The following Joint Legislative Resolution was adopted by the New Jersey Senate and General Assembly on November 7. The text of the resolution was provided by the office of Sen. Anthony R. Bucco. His co-sponsors were Assemblymen Anthony M. Bucco and Michael Patrick Carroll.
JOINT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION
By Senator Bucco and Assemblymen Bucco and Carroll
Whereas, The Senate and General Assembly of the State of Jersey join the Ukrainian community of the Garden State in recognizing November 2017 as Ukrainian Genocide Remembrance Month; and,
Whereas, This solemn occasion, marking the Eighty-Fifth Anniversary of the Ukrainian Holodomor Genocide, will be commemorated during special services throughout our nation, including the Holodomor Memorial Observance in Washington D.C. on November 7, 2017, and the March of Remembrance in New York City on November 18, 2017; and,
Whereas, From 1932 to 1933, the Soviet totalitarian regime, under the direction of Joseph Stalin, implemented an engineered famine by confiscating land, grain, and animals from the Ukrainian people, and this heinous effort, designed to punish brave Ukrainians for their resistance to economic, political, and social oppression, resulted in the deaths of up to ten million innocent men, women, and children; and,
Whereas, The survival and recovery of the Ukrainian people from this terrible tribulation stands as a testament to their enduring resolve, and it has provided a measure of hope and inspiration to oppressed and persecuted peoples all over the world; and,
Whereas, Honoring the memory of those persecuted during the Ukrainian Holodomor Genocide and emphasizing the importance of remaining vigilant against tyranny helps to ensure that such abhorrent crimes will never again be committed; and,
Whereas, By diligently dedicating ourselves to this vigilance and by educating future generations about the realities of the Ukrainian Holodomor Genocide, we continue to combat tyranny to the ultimate benefit of the human race; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
That this Legislature hereby remembers the victims of the Ukrainian Holodomor Genocide, salutes all those involved in the memorial services taking place throughout our country to commemorate this dark chapter in history, and urges the citizenry of the Garden State to participate fittingly in these observances; and,
Be It Further Resolved, That a duly authenticated copy of this resolution be signed by the Senate President and the Assembly Speaker and attested by the Senate Secretary and the Assembly Clerk.