Archive of Late Congressman Donated to UC Berkeley

The Bancroft Library will soon become the home of the political papers of the late Congressman Tom Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to the House of Representatives, campus officials announced on Tuesday.

The political archive, which includes reports, briefings and memorabilia amassed from Lantos's 27 years and 14 terms in the House, most notably reflects his work in social justice, according to many of those who worked with Lantos.

Lantos, who died in February of this year, received a doctoral degree in economics from UC Berkeley in 1953 and served in Congress as a representative of both San Mateo and San Francisco.

Bancroft Library Director Charles Faulhaber said that Lantos's record in human rights is what prompted campus officials to approach Lantos's staff in January about how to acquire the papers. He added that many on campus believed the library should request the papers because they saw Lantos as "a great man" and "a significant human rights advocate."

Faulhaber said he thinks Lantos decided to donate his records to the Bancroft Library because of Lantos's connection with the campus and the library's reputation as a world-class institution.

"Lantos knew of Bancroft and that the library had received political papers in the past," Faulhaber said. "Just last month, the library received the papers of the late Congressman (Robert) Matsui, another significant advocate for human rights."

But Mike Larsen, who said he worked on Lantos's first campaign more than 20 years ago, said Lantos's decision may have had more to do with UC Berkeley's reputation as a world-renowned university.

The campus is "the perfect spot for the late congressman's papers," Larsen said. "(It's) a place where human rights are often debated very vocally."

He added that he thought the papers would specifically reflect Lantos's passion for human rights.

"When anyone thinks of Tom Lantos, they think of human rights," he said, explaining that Lantos was the founder of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus and spoke out passionately against the military junta in Myanmar as well as the situation in Darfur.

In many ways, his record was reflective of his life and his experiences, said Lynne Weil, a former spokesperson for Lantos.

"He was a survivor of not one, but two tyrannical regimes," Weil said. "When he spoke out on behalf of people in intolerable circumstances today, it always reflected his experiences living through intolerable circumstances."

Tags: TOM LANTOS, BANCROFT LIBRARY