6/12/2017 - AHF lays wreath on the 10th Anniversary of the Victims of Communism Memorial. The American Hungarian Federation was proud to participate in the 10th Annual "Roll Call of Nations Wreath Laying Ceremony" honoring the memory of more than 100 million victims of communist regimes. On June 9th, AHF placed a wreath at the foot of the Victims of Communism Memorial statue, the "Goddess of Democracy," a replica of the statue erected by Chinese students protesting in Tiananmen Square in 1989. Eembassies and ethnic and human rights organizations joined members of Congress in the 10th anniversary event. [read more]
6/11-12/2015 - The American Hungarian Federation was proud to participate in the wreath laying ceremony on June 12 at the Victims of Communism Memorial statue, the "Goddess of Democracy," a replica of statue erected by Chinese dissidents in Tiananmen Square in 1989.23 embassies, and 26 ethnic and human rights organizations joined 10 Members of Congress and over 300 participants for the annual Victims of Communism Commemoration on Capitol Hill, which this year revolved around human rights in Cuba and the legacy of communism in the post-Soviet sphere. [read more]
6/16/2009 - The Victims of Communism (VOC) Memorial Foundation awards the Truman-Reagan Medal of Freedom to Hungarian human rights activist Bishop Laszlo Tokes. Bishop Tokes, an ethnic Hungarian, played an important role in the Romanian Revolution of 1989 that toppled Romania's communist leader Nicolae Ceausescu. [read more]
6/12/2008 - Victims of Communism Memorial 1st Anniversary... Former California Congressman Tom Lantos was awarded the Truman-Reagan Medal of Freedom (posthumously) during the ceremony.
The ceremony marked the first anniversary of the dedication of the memorial. AHF is proud to support the foundation. AHF's October 2007 Congressional Reception in honor of its 100th anniversary began with a wreath laying at the memorial.
11/1/2007 - Congressional Reception for AHF Centennial... AHF celebrated it's 100th Anniversary, honored the heroes of 1956 on the 51st anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution, and unveiled its plans for a 1956 National Memorial in the Nation's Capital. AHF recognized Congressmen Dan Lipinski (D - IL), ThaddeusMcCotter (R- MI) and Dr. Lee Edwards (Chair of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation) for their support of AHF initiatives, human rights and democratic development in Central Europe. Each received a plaque and a copy of the book, "Daughter of the Revolution" by renowned poet and author, Prof. Peter Hargitai. The October 25 commemoration started with wreath laying at the Victims
of Communism Memorial near the US Capitol. [read more].
6/12/2007
- The Victims of Communism Memorial was dedicated by President
George W. Bush in a morning ceremony on Tuesday, June 12th. Washington's
newest memorial honors the 100 million people who have been killed by
communist totalitarian regimes worldwide. AHF is proud to have contributed
to this noble effort and congratulates Victims
of Communism Memorial Foundation chairman Lee Edwards on the realization
of his dream.
"I proudly accept the Victims of Communism Memorial on behalf of
the American people," said President Bush before the more than 500
people gathered at the new memorial near the Capitol. "We'll never
know the names of all who perished, but at this sacred place, communism's
unknown victims will be consecrated to history and remembered forever."
[see
President Bush's full remarks and watch the video]
The
dedication ceremony was held on the 20th anniversary of former President
Ronald Reagan’s 1987 speech in Berlin in which he called on then-Soviet
leader Mikhail Gorbachev to tear down the Berlin Wall that separated the
city and had divided a continent since the end of World War II. Bush noted
that the wall would finally fall two years later, liberating the people
of Central and Eastern Europe and changing the world.
Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation chairman Lee Edwards remarked
that the memorial will "send a very clear message that one-fifth
of the world's population still lives under communism and not by their
choice." The foundation's next mission will be to create a Global
Virtual Museum, and then a brick and mortar museum in the nation's capital
region to ensure that the world will never forget the crimes and victims
of communism.
