We have one microphone over here on the side please ask your questions after the presentation so we can be cut of the recording debut will have a site being up front put them against a shelf that would be helpful. Is my pleasure to introduce our of berg tin and author of the new book the crime and the silence. The account of a tragedy for sell many involved that covers the truth of the tide and also with the polish journalist and she has also won a lot of awards for her journalism with her tonight is lydia a friend and also with npr id will be doing some readings. [applause] i would like to welcome on the view all of you. Thank you. Jedwabne is a small town northeast of poland. Half of the population was jew half was polish. A place they could live their life together. Jedwabne they were very close together. In 1939 when it belindas occupied by the said it would ashley soviets in they invited good jews but in july the inhabitants the jewish inhabitants were humiliated. There were killed one by one. But then the women in the children were put into a barn and set on fire. They helped as much as they could and what would happen. It was a Huge National discussion in poland what happened in jedwabne it became the symbol of all crimes committed but it wasnt only in jedwabne. Also a small village nearby also inhabitants were jewish killed in one night one by one. [inaudible] this as a delay talk of this horrible time but i also worked at the six years that nothing happened. I found they escaped. And bios subtype would happen after. August 28, 2,000 the jews of jedwabne bay retired doctor from warsaw and the eye with this 1941. The editor in chief 31 dash received a visitor. When i was informed it was referred to him by a friend that it could not be blamed on the polls i have both excitement and relief i knew he had not come to terms with the fact and we had talked about it many times. With that conclusion with a tougher hypothesis in jedwabne all the jews were burned in a barn. The collective murder in both senses of the word in terms of the number of victims. I reject redacted all of my proposals but now he wants me to hear really happened he has insisted i be present at this beaching. They do not allow list record the conversation or print reluctantly he allows me to take notes. 1941 he was 16, he happened to be in jedwabne on july july 10th he said he was on his way to the dentist in the morning to determines cave in to the Market Square on recycles. From the balcony i watched there would put their rabbis black hats on us deck and i followed them all the way to the barn. , the germans did you see . Did in the polls take part . Nine. Saying theres 1600 is a lie and a joke. How many do you think there were . 1,000. No more. I see his face go pale purple at the end please dont mention my name redolent them waiting for me at my house. The Jewish Historical Institute in warsaw. I hold five middle pages with the words crossed out it is the testimony translated. People were brutally beaten bloodied and maimed and put into the barn the gas was put on the barn and set afire. After they went to a homes looking for the sick and the children. Every drag them there on their backs and put them on to the members. November 24, 2000. From the threshold at scholarly gatherings after several people have drawn attention the last living leader of the uprising uprising, every petty here says he made a mistake and he was killed earlier. But that is not what this is about. Jedwabne was not the first case nor was an isolated. It wasnt about looting but something in me and. As they would moderate the discussion the contempt is a the mockery of culture then includes poland i dont mean to say everybody participated in the atrocities but there were botched in amusements of part of the local amusement i remember at that time i was on the other and until today i include myself a coward beefier of the darkness but that is the most important thing it lasted almost five hours and it was like a Group Therapy session. A young staff member of the museum in washington d. C. Has been reading archival materials speaking to those what she was in poland. December, 2011. The older brother that was sentenced to prison 15 in 12 years as effectively he still talked about patriotism to zero is prepared to serve our country. December 2000. 100 kilometers north of jedwabne. He is waiting for me at the turn of. He asked me where my parents are from anothers surname theres nothing wrong with her maiden name there was a poll that was a mother and got her papers and married her. That was 1940 tarot. She disappeared completely ive learned of my origins by accident as an adult. Whether not your fate was sealed the germans would have killed them sooner. It isnt right to make our people we criminals. And isnt the time to launch a campaign when jewish ideas is attacking poland. December 19th, 2000. I have a meeting of the local museum i was led to him by a chain of people to tell me about the brothers he is from jedwabne himself the he is so afraid it is hard to get anything out of him. I am as surprised at the museum one is waiting for us. It is obvious one of the people in the chain knows the brothers said it explains what he does not want to talk to me. You better not get involved. The only recalls the summer of 1941 you win by the jewish houses their occupied i was looking for design that would hang on the door post of was looking inside. After the war i gave those to the museum. December 2,000. In the evening ambac unannounced i knock on the door may be now i will get something out of him. Then he reluctantly begins to talk after cheaper of 1941 mothers didnt but children outside