He was 80. She named Reps. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., Jim McGovern, D-Mass., and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., as consistent advocates, but said, It pains me that in some instances leaders in my party are not leading the charge any longer on human rights.. Check out the latest pictures, photos and images of Annette Lantos. The Lantos Foundation for Human Rights & Justice was founded later that year to carry out that wish. Rep. Tom Lantos, who as a teenager twice escaped from a Nazi-run forced labor camp in Hungary and became the only Holocaust survivor to win a seat in Congress . (1928-2008) LANTOS, TOM (1928-2008), Democratic congressman from California, the lone Holocaust survivor to serve in the US Congress. Those experiences permeated the memorial, which began and ended with blessings from Schneier, Lantos longtime friend and fellow survivor, who founded the Appeal of Conscience Foundation, which promotes religious freedoms. He was buried in Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D.C. On June 19, 2008, President George W. Bush posthumously awarded Lantos the Medal of Freedom. [57], In October 2007, Dutch parliament members said Lantos insulted them while discussing the War on Terror by stating that the Netherlands had to help the United States because it liberated them in World War II, while adding that "Europe was not as outraged by Auschwitz as by Guantanamo Bay. On September 10, 2011, the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA officially opened the Tom and Annette Lantos Center for Compassion, located at 1450 Rollins Road in Burlingame, California. They included speaking for Christians in Saudi Arabia and Sudan to practice their faith, helping Tibetans to retain their culture and religion in Tibet, and advocating for other minorities worldwide. We all go through that one-way street that leads to the grave, there is no immunity from the grave, we all have to meet our maker sooner or later. You remember that, Annette being a step ahead of our persecutors? Schneier asked Lantos widow. There, he hid with an aunt in a safe house set up by Raoul Wallenberg, a Swedish diplomat. The story of Congressman Tom Lantos as told by his wife, Mrs. Annette Lantos. 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Her parents explained it wasnt a new year, but the little girl insisted otherwise. of 2 NEXT Tom Lantos, the lone Holocaust survivor to serve in America's Congress, died Monday morning after a battle with cancer of the esophagus. Katrina Lantos Swett, president of the Lantos Foundation, later called it the height of irony that the ban would block one of ISIS most effective and ardent foes. Dakhil eventually received a waiver to attend the eventa process the administration created to address situations like hersbut Swett urged event attendees to consider what an America First policy could mean for human rights. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Annette Lantos is the author of A Quiet Courage (3.22 avg rating, 9 ratings, 3 reviews, published 1997) Lantos, who served as Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee in his last term, announced in early January 2008 that he would not run for re-election because of cancer of the esophagus. As a formidable team, Annette and Tom turned their trauma and grief into a passionate, decades-long fight to promote human rights and the rights of minorities around the world. We were the same.. and, much moreimportantly, with a great wife, has produced four adorable grand children. She has also been instrumental in fighting for animal rights and assisted her husband in co-founding the Congressional Friends of Animals Caucus. Lantos, a Democrat, was first elected in 1981 . [7], Lantos was born Tams Pter Lantos (Hungarian:[tma petr lnto]) into a Jewish family in Budapest, Hungary, the son of Anna, a high school English teacher, and Pl Lantos, a banker. I continue to enjoy the fruits of all those labors. More information on Tom Lantos can be found here. White, who once wrote to a friend, "I've written you a long letterbecause I did not have time to write a short one." Is it any wonder that on the subject of Iraq, more and more Americans have little confidence in this Administration? [24], Lantos was an advocate on behalf of the environment, receiving consistently high ratings from the League of Conservation Voters and other environmental organizations for his legislative record. Instead, the younger Annette suggested, he admired his wifes beliefs but did not embrace them: He had faith in the sustaining power of her faith in spirituality, she said. I sensed that this historic moment would have a tremendous impact on the lives of Hungarian Jews, my family, and myself. Among his many international battles, Lantos frequently criticized abuses in China, spoke out against Communism, and steadfastly supported Israel. In January 2006, he traveled to Hungary and attended a ceremony commemorating the 61st anniversary of the liberation of the Budapest Ghetto. On the domestic front, Democratic Rep. Chuck Schumernow the Senate minority leaderintroduced the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which President Bill Clinton later signed into law. Annette Lantos helped run his congressional office and led the Congressional Human Rights Caucus he co-founded. 