The
memorial, a 4.2-meter-tall bronze replica of the “Goddess of Democracy”
statue built by Chinese students during the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests,
was the brainchild of historian Lee Edwards and former ambassador Lev
Dobriansky, who spent more than a decade raising nearly $1 million to
complete the project on a site near the U.S. Capitol.. The statue is based
on America's Statue of Liberty. Its front pedestal reads, "To the
more than one hundred million victims of communism and to those who love
liberty." The back pedestal reads, "To the freedom and independence
of all captive nations and peoples."
Keynote speaker Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Calif) noted that, "everyone
who has tasted communism, from Albania to Estonia, knows that without
the United States, this existential struggle would have been lost."
Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif), an original sponsor of the legislation
that authorized the memorial, was on hand at the dedication and highlighted
America's vital role in arresting the 20th century's greatest threat to
freedom.
Following
the dedication, AHF leaders attended a reception with remarks by visiting
foreign dignitaries and other ethnic leaders and then an afternoon Roundtable
Discussion of the victims and crimes of communism, featuring presentations
by former political prisoners in China, Vietnam, and Cuba as well as noted
historians such as Richard Pipes, Paul Hollander, and Alan Kors.
The
day of dedication concluded with a Gala Awards Dinner at the J.W. Marriott
Hotel in Washington, DC. Hungarian-American representatives included AHF
leaders, such as Chairman of the Board Akos Nagy, Executive Committee
Chairman Bryan Dawson-Szilagyi, and Co-Presidents Frank Koszorus, Jr.
and Gyula Balogh who, along with Fidesz Parliamentarian and AHF Michael Kovats Medal of Freedom recipeient Janos Horvath, Ibolya David of the Hungarian
Democratic Forum (MDF) and Hungarian American Coalition leaders, witnessed
Bishop Laszlo Tokes
deliver a stirring convocation speech recalling the horrors of communism.
Bishop Tokes, an ethnic Hungarian Lutheran Minister from Temesvar (now
Timisoara), was the pivotal character in Rumania's struggle to overthrow
the Ceaucescu regime in 1989. The Truman-Reagan Medal of Freedom was presented
to William F. Buckley Jr. and Senator Henry M. (Scoop) Jackson (posthumously). Senator
Jackson's medal was accepted by his daughter Anna Marie Laurence and presented
by Senator Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn), and Mr. Buckley was presented with
his award by former congressman and HUD secretary Jack Kemp. The evening
ended with a compelling keynote address by Elena Bonner, widow of famous
Soviet dissident and Nobel Laureate Andrei Sakharov.
To learn more about the Victims of Communism Memorial
or arrange an interview with Chairman Lee Edwards, contact Stephen Manfredi
at Shirley & Banister Public Affairs at 703-739-5920 or smanfredi@sbpublicaffairs.com.







[Go to the AHF News Archive]
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| [Go to all AHF VOC News]

The Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation is a U.S-based non-profit educational organization. The mission of The Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation is to educate this generation and future generations about the ideology, history, and legacy of communism. The foundation was established by an Act of Congress to build a memorial in Washington, D.C. to commemorate the more than 100 million victims of communism. [read more]
In Memoriam

It is with deep sorrow that the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation marks the passing of Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski, a renowned academic, an implacable foe of tyranny, and an important advisor to our foundation at its beginning.
Zbigniew Brzezinski spent his early childhood in Germany in the 1930s, witnessing firsthand the rise of fascism. Serendipitously escaping the Nazi invasion of Poland due to his father’s diplomatic posting to Canada, the Brzezinski family emerged from World War II to discover that the Soviets had used the family’s aristocratic lineage as an excuse to expropriate their property in Poland.
Brzezinski became a United States citizen in 1958. He subsequently pursued a career in academia, where he became one of the first historians to offer a formal definition of totalitarianism, especially in regard to the USSR. Later, he became a foreign policy advisor to President Lyndon B. Johnson and National Security Advisor to President Jimmy Carter. During his tenure as National Security Advisor, Brzezinski broke with the majority of his party by being a vocal supporter of anticommunist dissidents.
