Lea W. Holocaust testimony
Abstract
Videotape testimony of Lea W., who was born in Poland in 1921, and moved to Paris with her family in 1929 due to increasing antisemitism. She recalls active participation in Hashomer Hatzair; German invasion; her boyfriend's incarceration in Pithiviers in 1941; obtaining false documents verifying she was born in France; visiting her boyfriend; assisting him to escape to Toulouse, then their return to Paris; their marriage; moving to Dordogne, fearing discovery in Paris; non-Jews assisting her husband to obtain excellent false documents and local residence registration for them and her parents; moving to Nice; working with the Resistance and Zionist organizations; her daughter's birth in August 1942; working with her husband to save Jewish children; a housekeeper discovering rifles in their house; convincing her they were not terrorists; organizing a group of Jews to move to Italian-occupied territory; disruption of their plan by German soldiers; pretending she was someone else when she was interrogated; her husband's arrest with a friend; her husband's release; and their friend's deportation to Drancy, then Auschwitz (he did not survive). Ms. W. ends her testimony because in spite of having had many more experiences, she believes her story should end with his.
Extent and Medium
3 videocassettes
Conditions Governing Access
This testimony is open with permission.
Conditions Governing Reproduction
Copyright has been transferred to the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies. Use of this testimony requires permission of the Fortunoff Video Archive.
Rules and Conventions
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Process Info
compiled by Staff of the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies
People
- W., Lea, -- 1921-
Corporate Bodies
- Pithiviers (Concentration camp)
- World Hashomer Hatzair.
Subjects
- Mothers and daughters.
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Underground movements -- France.
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Jewish resistance.
- False papers.
- Hiding.
- Aid by non-Jews.
- Resistance.
- Holocaust survivors.
- Video tapes.
- Women.
- Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) -- Personal narratives.
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal narratives, Jewish.
- Husband and wife.
Places
- Dordogne (France)
- Toulouse (France)
- Paris (France)
- Poland.
- Nice (France)
Genre
- Oral histories. -- aat