On Friday, 75 people searching for a deeper understanding of one of history’s darkest periods, attended a Yom HaShoah commemoration (Holocaust remembrance) at the Malibu Jewish Center and Synagogue. The event honored those Jews whose lives were saved by the efforts of Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, with two of those survivors speaking Friday night.
“The purpose of this evening was to honor the Holocaust survivors and to make an emotional connection between them and everyone in the room,” said Rebecca Tobias, program director of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Ethics, an outreach arm of the MJC&S, in an interview after the event. “By expressing themselves and telling their stories, the speakers also gave the people an opportunity to learn more about Raoul Wallenberg and the Holocaust.”
During World War II, Wallenberg, a wealthy, 32-year old Swede, opted to leave Sweden (a neutral country in the war ) and go to Budapest, where, as a diplomat, he devoted all his energies in preventing Budapest’s Jews from being sent to Nazi concentration camps. From 1944-1945, Wallenberg managed to save the lives of an estimated 100,000 Hungarian Jews. Using persuasion and intimidation, he physically removed Jewish prisoners from trains bound for concentration camps and issued thousands upon thousands of Swedish passports to the Jews of Hungary. By identifying them as Swedish nationals, the passports protected them from what would have otherwise been the brutalities of Nazi soldiers.
Susanne M. Reyto, featured speaker and author of “Pursuit of Freedom: A True Story of the Enduring Power of Hopes and Dreams,” born in March of 1944, six days before the German invasion of Hungary, was an infant at the time of the Holocaust.
“The Nazis were very systematic and efficient with their extermination,” Reyto said in an interview with The Malibu Times. “They came to Budapest in March of 1944 and by July they had transported 600,000 Jews to their death. My husband and I were both helped, saved by Wallenberg. He issued our families protective passes, called schutz-passes. What a lot of people don’t know is that he also designated certain buildings as ‘safe houses,’ which also secured Jews an opportunity for survival. Wallenberg was one of the greatest humanitarians to save lives.”
A three-minute segment of the upcoming documentary “Keepers of Memory: Stories of Hidden Children,” by Gabor Kalman, was shown during Friday night’s event. Through a series of interviews, the film tells the stories of those who grew up as “hidden children” (Jewish children who were given away to non-Jewish families for their protection during the Holocaust). Kalman, an award-winning documentary filmmaker and adjunct professor at USC School of Cinematic Arts, himself, was a “hidden child.”
“My film is not a typical Holocaust film,” Kalman, 73, said. “It is more about memory and childhood trauma. The film tells incredibly varied stories about hidden children, from them growing up in non-Jewish families and not even knowing that they were Jewish until much later in their life, to little children having to be hid in a chest of drawers for so long it affected their ability to walk when they were able to come out. Jewish families were being torn apart during these times. Some were eventually reunited. Others were not. My film focuses on the memories and trauma associated with growing up like this.”
Kalman marveled in wonder at the acts of people like Wallenberg, and the risks that he and other Gentiles took at the time of the Holocaust.
“Just imagine the courage involved in a non-Jewish family taking in a Jewish child at that time,” Kalman said. “They were risking not only their lives, but the lives of their own families as well!
In 1945, Wallenberg was arrested by the Soviets and was never heard from again. The details of his subsequent whereabouts remain a widely disputed mystery. What is, however, universally agreed upon is the importance of his legacy in terms of inspiration, hope and faith in humankind. And remembering Wallenberg further highlights the vital need to remember the Holocaust in order to prevent a repeat occurrence, survivors say.
“It is important to keep the memory alive,” Reyto said, “and this is probably the last few years that people, particularly younger people, can hear the story first-hand. The next generation should hear the story from an authentic source. We must remember Wallenberg because when someone does such great acts of heroism like he did, hopefully we can learn from his great acts and be inspired to do good as well, especially in light of today’s world of terrorism and hatred. And it is important to remember the Holocaust because whatever happened in the past can happen again if we are not careful. To be aware of the past is to be better prepared to confront future events.”
“People like Wallenberg and survivors of the Holocaust really underscore what true humanity is,” Tobias added. “We must reflect on the past so that we can contemplate the future. We must always remember. It is dangerous to forget.”