When the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979, Brzezinski lobbied for the United States government to provide arms and support to the mujahideen freedom fighters who opposed the USSR and their Afghan communist allies. This policy of covert support begun by Brzezinski was continued by the Reagan administration and eventually led to the Soviets’ expulsion from Afghanistan in 1989. Many scholars note that the breakup of the Soviet Union was caused in some part by the stresses laid on Soviet society as a result of this invasion. “Indeed,” Brzezinski later said, “for almost ten years, Moscow had to carry on a war that was unsustainable for the regime, a conflict that brought about the demoralization and finally the breakup of the Soviet empire.”
After the liberation of Eastern Europe and the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, Brzezinski’s hard line against the communist empire was vindicated. While the free world basked in the success of the Cold War, Brzezinski and others keenly understood the importance of commemorating the victims of ninety years of totalitarianism and educating the world so that such regimes would not mar the new twenty-first century as they had the twentieth.
In 1994, Dr. Lee Edwards and Ambassador Lev Dobriansky established the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation to commemorate the hundred million victims of communist tyranny. Brzezinski, alongside the eminent scholars Richard Pipes and Robert Conquest, played a key role in VOC’s early years as a founding member of VOC’s National Advisory Council. The guidance of Brzezinski and other leading figures of the anticommunist movement was instrumental in shaping VOC’s mission and forming our vision of a world finally free of communist totalitarianism.
AHF is proud to Support VOC. AHF
issued this statement as part of the VOC Gala Brochure.
The text read:
"The American Hungarian Federation honors all Victims
of Communism and those who have given the ultimate Sacrifice for Freedom.
Hungary's first experience with Communism followed the chaos at the end
of World War I when a brutal but short-lived "dictatorship of the
proletariat" seized power between March and August 1919. Communism
would later be imposed on Hungary by the Soviet Union at the end of World
War II, but not before Hungarians rejected the Communist Party in the
1945 elections when the Smallholders won an absolute majority of the votes
despite the presence of the Soviet army.
In 1956 the entire nation rose up and, defying impossible odds, revolted
against communist and Soviet tyranny. Although harsh reprisals and suffering
followed the crushing of the Revolution, the sacrifice of Hungarians in
1956 helped lay the groundwork for the eventual collapse of Communism
in Central and Eastern Europe. There were other victims...
Hungarians living in successor states neighboring Hungary lived not only
as an oppressed people, but also as a minority subjected to all forms
of discrimination and forcible assimilation. Despite the great strides
toward freedom and democracy, the region's spiritual, moral and economic
decay in the wake of decades of Communism imposed by Moscow, is still
evident and cannot be ignored. The Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation
ensures that we not forget the suffering and the lessons of a terrible
period in the history of mankind.
The American Hungarian Federation (AHF), founded in 1906 in Cleveland,
Ohio, is the oldest and largest Hungarian American national umbrella organization
in the United States. AHF represents the interests of its member organizations and a broad cross-section
of the Hungarian-American community. Among its purposes is to promote
democratic values, monitor human and minority rights, and support strong relations between the people of Hungary and the United States."
AHF's work regarding the tragic events nearly 50
years ago, dates back to the early days of the revolution and
thereafter assisting tens of thousands of refugees. In 1956 the American
Hungarian Federation activated the second Hungarian Relief program for
the refugees of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, providing $512,560.00.
With the support of the American Hungarian Federation, over 65,000 refugees
arrived in the USA. Get involved and help us continue our tradition of
helping our community!
11/1/2007 - Congressional Reception for AHF Centennial... AHF celebrated it's 100th Anniversary, honored the heroes of 1956 on the 51st anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution, and unveiled its plans for a 1956 National Memorial in the Nation's Capital. AHF recognized Congressmen Dan Lipinski (D - IL), ThaddeusMcCotter (R- MI) and Dr. Lee Edwards (Chair of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation) for their support of AHF initiatives, human rights and democratic development in Central Europe. Each received a plaque and a copy of the book, "Daughter of the Revolution" by renowned poet and author, Prof. Peter Hargitai. The October 25 commemoration started with wreath laying at the Victims
of Communism Memorial near the US Capitol. [read more].
