Mr. Speaker. it is a sad commentary that Members of this body must continually remind ourselves and others of the inequities being perpetuated by the Soviet Union against its Jewish citizens. We participate today in the Congressional Fast and Prayer Vigil for Soviet Jewry as an example of our alliance with the thousands of innocent men and women who have been harassed. arrested. or convicted of the simple "crime" of wishing to emigrate. What these individuals desire is no more than liberty. an ephemeral concept that we in the United States are privileged to enjoy. Today is also Bastille Day. when the cry. "Liberte. egalite. fraternitt!" became the banner that the French citizenry raised so many years ago. Their desire for freedom is being celebrated today. It is ironic that only those Soviet Jews who have emigrated can speak these words. since their compatriots and coreligionists behind the Iron Curtain cannot. This fast and prayer vigil is meant to highlight the sorry state of affairs thousands of Soviet Jews find themselves in daily. Each of us has been asked to fast on behalf of a particular prisoner of conscience. and today I fast for Mark Nashpitz.
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emigrate emigrated