Irene M. Holocaust testimony

Identifier
HVT 2933
Language of Description
English
Level of Description
Collection
Source
EHRI Partner

Abstract

Videotape testimony of Irene M., who was born in Jano?w, Poland (presently Ivano-Frankovo, Ukraine) in 1924. She recalls her family's move to Zimna Voda; attending a Jewish school in L?viv; joining Deror; Soviet occupation; German invasion; anti-Jewish restrictions; assistance from non-Jewish neighbors; hiding with one brother during deportations in August 1942 (she never saw her parents again); acquiring false birth certificates for them both; their flight to Krako?w, then Krosno, posing as non-Jews; refusing to follow relatives' advice to enter a labor camp; finding employment in a German store; attending her cousin's wedding in the ghetto; being brazen in encounters with suspicious Germans and Poles; attending church weekly; learning her brother was killed as a Pole in reprisal for underground activities; unsuccessfully seeking shelter in Jano?w, then L?viv; returning to Krosno in May 1944; hiding in a village as a non-Jew; and liberation by Soviet troops. Mrs. M. describes marriage in May 1945; working for the Soviets; their escape to Teplice; moving to Bensheim displaced persons camp, then Frankfurt; learning her older brother had survived in the Soviet Union; the birth of her sons; and their emigration to the United States in 1956. She discusses constant fear during the war and reluctance to share her experiences with her children.

Extent and Medium

2 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

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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.