  |
Meisel, Holocaust survivor, lectures at SHU10/30/04By Neha Bawa Judith Meisel, Holocaust survivor, lectured at Seton Hill University(SHU) on October 26, 2004. From humble beginnings and survival through the holocaust to actively participating in the Civil Rights Movement in America, Judith Meisel’s story is of survival. Mesiel was born in a small Lithuanian town to a Jewish family where she grew up with her siblings, Rachel and Abe. Her family moved to a ghetto in Kovno, Lithuania after her father died, where they lived with three other families, and were subjected to German persecution as early as 1941. She was forced to work at a German shoe factory. “The Germans used us as slave labor,” said Meisel. In June 1944, her family, along with other Jews, was taken into trucks and sent to Stutthof concentration camp in Poland. Here she was separated from her brother. “We went into Stutthof and all I saw was [this] huge pile of shoes,” said Meisel, describing the camp. She lost her mother at Stutthof, where she was gassed to death. Meisel’s first opportunity to escape came when Stutthof was liquidated. She and her sister changed their names to Utah and Anna and pretended to be Catholics after crawling across the frozen Vistula river in Poland to a convent. After working for the Germans in Danzig, Poland, Meisel and her sister Rachel were shipped to Denmark. On May 5, 1945, Denmark was liberated from the Germans, and in 1946 she heard from her brother who was living in Toronto. Meisel’s lecture left some members of the audience with a sense of awe. “I found it very interesting how a woman can go through such a horrific experience and have no hate towards anyone,” said Joseph Morgan, senior. Once in the United States, Meisel made it a point to be actively involved with the Civil Rights Movement. She began voicing her opinion against racism in 1963 when an African-American family--the Bakers--moved to Folcroft, PA in an all white neighborhood. Meisel was reminded of Kristallnacht, the first incidence of Jewish persecution under Nazi Germany. Thereafter, she joined the National Panel of American Women, a group dedicated to increasing awareness against prejudice. “I liked how we were able to ask questions. It was also nice that she recognized other groups [other than Jews] that were presented,” said Vicky Mara, freshman. Meisel was also a part of the Civil Rights in Washington D.C. where she was able to meet Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. During her years of suffering under Nazi Germany, Meisel said, “I feel that my faith kept me alive. Deep inside, I believe that people are good at heart.” To view all articles by writer Click here. |
||||