Leon W. Holocaust testimony

Identifier
HVT 0002
Language of Description
English
Level of Description
Collection
Source
EHRI Partner

Abstract

Videotape testimony of Leon W., who was born into a middle income family in ?o?dz?, Poland, in 1925. Mr. W. recalls his happy childhood, widespread denial in the wake of the outbreak of the war; and the formation of the ?o?dz? ghetto. He vividly describes conditions in the ghetto: forced labor, the harrowing effects of intense hunger, the deterioration of interpersonal relationships, selections, and infanticide. He tells of his arrest in May, 1944; his transfer to Cze?stochowa, where he worked in an airplane factory; his evacuation from that camp at the end of 1944 to Buchenwald and from there to work in a factory in nearby Sonneberg; the death march in April, 1945; and the joylessness of his liberation. Mr. W. also reflects on his sense that he now leads a double existence; his growing obsession with the past; his return to Poland to try to locate family; and his recurring dreams.

Extent and Medium

3 videocassettes (3/4" u-matic)

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

Corporate Bodies

Subjects

Places

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.