He?le?ne W. Holocaust testimony

Videotape testimony of He?le?ne W., who was born in Warsaw, Poland in 1927. She recalls emigration to Paris in 1933; visiting relatives in Poland; her father's internment in Beaune-la-Rolande in 1941; hiding him after his release; her mother's and brother's internment in the Ve?lodrome d'hiver; begging a German official to release them; their return home; her mother's arrest; their final moment together; receiving food from neighbors; her Resistance work; her arrest in February 1944 (her brother escaped); internment at Drancy; deportation to Auschwitz/Birkenau; extreme hunger, cold, and humiliation; caring for a friend who died; sharing smuggled food with friends; being beaten by a Blocka?ltester; transfer to Canada Kommando where she regained strength; a friend who encouraged and helped her; death marches to Ravensbru?ck, Malchow, and Dora; escaping with her friend; hiding on a farm; liberation by Soviet troops; their separation at an American camp; traveling to Bourges with OSE; reunion with her brother (her parents did not survive); and her teaching work. Mrs. W. discusses details of camp life and her state of mind; the importance to survival of prisoners helping each other; and, after the war, wanting to share her story, but remaining silent when others would not listen.

3 videocassettes