Skip to main content

Leon B. Holocaust testimony (HVT-1241) interviewed by Bernard Weinstein and Mark Lender,

Oral History | Digitized | Fortunoff Collection ID: HVT-1241

Overview

Summary: Videotape testimony of Leon B., who was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1925. He recounts volunteering for the Army in 1943; encountering racism as an African-American soldier; posting to Europe in a segregated unit with the 3rd Army; participating in the Battle of the Bulge; entering Buchenwald; his shock at the conditions, including the pervasive stench, piles of corpses everywhere, and emaciated survivors resembling the “walking dead”; and witnessing prisoners beating a guard. Mr. B. discusses his career as an educator; involvement in the civil rights movement; and not sharing his war experiences until encountering a survivor speaking at a school in 1970, then often speaking himself in many venues.
Author/Creator: B., Leon, 1925-
Published: Union, N.J. : Kean College Oral Testimonies Project, 1988
Interview Date: March 16, 1988.
Locale: United States
Cite As: Leon B. Holocaust Testimony (HVT-1241). Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library.
Other Authors/Editors: Weinstein, Bernard, interviewer.

Physical Details

Language: English
Copies: 4 copies: 3/4 in. dub; Betacam SP restoration master; Betacam SP restoration submaster; and 1/2 in. VHS with time coding.
Physical Description: 1 videorecording (1 hr., 14 min.) : col

Keywords & Subjects

Subjects (Local Yale): Liberator.
Postwar experiences.
Subjects: Video tapes. Men. Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Personal narratives. World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American. World War, 1939-1945--Participation, American. Revenge. United States--Armed Forces--Europe. Oral histories (document genres) B., Leon,--1925- United States.--Army.--Army, 3rd. Buchenwald (Concentration camp)

Administrative Notes

Holder of Originals: Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies
Special Collection: Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies

Link to Yale University Library Catalog:: http://hdl.handle.net/10079/bibid/4294926
Record last modified:: 2018-05-30 11:44:00
This page:: https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/hvt4294926

Additional Resources

Librarian View

Download & Licensing

Terms of Use
This record is digitized but cannot be downloaded online.

In-Person Research

Request Access from Yale University Libraries

Requires Yale University Libraries Permission
Accessing Fortunoff interviews
Log in to Request and View
About the Fortunoff Archive

Once requests are approved, you must be at a Fortunoff Access Site to view the testimony.

Contact Us

Give Feedback

Learn About the Holocaust

These additional online resources from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum will help you learn more about the Holocaust and research your family history.

Holocaust Encyclopedia

The Holocaust Encyclopedia provides an overview of the Holocaust using text, photographs, maps, artifacts, and personal histories.
Holocaust Survivors and Victims Resource Center

Research family history relating to the Holocaust and explore the Museum's collections about individual survivors and victims of the Holocaust and Nazi persecution.
Encyclopedia of Camps and Ghettos

Learn about over 1,000 camps and ghettos in Volumes I-III of this encyclopedia, which are available as a free PDF download. This reference provides text, photographs, charts, maps, and extensive indexes.

Further Your Research