Anne-Lise S. Holocaust testimony

Identifier
HVT 2164
Language of Description
English
Level of Description
Collection
Source
EHRI Partner

Abstract

Videotape testimony of Anne-Lise S., who was born in Mannheim, Germany in approximately 1922. She recalls incarceration in Drancy; forming friendships; train transport to Auschwitz/Birkenau; selection for a quarantine barrack; thinking she was in a camp for insane people; one friend dying because she refused to eat, despite urging from others; an Italian Communist explaining the camp to them; slave labor building roads, then a privileged position as a translator due to her friend's influence; being protected from selections by friends who worked in the main office; working near the Canada Kommando; procuring shoes from there for a guard; recognizing her friend's husband; assistance from him; being chosen as a typist, another privileged position, because she was blond; receiving extra food and better clothing; observing the arrival of trains, including the Hungarians; singing with her friends on Sundays; transfer to the weaving factory; extended appels after a crematorium was blown up by prisoners; transfer to Bergen-Belsen, then Raguhn; slave labor in an airplane factory and digging ditches; a severe beating; transfer to Theresienstadt; assistance from prisoners there; liberation by Soviet troops; repatriation to Paris via Lyon; and reunion with her parents. Ms. S. discusses relations between prisoner groups in the camps; becoming emotionally numb; the importance of friendships to her survival; and difficulty sharing her experiences with those who were not in camps, particularly her parents.

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. This testimony cannot be edited or altered.

Rules and Conventions

Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Process Info

  • compiled by Staff of the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies

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Genre

This description is derived directly from structured data provided to EHRI by a partner institution. This collection holding institution considers this description as an accurate reflection of the archival holdings to which it refers at the moment of data transfer.