KRAKOW, Poland (Press Release)–In a speech July 3, at the
Schindler Factory Museum here, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary
Rodham Clinton announced the U.S. intention to contribute $15
million over five years to the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation,
subject to Congressional authorization and appropriations. The
World War II-era factory of Oskar Schindler, the German
entrepreneur who saved hundreds of Jewish factory workers from
the Holocaust and, Krakow, the closest major city to the camp
and an important center of Jewish life before WWII, provide a
meaningful setting for the U.S. announcement. The Secretary’s
announcement of the anticipated U.S. contribution illustrates
the significance of the Auschwitz-Birkenau site, helps
commemorate the 1.1 million victims who perished there, and
demonstrates America’s commitment to Holocaust education,
remembrance, and research. *Subject to Congressional
authorization and appropriations, the United States’
contribution of $15 million over five years will begin in FY
2012. *Th