[<< Go to all 1956 News]
October 23, 2012 - AHF Honors the heroes of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, the first tear in
the Iron Curtain. Hungarians from all walks of life rose up against insurmountable
odds to fight the brutal Soviet installed Hungarian communist government.
Thousands died fighting, others tortured and executed, while 200,000 were
forced to flee. 2012 marked the 56th Anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution. [Read more] and see Photos and Videos on AHF's 1956 Portal
AHF's work regarding the tragic events nearly 50 years ago, dates
back to the early days of the revolution and thereafter assisting
tens of thousands of refugees. In 1956 the American Hungarian Federation
activated the second Hungarian Relief program for the refugees of the
1956 Hungarian Revolution, providing $512,560.00.With the support of
the American Hungarian Federation, over 65,000 refugees arrived in the
USA. Get involved and help us continue our tradition of helping our community! Join Us! [Read more] and see Photos and Videos on AHF's 1956 Portal
Downloads:
- The Hungarian Revolution - Uprising, Budapest 1956:
A synoptic treatise of a major political event of the 20th Century,
a historically tragic period in the life of a nation commemorating the
50th Anniversary of the Revolution and the fallen brave - by Attila J.
Ürményházi (Hobart, Tasmania) and edited by
Bryan Dawson [download]
States that
have passed the 1956 Revolution 50th Anniversary Resolution:
| Texas | Ohio | Colorado | Maryland | Virginia |
| Massachusetts | Minnesota | Washington | California | South Dakota |
4/28/2006
- Texas became the first state to adopt the AHF 1956 resolution
(House Resolution 75). AHF extends sincere thanks to Texas Senator
Janek and Representative Woolley for introducing the measure and to AHF's
Texas Chapter President Chris Cutrone in Austin and Honorary Consul for
Hungary Phillip Aronoff in Houston for their efforts in securing the introuduction
of the resolution. The resolution's title: "Commemorating
the 50th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution and recognizing the sacrifices
of Hungarian Freedom Fighters, the contributions of Hungarian Americans,
and the friendship between the people and governments of the United States
and Hungary." Full text of the Texas resolution can be found on the Texas
House Website.
The Houston
Chronicle also published an Op-Ed calling attention to the resolution
by Hungarian Honorary Consul Phillip Aronoff in Houston and Bryan Dawson-Szilagyi,
AHF Chairman of the Executive Committee.
Ohio.
Special thanks to the Hon. Péter Ujvági, Ohio State Representative
(D) who successfully pushed the resolution (#212) through both state houses. [download the resolution] Ohio Governor Taft also issues a proclamation [download]
Colorado.
Special thanks to Jeno Megyessy for introducing a joint resolution that
also makes Octbober 23, 2006 "Hungarian Freedom Fighter's Day"
in Colorado!
[download]
Maryland.
Special thanks to Frank Kapitan for taking the lead in getting the resolution
passed! [download]
Virginia.
Special thanks to Laura Spinner for her leadership in getting Gov. Kaine
to issue this proclamation!
Massachusetts.
Special thanks to Hon. Consul of the Republic of Hungary in new England and the Massachusetts Hungarians! [download]
South Dakota.
State Legislature recognizes the sacrifices of the 1956 Freedom Fighters [download]
Minnesota.
Congratulations to the Minnesota Hungarians and thanks to the State Legislature for declaring "Hungarian Freedom Day." [download]
In
Memoriam
11/15/2005
- AHF President Emeritus, Entrepreneur, Freedom Activist,
and 1959 US "Citizen of the Year," George K. Haydu, passed away
after long illness. The death of this great humanitarian and
leader is a major loss for the Hungarian-American community and to all
his many friends. Despite many death threats and being shot in the leg
during "Loyalty Day" parade in New York City, George was undeterred
in his efforts to bring freedom to Hungary and comfort to refugees.
[read more about George Haydu]
or see [All Memorials]
--------------
5/19/2005
- Gergely "Bajusz" Pongratz, a leader
and hero of Hungary's anti-communist revolution of 1956, has died at age
73.
