Carlos Mendes explains the sadness he feels for his father’s overlooked heroism and the pride he feels for the work his father did.

 Aristides de Sousa Mendes was a Portuguese diplomat stationed in Bordeaux in the late 1930s who issued tens of thousands of visas to Jewish families, in direct violation of anti-Jewish laws instituted by Portugal’s fascist government at the time. For this act of resistance, Sousa Mendes faced trials and conviction, leaving him to live out the rest of his life in poverty and disgrace, and his 15 children scattered all over Europe and the U.S.

Esther Dresner expresses the gratitude she feels to Aristides de Sousa Mendes, a man who did the right thing, regardless of the price.

 Aristides de Sousa Mendes was a Portuguese diplomat stationed in Bordeaux in the late 1930s who issued tens of thousands of visas to Jewish families, in direct violation of anti-Jewish laws instituted by Portugal’s fascist government at the time. For this act of resistance, Sousa Mendes faced trials and conviction, leaving him to live out the rest of his life in poverty and disgrace, and his 15 children scattered all over Europe and the US.

Jewish survivor Henri Deutsch explains the extent of Aristides de Sousa Mendes’ deep commitment to aiding persecuted Jews.

 Aristides de Sousa Mendes was a Portuguese diplomat stationed in Bordeaux in the late 1930s who issued tens of thousands of visas to Jewish families, in direct violation of anti-Jewish laws instituted by Portugal’s fascist government at the time.

Henri Deutsch reflects on the sacrifice that Portuguese diplomat Aristides de Sousa Mendes  made to save the lives of so many Jews during the Holocaust.

Aristides de Sousa Mendes was a Portuguese diplomat stationed in Bordeaux in the late 1930s who issued tens of thousands of visas to Jewish families, in direct violation of anti-Jewish laws instituted by Portugal’s fascist government at the time.

Holocaust survivor Gerda Cohn looks back fondly on her childhood school. It was a supportive environment and children even received candy on the first day of school.

In this clip, Esperance Kaligirwa recalls being rounded up by men intent on killing her and her family but were spared by the actions of her neighbors who interceded for them.

This clip is an excerpt of the footage J. Michael Hagopian filmed of Armenian Genocide survivor Abdulla Garabed's funeral, just two weeks after he filmed Garabed's testimony. The first part of the clip is the procession of attendees and the ceremony, with no audio. The second part is a short clip of the funeral ceremony that took place.

Armenian survivor Dirouhi Haigas describes how the Armenians in her town were told to pack very few belongings and leave all their posessions behind in the days leading up to their deportation to the desert of Der Zor. Her father and several other men were hung in the church square.

Jacek Dabrowski remembers visiting Maximilian Kolbe at his monastery before Kolbe was taken prisoner. Dabrowski was taken to Pawiak prison only two weeks after Kolbe was deported from Pawiak to Auschwitz. 

Jan Dudzinski recalls his interaction with a priest he would later discover was Maximillian Kolbe at Pawiak prison.