources for teaching Holocaust history in schools, and added that educating youngsters about the Holocaust “can inspire students to think critically about the past and their own roles and responsibilities today.”
In 1939, Lilly Cassirer Neubauer sold Pissarro’s 1897 painting “Rue St Honoré, Après-Midi, Effet De Pluie” to the Nazi appraiser of her property in order to get visas for her and her husband to flee Germany.
“The long-term damage done by this instructor is impossible to measure at this time in terms of the trauma inflicted on students involved,” said Roz Rothstein, CEO StandWithUs and the daughter of Holocaust survivors.
Funds are earmarked towards purchasing food and other necessary items, such as medications and home heating fuel
The majority of materials were taken in July 1942 from Thessaloniki, which once had a thriving Jewish community.
The tension has resurfaced despite attempts to resolve a crisis around a Polish restitution law limiting property claims by Holocaust survivors.
During World War II, more than 550,000 American Jewish men and women served in the U.S. Armed Forces; 11,000 were killed and more than 40,000 were wounded.
“This major donation will enable us to expand the important work we do to teach the lessons of the Holocaust and confront anti-Semitism and hatred,” said Rabbi Eli Mayerfeld.