that day i was always sticking my nose into everything. Chasing the jews on to the markets where he heard screams because theyre taking the children and the elders they used clubs and did not expect resistance there were 1,000 at most. There was not a big crowd just summon. I was standing off to the side the fear is they take you as a jewish child a and three into the flames with only a little gas and some matches when they set the bar and on fire this screaming went on. They threw the children to the burning barn i saw with my own bias he even went pilothouses that had people hiding others were named also. The brothers when i grow by left the town right away and i havent wanted anything to do with it. Please dont mention my name the brothers are still alive and by my agrees in peace. December 2000. I tried to read all three brothers bypass by a daylight in the first time of teak wood dash jedwabne. The landscape makes realize to hide from persecutors there was unharvested crops in the field. In peace the brothers are waiting for me per pervasive across from each other drinking tea eating homemade gingerbread plays band called we were talking more than three hours before we come to the event july 41. The guest of the brothers is the least talkative. From the testimony at the time during the slaughter they distinguish themselves by the name is. I was headed distance of 30 meters. People were front of me. I listened to them and cannot resist the impression i have a hotel booked i decided to make my way home with his completely deserted and covered with vice. Ice. [applause] and. I want now to tell the story of one of the characters of my book. I think it is my favorite character i became a close friend of him. He was 85 and and his wife was 87 may be. She was a jew rescued by him. There lived in this small village in a jewish family had an neil nearby in the cater family of one of the doctors. For a long time had no transport to marry her to be her boyfriend for a poor family and she was jewish and in 1941 and for the first time they killed all the jews when he wanted to help them. It was still light in the horse wagons. They were on their way i promised them to see what was going on in town. I saw the jewish kids honing one another in bowling their heads. I wanted to get back to find a good way to hide them. There were guarding the streets so did use could not get away. Did you see germans . Those were the ones hunting down. Right away went to jewish homes had we lost all sense of decency . They went into homes ripped open the food in their winter home with bundles and then come back with an empty sack. What about the children . People were lining up. I dont know where god was. But then after the massacre he had to marry her was the way to save her. So they came to see the priest to arrange the baptism and the wedding. I went to the presbytery to the table. The priest asked our you going to pay me . I said we dont have anything father. He replied it can be any bold. I that it had been complete the plant the priest said we have time when there would put a knife to his throat and then found a priest but it was not a good idea because for the germans you are a jew even if a catholic you are age you. Jew it was worse because they had to hide and the family in some places that somebody announce them and then the polish police came and they were sent to the getgo. The same night and then managed to escape with his wife but the family perished he was in hiding for your she told the so many nights said they were in the bunkers. She was pregnant and the child died after a few hours. With the war was over he worked in the mill. He calls after the war ended she decides to guide the oak covered that belong to to the family. She asked the murder tussaud led to her the next day they found a note of the door she was pregnant and she had a miscarriage and they could not have children. I asked if that ever happened is someone came up to her to say they were ashamed . She answered no. They knew that we would not accuse them and we went to testify on their behalf. After the war in poland this to kill the jews were given a sentence but the men were accused of killing the jews. And was told it was because of maria with the zero weakness of their murders. I am a baptized jew we had an exceptionally good opinion and after the incident. I came to visit them is to be in that impoverished area. And it seemed to read the main reason was in order to be accepted it once i told her the you do not do such things and i knew of so many hiding places my wife could always find it in time for the next day only visit. I asked why did they come to the United States or another place . How was it possible to live in some place where you know, your neighbor and your community . She said i was attached to the place where i was born into my ancestors from centuries. But even if not i would not leave her. But if i came home late there could never be anyone like her. And could not hold a candle to her. [applause] now we will take questions. Is said the massacres were taking place there Eastern Europe were the germans invaded the soviet occupation in a recent book by Timothy Snyder talked about soviet collaborators it was easy to turn to the jews as a result. If that is the case why was jedwabne the exception to the rule . Jedwabne is the exception in the example. The exception because all of the jews were killed by the polls but all of these were orchestrated by the polls that had an active role. The idea of community that yes, it was like it was they could blame the jews. There were collaborators their work with the German Occupation so there was collaborators of all