Romani Holocaust – Suzanne Berliner Weiss

Rabbi Rosen of Tzedek Chicago hosts Suzanne Weiss, author of ‘Holocaust to Resistance’

Here’s the video record of a talk I gave September 2 hosted by the Tzedek congregation in Chicago. Thank you to Tzedek congregation Rabbi Brant Rosen, my friends Linda Loew, Guy Miller, and my life partner, John Riddell for organizing this event.

Rabbi Rosen says: “I urge friends to watch and listen to the special program, attended by participants from across the country, Canada, and beyond…. It’s a powerful conversation with Holocaust survivor/activist Suzanne Weiss, who shared her story of wartime survival and discussed how she applies it to the solidarity struggles of today.”

As reviewer, Naomi Allen says of Suzanne Weiss’s memoir: It is a “Thrilling and sometimes harrowing account of her life, from war orphan to immigrant to socialist activist, can be read almost as a catalog of liberation struggles from the post-World War II era through the first decades of the 21st century…. Reaching deeply into her Jewish heritage, she pulled out the traditional solidarity of Jews with oppressed people everywhere, paying tribute to her parents’ sacrifice as part of their struggle for human values. Thus, she understood that her support of Palestinian human rights flows directly from the best values of her Jewishness…”

Here’s the video:
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=738959426952382&extid=SR4rLxpcRXwKZ9kc

Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: From Holocaust to Resistance w/Suzanne Weiss. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the meeting.

Watch the video on my presentation featuring my book: Holocaust to Resistance: My Journey – (you can purchase it from Fernwood Publishers).

A visit with Ronald Lee Romani activist and historian

Our beloved friend, mentor, teacher, author, archivist, historian, musician and tireless fighter for Romani human rights, our dear Ron is gone. Ron you have taught and inspired us. You will live in our memory and our hearts. (January 26, 2020)

Ronald Lee was an extraordinary historian of the Roma people. John Riddell and I visited him on a rainy December 29 in St. Peters’ Hospital long-term care facility in Hamilton. He greeted us with a strong handshake and reviewed his life and personal work with animation and enthusiasm. Ron is a Romani Canadian born in Montreal who spent World War 2 in England by happenstance with friends of his parents. He returned in 1945 to Montreal, where he spent most of his adult life.

A self-educated scholar, Ron Lee became a Romani activist, journalist, linguist, and published author on the history of the Romani people. He lectured extensively for colleges, universities, and elementary and high schools in Canada and the US, and taught a seminar on the Romani diaspora at New College, University of Toronto in 2003-2008. He received an honorary degree at Queens University in 2014. For a selection of his writings see his website http://kopachi.com/

Trudeau government acknowledges Nazi genocide against Roma

by Suzanne Berliner Weiss

More then 50 people of all ages joined in Toronto August 2, 2018, in an international day of remembrance and recognition of the Romani Holocaust (Porajmos) in Europe. They heard Arif Virani, federal member of parliament for Toronto High Park-Parkdale, read a statement issued that day by Justin Trudeau’s government which said, in part:

On Romani Genocide Remembrance Day, we honour the memory of over 500,000 Romani who were persecuted and murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators in Europe. This genocide and the unspeakable violence inflicted on the Romani people are not widely known by the public, making them the ignored victims of WWII.

Continue reading Trudeau government acknowledges Nazi genocide against Roma