Pongratz suffered a heart attack on Wednesday in the southern
Hungarian town of Kiskunmajsa where he lived, said Dezso Abraham, secretary
general of the World Council of Hungarian 56ers revolutionary veterans
group. During the revolution, Pongratz was commander of one of the key
resistance groups fighting the Soviet army. [read
more].
--------------
12/10/2004 - JENO SZEREDAS,
90, Hungarian Freedom Fighter Federation Founder, AHF Member, and Noted
Artist Dies...
Jeno Andras Szeredas, Hungarian political activist and
Senator, 1956 Freedom Fighter, Founder of the Freedom Fighters Federation
in the United States, poet and artist of rare talent died quietly in his
sleep at his daughter's home in Connecticut on November 30. He had just
celebrated his 90th birthday.
Born in Iglo, Hungary (now Slovakia) in 1914, Mr. Szeredas
was both witness to and active participant in the turmoil sweeping over
Europe for the balance of the 20th century. [more]
- 1956 Portal - www.hungary1956.com
- The 1956 Institute,
headed by Dr. Janos Reiner, is a great site devoted to exploring the
1956 Hungarian Revolution in English and Hungarian.
- www.celebratingfreedom1956.org - The Cleveland Hungarian Revolution 50th Anniversary Committee (CHR50)
is organizing a major observance event of this important historical
milestone on October 21st and 22nd, 2006 in Cleveland, Ohio.
- Magyar
Radio Online - includes many audio files and an analysis in Hungarian:
"Ki húzta meg a ravaszt eloször 1956. október
23-án?" "Who was the first to pull the trigger?"
Time
Magazine gave Hungarian Freedom Fighters the title "Man of
the Year" on July 1, 1957. "The Freedom Fighters filled
the empty bottles with gasoline and corked them with table napkins,
making what they called 'benzine flashes."
- www.FamousHungarians.com - offers information on 1956, the 1956 Olympics, the popular
"Nobel Prize Winners and Famous Hungarians," resources on
Trianon, Transylvania, History, Music, and more.
- Wikipedia - the free, online encyclopedia that allows readers to manage its
content!
- The 1956
Institute in Hungary (1956-os Intézet)
- The 1956
Hungarian Revolution Historical Documentation and Research Foundation in Hungary - a source for thousands of photographs from the period
- The National
Security Archive at The George Washington University provides
a wealth of information on the 1956 Revolution available for download
in PDF.
- The
1956 Hungarian Revolution - a short chronology of events with
pictures
- Pal
Maleter on Wikipedia - the military leader of the Hungarian Revolution
- www.sulinet.hu has as site that transcribed many of the various speeches given before,
during, and after the revolution - a fascinating chronology from Nagy
to Mindszenty. (Hungarian)
- Az
1956-os Magyar Forradalom igaz története - in Hungarian.
"What the history books left out." Published by the 1956
World Federation.
- Az
1956-os forradalom története Esztergomban - The Revolution
in Esztergom (in Hungarian)
- Arcok
és sorsok - a great site with photos and biographies of
some 1956 Freedom Fighters
- Nagy
Imre október 23-án: Nagy Imre október 23-án
eleinte hallani sem akart arról, hogy a Parlamentbe menjen
és szóljon a tömeghez. Ám mégis megtette.
Döbbenetet érezhetett, amikor lenézett a Parlament
ablakából, s akkor is, amikor kifütyülték
az „elvtárs” megszólítást.
Beszéde az alant álló ismeretlen erovel szembeni
aggodalmát és szorongását mutatja.
Memorials
Dedicated to 1956
"October 23, 1956, is a day that will live forever
in the annals of free men and nations. It was a day of courage, conscience
and triumph. No other day since history began has shown more clearly the
eternal unquenchability of man's desire to be free, whatever the odds
against success, whatever the sacrifice required."-
President John F. Kennedy,
on the first anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution.