possible types. And that scale of collaboration wasnt the same like you think of the ukraine but there were a lot of collaborators there were some but also there were many that fought the soviets. And those at this time were denounced by other polls. It was easy to say the jews were denounced. Is that part of the condition the state authority exists the moment that you live there isnt huge year to their belief system . I dont know. It is a human condition but sometimes in all the times we would have people say you always have a choice of how to behave in. At the time i could and others to the pit was lithuanian or german or polish because the story kept changing but im here for greatgrandfather. Nice to see you. The introduction did not do her justice in she will not say it about herself, anna bikont was an underground journalist during solidarity times one of the editors of the weekly underground solidarity at the end of communism a handful of people who went into a of the gold newspaper possibly the best newspaper in poland and all of central europe. She and her cohorts, friends and solidarity are one of the reasons poland is now able to publish books of autosome of its own past as painful as that is. Over the last five years has emerged from amnesia and allies into a period of its own history the americans with the closest parallel to talk about discrimination and jimcrow and i should mention i lived in poland for many years and new teeeighteen at the beginning and i still had hair. [laughter] but i just wanted to thank you. It is painful to hear that and i can imagine your boss is jewish and a polish patriot, like you but i applaud you for doing this in writing the book to help your country and thus all. [applause] figure first couple of sentences you didnt say the people in the town were polish or half for jewish jewish, it seems even in the initial description there was in sight into the story of how happened. Clearly there were not. Could you talk about that and the history of that throughout other parts of europe as well . Of course,. I said there were catholics and jews and yes that is my mistake because the jews in the jedwabne, many of them felt of the police to say we didnt have the same government before the war. Said there were many programs from the polish Police Arrested the nationalist who sentence them yes, the catholics and the jews. Also it is complicated during the communist rule in poland the entire history of that period of the postwar period, of lot of people who fought in the underground authors were tried and tortured and killed so there was a lot of resentment with the german invasion and that cannot be discussed or repealed with the warsaw uprising, so there was that reluctance as the only major big things. So there was the element of prosperity in fault there. We have the soviet system manipulating the entire view. And did jewish history was also manipulated the soviets say they fall to the communist but not the others so the entire chok of history in the family before me mentioned the schneiders because he has that overall view so of course, a lot of horrible things but now you can write your book is wonderful. But there will be a lot of people who will deny. To save what is the big deal . So i thank you for your beautiful presentation. It was not possible to talk about jedwabne because it isnt possible to savor occupied by a the soviets so of course, it was from 89. I am just wondering it is such a horrendous story, my mother was originally russian. She was here well before world war ii, but ive always thought much of the antisemitism had to do with the jews living in countries like poland but they ruth separate but yet here is a case with the polish catholics were living together. So i wonder is it the arrival of the nazi to increase that antisemitism . So enough to burn people or kill children . Of course, the permission to kill their provoked the killing but it is not okay of the catholics and the juice from before the world then something terrible happens if it is difficult to wonder stand. It is not the case we had help of the antisemitism. It was incredibly antisemitic. But to be the first it was such a hate to organize is. [inaudible] but they organized a boycott , the teacher was a jew isnt so no child caved in particular was the jew. For those to have a separate life after the chief of the state died. It became worse end worse. [inaudible] but where read a cairn terriers siberia but for the polls it was a shock in a delaware is provoking a lot of hate. Is there still a large Jewish Population in poland and what about antisemitism today . Is this still problematic . There were very few left in poland. Maybe a thousand or less. And that it is of which is a it is difficult to say. But to compare but to receive the number but i think we have a lot of envy but the was speaking for the family. But to no the you have something. [laughter] and i realized working on jedwabne it is better to be very polite it was expected and it was a painful experience. This sounds like it was quite a wrenching experience. Could you provide detailed how this kicked off when you started speaking with those atrocities has rigo the technology was used . And do started talking about this event and i am wondering if you could talk about how people talk about though why aura that how with their preplanning, there is german officers and collaborators, how exactly did this begin to say to control of the town and had to relations with germans. But as they talked in have but trust me committed but then to take the active path of the killings was orchestrated by the polls
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