Zalie G. Holocaust testimony

Videotape testimony of Zalie G., who was born in Paris, France in 1927, one of three children. She recalls a happy childhood; observing the Sabbath and kashruth; cordial relations with non-Jews; her father's arrest in 1941; her mother bribing officials for his release; anti-Jewish laws, including wearing the star; her sister joining the Resistance in Alenc?on; receiving papers to join relatives in the United States; her father refusing to leave; his arrest in the July 1942 Ve?lodrome d'hiver round-up (she never saw him again); her mother hiding during round-ups; her brother being sent to join her sister; her mother's arrest in September 1943 (she did not survive); her sister retrieving her, using false papers; their Maquis activities; arrest of their group; a severe beating; assistance from fellow prisoners; transfer to Drancy, then Auschwitz/Birkenau; no longer feeling human once she was shaved and tattooed; the birth of a child in her barrack, whom the mother was forced to drown; slave labor carrying bricks; singing to maintain her spirits; transfer with friends to Kratzau; animosity among different national groups; hospitalization; assistance from the Jewish prisoner-doctor; liberation by French and Soviet troops; learning two friends had been raped by the Soviets; returning to Paris with her group from Drancy; reunion with her brother and sister; and marriage. Ms. G. discusses being treated as a collaborator because she had survived; physical and mental health problems resulting from her experiences; the importance of her husband's support; her daughter's birth; not sharing her story with her; their difficult relationship; wonderful relationships with her grandchildren; and concerns for the future of Jews.

4 videocassettes