- Denver, Colorado - statue and "Hungarian Freedom Park"
- Toronto, Ont - statue and park
- Erie, PA - Memorial and square (Thanks to v. Juhasz Ferenc,
AHF, VP)
- Fairfield, CT - Memorial plaque in Town Hall (2003)
- Berkeley Springs, WV - plaque, cemetery, and church (TX to
Mrs. 'Sally' Gyorik, Ft Vitez Baan OFP)
- Boston, Mass - Liberty Square statue and square by George
Hollosy
- Los Angeles, CA - statue by Arpad Domjan (1966)
(TX to Czene Ferenc and LA Hungarians)
- New York - Plaque at East River/92d Str
- Lorantffy House, Akron, Ohio 1956 - Plaque
- North Olmstead , Ohio - Plaque and cemetery (Thanks to Dobolyi
Arpad & Juhasz Ferenc AHF VP)
- Loraine, Ohio - Statue under construction
- Miami, Fl - First Hungarian Church Stained Glass Windows
- Camp Kilmer - plaque now in New Brunswick, New Jersey
- Cleveland, Ohio - Cardinal Jozsef Mindszenty statue and square
- New Brunswick, NJ - Mindszenty statue and square
- Miami - Mindszenty Str. (27th Str) NW (TX to Tarr Sandor,
Honorary Consul)
- Budapest - statue/plaque at the Chain bridge in Buda by Ocsay
Karoly
- Korvin koz - statue of the young freedom fighter
- Budapest, Prime Minister Imre Nagy Gravsite and Memorial
- Budapest, II kerulet; Manheimer Statue
- Budapest, XIII kerulet: Park of Statues: granite obelisk
- Budapest, XIII kerulet: Park of Statues: Plaque of the martyrs
(2000 Oct. 23)
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Albert
Camus' Stirring Letter to the World:
"The Blood of the Hungarians"
I am not one of those who wish to see the people of Hungary
take up arms again in a rising certain to be crushed, under the eyes of
the nations of the world, who would spare them neither applause nor pious
tears, but who would go back at one to their slippers by the fireside
like a football crowd on a Sunday evening after a cup final.
There are already too many dead on the field, and we cannot
be generous with any but our own blood. The blood of Hungary has re-emerged
too precious to Europe and to freedom for us not to be jealous of it to
the last drop.
But I am not one of those who think that there can be a
compromise, even one made with resignation, even provisional, with a regime
of terror which has as much right to call itself socialist as the executioners
of the Inquisition had to call themselves Christians.
And on this anniversary of liberty, I hope with all my
heart that the silent resistance of the people of Hungary will endure,
will grow stronger, and, reinforced by all the voices which we can raise
on their behalf, will induce unanimous international opinion to boycott
their oppressors.
And if world opinion is too feeble or egoistical to do
justice to a martyred people, and if our voices also are too weak, I hope
that Hungary’s resistance will endure until the counter-revolutionary
State collapses everywhere in the East under the weight of its lies and
contradictions.
Hungary conquered and in chains has done more for freedom
and justice than any people for twenty years. But for this lesson to get
through and convince those in the West who shut their eyes and ears, it
was necessary, and it can be no comfort to us, for the people of Hungary
to shed so much blood which is already drying in our memories.
In Europe’s isolation today, we have only one way
of being true to Hungary, and that is never to betray, among ourselves
and everywhere, what the Hungarian heroes died for, never to condone,
among ourselves and everywhere, even indirectly, those who killed them.
It would indeed be difficult for us to be worthy of such
sacrifices. But we can try to be so, in uniting Europe at last, in forgetting
our quarrels, in correcting our own errors, in increasing our creativeness,
and our solidarity. We have faith that there is on the march in the world,
parallel with the forces of oppression and death which are darkening our
history, a force of conviction and life, an immense movement of emancipation
which is culture and which is born of freedom to create and of freedom
to work.
Those Hungarian workers and intellectuals, beside whom
we stand today with such impotent sorrow, understood this and have made
us the better understand it. That is why, if their distress is ours, their
hope is ours also. In spite of their misery, their chains, their exile,
they have left us a glorious heritage which we must deserve: freedom,
which they did not win, but which in one single day they gave back to
us. (October 23, 1957)
AHF dedicates this work
to the memory of all our comrades who passed during those faithful days
of October, 1956.
- Read this in German, Hungarian, French, and Spanish on this AHF member
site, the [American
Hungarian Museum]
Join online!
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