11:00 to 5:00, Monday-Friday, Sunstone Harassment Policy and Code of Conduct, What Do I Believe? His daughter Annette was married to Timber . The tide turned after 9/11, when wars in Iraq and Afghanistan created a fear of over-engagement, especially among Democrats. Date: 19 June 2008, 09:57:20: But the fact remains, gentlemen, that the Administration has sent you here today to convince the members of these two Committees and the Congress that victory is at hand. [50], Lantos received the Grand Cross, Hungary's highest civilian honor. Meanwhile, Tom Lantos joined an underground movement when the Nazis took Hungary. The politician Tom Lantos died at the age of 80. Her father was a great man, said Elliott Abrams, a former Reagan administration official who frequently worked with Lantos on human rights issues. Tom Lantos, az egyetlen holokauszttll, aki az Egyeslt llamok kpviselhznak valaha is Those same skies that did not hear the roar of the fighters planes in time were hearing them now, she said. Lantos was referring to Schrder's ties to energy business in Russia, and remarked that this appellation would offend prostitutes. Her mothers Holocaust-era ID card sits on a shelf. [6], In 2008, after his death, the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, which he founded in 1983, was re-named the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission. On the C-SPAN Networks: Annette Lantos is a Spouse with four videos in the C-SPAN Video Library; the first appearance was a 1995 Ceremony.The year with the highest average number . Did the Administration learn nothing from our country's actions in Afghanistan two decades ago, when by supporting Islamist militants against the Soviet Union, we helped pave the way for the rise of the Taliban? Annette Tilleman's childhood was joyous until March 19, 1944, when German SS Troops entered Hungary and began the immediate and mass deportation of Hungary's Jews. Interview by Andrea Lauer Rice & Rka Pigniczky, Hungarian American Visual History Archive. The Tom Lantos papers document the career of a Hungarian-born American politician who was the only Holocaust survivor to have served in the United States Congress. She also served on the United States Commission on International . Why are we now repeating the short-sighted patterns of the past? WASHINGTON (JTA) In Jewish Washington, it was the fraught and thorny question that inevitably came up in discussions about Tom Lantos: What about the Mormon thing? Lantos, first elected to Congress in 1980 as a Democratic lawmaker from California, was remembered as a champion of human rights, from his work on the 1980s on behalf of Soviet Jewry, to recent times, defending the rights of civilians in Darfur and free speech advocates in China and promoting access to HIV/AIDS treatment in Africa. Thomas Peter "Tom" Lantos (February 1, 1928 - February 11, 2008) was a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from California, serving from 1981 until his death as the representative from a district that included the northern two-thirds of San Mateo County and a portion of southwestern San Francisco.Lantos had announced in early January 2008 that he would not run for . He opposed Social Security privatization efforts. In 2011, the institute was set up in Budapest to promote tolerance and support minority issues in central and eastern Europe and in the world.[7]. "[27], Lantos died of complications from esophageal cancer on February 11, 2008, before finishing his term. On a bitter cold Christmas eve in 1944, a little Jewish girl, 13 years old but with her diminutive size and Shirley Temple curls looked closer to 8, kissed her mother goodbye and alone began to make h. - Listen to Episode 4 : Annette Lantos by The Keeper instantly on your tablet, phone or browser - no downloads needed. "U.S. Policy Challenges in North Africa", "Lantos endorses Speier as 'our best candidate', "Rep. Tom Lantos of California dies at 80", "New Peninsula Humane Society Opens in Burlingame", "Budapest names promenade for late Jewish congressman Tom Lantos", "Controversial writer Zsolt Bayer was given one of Hungary's highest national honors, and past recipients are rejecting theirs in protest Quartz", "Scorecard for the 109th Congress U.S. House of Representatives", In trouble with the law: run-ins with police are fact of Capitol life, "US Lawmaker's "Prostitute" Remarks Provokes Germany", "Dutch lawmakers offended by Rep. Lantos", "Sibel Edmonds Launches 'State Secrets Privilege Gallery', "FBI Whistleblower: Hastert, Burton, Blunt, Other Members of Congress 'Bribed, Blackmailed', Congressman Tom Lantos' Remarks on the 25th Anniversary of the Tragedy at Jonestown and the Death of Congressman Leo Ryan, "Lantos' D.C. office is a living tribute to Wallenberg", Lantos set to retire after 27 years in public office, Finding Aid to the Tom Lantos Papers, 1944-2008, Chairmen of the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tom_Lantos&oldid=1137386780, American people of Hungarian-Jewish descent, Jewish American people in California politics, Jewish members of the United States House of Representatives, Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from California, People with acquired American citizenship, University of Washington College of Arts and Sciences alumni, University of California, Berkeley alumni, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2021, Articles with unsourced statements from June 2022, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2022, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 4 February 2023, at 10:21. WASHINGTON Representative Tom Lantos of California, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the only Holocaust survivor ever to serve in Congress, died on Monday. One of the videos viewed at the first annual Lantos Human Rights Prize ceremony. During a joint House hearing on September 10, 2007, featuring General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker, Lantos said: The Administration's myopic policies in Iraq have created a fiasco. And in my eyes, the Star of David that was just formed from a yellow Star of David on the torn clothing of a victim into a shining blue Star of David emblazoned on an American Air Force jet and flown by an Israeli fighter pilot, that shining star is Tom Lantos., She finished with the Hebrew blessing, May his memory be blessed.. annette lantos biographycraftsman tool box lock rod Text Size: silicone muffin cups : target university of texas assistant basketball coach salary Call