NP: From The Shoah Newsletter

[davemarc]

I just got myself a copy of Past Forward, the Shoah Newsletter.  There are
two items that relate to specific issues in the ongoing discussion about
the impact of Schindler's List and Spielberg's documentary work.

First is a letter from Eva Brown (yep, that's right), "a survivor who has
given her testimony to the Foundation and volunteered at Los Angeles
training sessions."

Dear Past Forward,

Watching Schindler's List was an inspirational experience for me.  It was
an opportunity to vividly relive my past.  As a 61-year-old Plaszow
concentration camp inmate, I also labored under the watchful eye of the
"kapo" (military police).  As I toiled to build barracks under a boiling
sun, a Polish kapo noted my slackening pace and struck me with his leather
strap.  As similar scenes of the movie unfolded, I vowed to break 50 years
of silence.

Driven to bear witness, I contacted the Shoah Foundation and offered my
testimony.  Under the caring and sensitive guidance of interviewer Renee
Firestone and videographer Peter Handwerker, I shared intimate details
about my family, experiences, and losses.  Giving my testimony had a
special significance for me.  I was not only commemorating the Hungarian
Jews, but also my own personal tragedy.  I lost my family, my country, and
an entire lifestyle in the ashes of Auschwitz.  Although I came to America
and rebuilt my life, I have always carried a torch for my family's memory. 
Finally, I can lay it down as the Foundation pays homage to them and the
600,000 Hungarian Jews who will never be forgotten.

As a living reminder of the Holocaust, I speak to high school student
groups.  While discussing the horrors of Auschwitz, I also mention the
German guard who brought me tomatoes because I resembled his daughter.  I
entreat them to keep a double memory--the memory of the evil that people
are capable of doing and the good with which they can heal.  Sharing 50
years of a suppressed past with a newly receptive audience is tremendously
rewarding.

Thank you, Mr. Spielberg, for the courage and vision that fueled a vehicle
to spread the message of tolerance across the globe

--Eva Brown

******

There is also a group letter from a class that saw the documentary
Survivors of the Holocaust, which I believe is the same one that's appeared
on cable television.  

Dear Mr. Spielberg,

We are 14-year-old students from Northlands, a bilingual school in Buenos
Aires, Argentina.  We are studying 20th Century history and, at this
moment, we are covering Nazi Germany.  We recently had the opportunity to
watch your film, Survivors of the Holocaust, and listen to a talk by the
regional coordinator of your Foundation's Buenos Aires office, Graciela
Jinich.  Now that we have the opportunity, we would like to express our
admiration for the work your foundation is doing.  These are some of our
impressions:

* Your film gave us a broader vision of what the Holocaust really meant for
all those people who were near it.  We realized also that it is much more
than what the number of people--11 million--can say, but that the Jews,
gypsies, homosexuals, and mentally handicapped who were exterminated were
individuals.  This happened to someone.  Someone with a name, a family, a
dream, a life, and a future destroyed by the Holocaust.  Having these
stories on tapes is particularly important because you feel a more personal
contact.  It happened to people, just like you and me.

* Northlands is a non-denominational school and we share our school life
with girls of other religions, including Jews.  This has helped to respect
them more and understand the past of their community.

* We really liked the talk by Graciela and what she told us about the Shoah
Foundation.  She explained to us the main characteristics of the Foundation
and the way in which the work is being done.

* We were very much impressed by the Foundation's success.  It's amazing
how much people remember about traumatic experiences in their lives.  We
think it is an important step toward human evolution because what we should
do most is learn from our mistakes.

* Although the topic dealt with is tragic, the way in which you approached
it, ending with a message of hope for the future generations did impress
us.  This is not easy to achieve from survivors who had the courage to talk
of their own tragic backgrounds.

* We couldn't help being surprised at the survivors' optimistic view of the
future, and we are sure that telling their stories is a valuable experience
for them and for future generations.  We are sure these interviews allowed
them to lift a "burden off their shoulders," and we were able to see their
true feelings and emotions.  You haven't only helped the survivors, you
have also helped us to grow.

* It was an enriching experience and it has made us want to find out much
more about people's experiences during the Holocaust.  As far as learning
about the Holocaust, there is a before and after in our views--before and
after we watched the film and came into contact with the Foundation.

* The Foundation's work is very useful.  Testimonies like these must live
forever so everyone will always know what happened and learn not to allow
it to happen again.  It is also important because nobody will be able to
say it never happened.

***

The newsletter also includes an article about a Colorado gathering where
Shoah interviewers hosted more than 150 survivors,  a short essay by a
woman who catalogues the interviews, an article about the approximately
3500 pounds of Shoah shipments that are in transit at any given time, an
article by chief historian Michael Nutkiewicz entitled "The Ghettos:  A
Free Society of Slaves," Tips for Interviewers, a poem, a prayer, a
donation request, and a "Thank You" to Partners who donated $1 million or
more for Shoah.  Perhaps because of the efforts of Barbara Boxer, the USA
is the *only* country among the 25 Partners on Spielberg's List. 

Updated Interview Total:  25,622.

davemarc