Israel H. Holocaust testimony

Identifier
HVT 4238
Language of Description
English
Dates
1 Jan 1999 - 31 Dec 1999
Level of Description
Collection
Source
EHRI Partner

Abstract

Videotape testimony of Israel H., who was born in Hamburg, Germany in 1922, one of three children of Polish émigrés. He recounts moving to Liège in 1924, then to Brussels in 1934; his very happy childhood; attending public school; his bar mitzvah; German invasion; an aborted attempt to flee south; anti-Jewish restrictions; he and his family choosing not to wear the yellow star; hiding with a non-Jewish family in Liège; his parents and siblings hiding in Brussels; attending university using false papers; his non-Jewish aunt delivering packages from his parents; denouncement; incarceration in Citadelle de Liège; transfer to Malines; a privileged position as a shower attendant due to his fluent German; convincing a camp official to release friends from deportation; one sister's arrival; arranging her escape from a deportation train; assisting those entering the deportation trains; hiding the list of deportations; liberation by British troops; walking to Vilvoorde; reunion with his family in Brussels; and providing the Malines deportation list to officials. Mr. H. discusses his parents' moving to São Paulo, Brazil, fearing a recurrence of the Holocaust; joining them; his daughter's birth; not sharing his experiences with his daughter; and visiting Malines, Auschwitz, and his grandfather's street in Kraków.

Extent and Medium

6 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

People

Corporate Bodies

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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.