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Felix L. Holocaust testimony (HVT-2980) interviewed by Jean-Michel Chaumont and Yannis Thanassekos,

Oral History | Fortunoff Collection ID: HVT-2980

Videotape testimony of Felix L., who was born in Łódź, Poland in 1923. He recounts his family's move to Belgium in 1928; attending school in Anderlecht, Antwerp and Brussels; fights due to antisemitism; German invasion; fleeing to De Panne; returning to Brussels; his father's deportation in 1942; being hidden by non-Jews with family members and his future wife; marriage in summer 1942; arrest and internment in Malines in August; joining a group organizing a train escape; failure when he was separated from the group (others succeeded); arrival at Auschwitz; transfer to Buna/Monowitz; slave labor laying cables for I.G. Farben; contact with Russian and British POWs; selections and beatings; the death march to Gleiwitz; train evacuation to Buchenwald; a death march to Spaichingen; slave labor in a quarry; frequent killings; desertion of the guards; United States troops caring for them; repatriation to Namur; and learning of his father's and sister's deaths. Mr. L. discusses difficulties speaking about his experiences; intergroup relations and hierarchies in concentration camps; Nazi dehumanization of deportees; the overwhelming impact of starvation; and his continuing nightmares. He notes the importance of teaching about the Holocaust.

Author/Creator
L., Felix, 1923-
Published
Brussels, Belgium : Fondation Auschwitz, 1992
Interview Date
October 21, 1992.
Locale
Poland
Łódź (Poland)
Anderlecht (Belgium)
Brussels (Belgium)
Antwerp (Belgium)
De Panne (Belgium)
Namur (Belgium)
Language
French
Copies
2 copies: 3/4 in. dub; and 1/2 in. VHS with time coding.
Cite As
Felix L. Holocaust Testimony (HVT-2980). Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library.