The Simon Wiesenthal Center today commended four leading US Senators, John Cornyn (R-TX), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) for introducing the Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery ACT (HEAR) that would encourage the resolution of claims on Nazi-confiscated art in a fair and just manner.

“When it comes to fully restituting art and property plundered by the Nazis, time is not on our side. We therefore welcome this important piece of legislation, not only for its symbolic solidarity with the victims of the Nazis but for its potential practical impact in pushing institutions to act fairly with claimants trying to recover part of their family’s legacy and history,” said Rabbi Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean of the leading Jewish human rights NGO, devoted to imparting the lessons of the Nazi Holocaust.

“We are grateful that four distinguished Senators, two Democrats and two Republicans are leading this bipartisan effort and hope that the rest of the US Senate and House of Representatives will act quickly to pass this measure," Cooper concluded.

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The Simon Wiesenthal Center is one of the largest international Jewish human rights organizations with over 400,000 member families in the United States. It is an NGO at international agencies including the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the OAS, the Council of Europe and the Latin American Parliament (Palatino).