Three artworks by Austrian Expressionist Egon Schiele, previously owned by Fritz Grünbaum, were seized by New York law enforcement authorities as part of a joint investigation. The artworks were taken from the Art Institute of Chicago, the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh and the Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College in Ohio. The seizure is part of a larger effort to return stolen art to its rightful owners and to investigate and prosecute those responsible for the theft of art during the Holocaust.
Posts tagged as “Holocaust”
Former President Donald Trump's $475 million defamation lawsuit against CNN has been dismissed by U.S. District Judge Raag Singhal, who was appointed by Trump himself. The lawsuit was in response to CNN's use of the phrase "the Big Lie" when referring to Trump's false claims about the 2020 election, which Trump claimed likened him to Adolf Hitler. Judge Singhal ruled that the references were opinion and not factual statements, and thus did not amount to defamation. The dismissal of the lawsuit is the latest in a series of legal setbacks for Trump, who has vowed to continue to fight for his legal rights.
The Michigan Republican Party has come under fire for a post on social media which used a photograph of wedding rings taken from Holocaust victims with text over it that reads, "Before they collected all these wedding rings...they collected all the guns." The post has been met with criticism from both Republicans and Democrats, and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has called for its removal and an apology. The post has since been deleted, sparking a debate over the use of Holocaust imagery in political discourse.
President Joe Biden will be joined by 26 special guests at his first State of the Union address, including Rock star Bono, a 26-year-old who disarmed a gunman in California, and Holocaust survivor Ruth Cohen. The guests represent issues the administration has confronted in the past year and will serve as a reminder of the administration’s accomplishments and the issues that still need to be addressed. Vice President Kamala Harris has invited Ruth Cohen to be her guest.
Peaches Stergo, a 36-year-old Florida woman, was arrested by the Department of Justice on Wednesday for allegedly defrauding an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor of over $2.8 million over the course of four years. Stergo is facing charges of wire fraud, money laundering, and aggravated identity theft, and if convicted, could face up to 20 years in prison for each count of wire fraud and money laundering, and a mandatory two-year sentence for aggravated identity theft.
New York Republican Rep. George Santos has admitted to lying about his educational, work and family history, prompting Democratic Reps. Daniel Goldman and Ritchie Torres to write a letter to House GOP leaders asking for information about their knowledge of Santos's deception. The scandal has raised questions about the vetting process for candidates and the role of party leaders in ensuring the accuracy of candidates’ backgrounds.