us at (858) 263-7716 As a young adult, Swett also became a Mormon and went on to raise her seven children in both religious traditions. Non-partisan and nonprofit since 1988. He supported same-sex marriage rights and marijuana for medical use, was a strong proponent of gun control and adamantly pro-choice. Ideas That Animate My Religious Life. [39][40], The American Hungarian Federation recognized Congressman Lantos for his "Leadership in Support of Democracy, Human Rights and Minority Rights in Central and Eastern Europe", awarding him the organization's highest award, the "Col. Commandant Michael Kovats Medal of Freedom", at the October 19, 2005, Congressional Reception commemorating the 49th Anniversary of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution. She explained her fathers love for animals and the significance of the Wallenberg portrait hanging beside her desk and read a framed letter Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent to recognize a Lantos statue unveiled last year in Israel. "You were the light of Tom's life," Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., said to her. Lantos and his wife Annette had two daughters, Annette and Katrina, and 17 grandchildren. In 2007, he backed Morocco's proposal to make the region autonomous under Moroccan rule, saying: "I urge the leadership of the Polisario to realize that they will never again get such a good deal for the population they purport to represent."[43]. She noted that Lantos likened his life to a vacation at his beloved Lake Balaton in Hungary. The girl's account was later challenged by independent human rights monitors. Due to the pandemic, this Memory Project interview was conducted via Zoom, with Annette Lantos (now 90) and her daughter Katrina in Concord, NH, Andrea Lauer Rice in Atlanta, GA, and Rka Pigniczky in Budapest, Hungary. Vote Smart provides free, unbiased, in-depth information about current officials, candidates, issues, legislation, and voting. Dr. Lantos Swett also serves on the Advisory Board of UN Watch, the annual Anne Frank Award and Lecture, and The Warren B. Rudman Center for Justice, Leadership, and Public Policy. Nine months later, with two dogsalong for the ride, we had our first baby,a boy,in the car on the way toYale, New Haven Hospital. By submitting the above I agree to the privacy policy and terms of use of JTA.org. In 1988, Nicholas W. Kudrovzeff, American Independent Party, received 1,893 votes (1%). [2][3] A Hungarian Jew, Lantos was the only Holocaust survivor to have served in the United States Congress; he survived the genocide with help from Raoul Wallenberg. Yet his wife, Annette, also a survivor, and daughters Katrina and Annette were Mormons. Turning a painful past into a passion for human rights I think her father would be very proud.. A short while earlier, they had fled from Hungary where Jews wer. All rights reserved. "The World Lost One Of Its Greatest Champions Of Human Rights", "Bono Remembers the Honorable Tom Lantos", International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation, Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001, United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs, National Federation of Independent Business, National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, List of Jewish members of the United States Congress, List of United States Congress members who died in office, Lantos, stricken with cancer, to retire at the end of the year, "California's Lantos says cancer will prevent another House run", "Tom Lantos Institute set up in Budapest", "Congressman Lantos Commemorates Liberation of Budapest Ghetto", "Lantos the master storyteller, communicator", Timber Dick, a former city council candidate, dies, "Yahoo Criticized in Case of Jailed Dissident", "Arab-American challenges Lantos in three-way race", "PRO-CHOICE AMERICANS PAY TRIBUTE TO REPRESENTATIVE TOM LANTOS' LEGACY OF LEADERSHIP", "Bay Area: Recreation area about to get bigger: Historic rancho near Devil's Slide a deal at $15 million", "Tom Lantos, 80, Is Dead; Longtime Congressman", Opening Statement by Chairman Lantos at hearing With General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker, "I Am Disappointed in the President's Alleged New Plan for Iraq", "PELOSI 'America Is More True to Its Founding Ideals Because Tom Lantos Chose to Call This Land His Home'", "Five members of Congress arrested over Sudan protest", "Letter of Lantos, titled "The Arrest Of Hungarian Intellectual Mikls Duray By The Government Of Czechoslovakia", "Official Letter from Tom Lantos to Vojislav Kostunica", "Official Letter from Tom Lantos to Robert Fico", "Chairman of U.S. Foreign Affairs Committee Calls on Slovakian Prime Minister to disavow Bene decrees, ensure justice for Hungarian minority", "Lantos: Withhold aid to Lebanon until troops secure border", "Hearing before the Committee on Foreign Affairs of House of Representatives. They remained married until his death in 2008. All Photographs courtesy of Babette Rittmeyer, Lantos Foundation for Human Rights & Justice. View Annette Lantos's record in Washington, DC including current phone number, address, relatives, background check report, and property record with Whitepages. Karriere. That just leaves our third son, Corban, who hasadded to our United Nations kind of family with a brilliant, beautiful wifeborn and raised in South Korea. Is it any wonder that on the lives of Hungarian Jews, my family, and steadfastly supported.. By Raoul Wallenberg, a Swedish diplomat & Rka Pigniczky, Hungarian American Visual History Archive any wonder on... The article title, 2008, before finishing his term American independent Party, received 1,893 votes 1. Beloved Lake Balaton in Hungary the liberation of the liberation of the Ghetto... and, much moreimportantly, with a great wife, has produced four adorable grand children traveled to and. 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