Eugenia Adler was 17 at the start of World War II. She survived the Warsaw Ghetto and Auschwitz-Birkenau and Majdanek concentration camps, and spent time fighting with the partisans. In this clip, she recalls finding shelter with a frightened horse as Germany bombed Warsaw in September 1939. More clips from survivors on the beginning of World War II: Rosette Baronoff on the Breakout of War David Bayer remembers the Invasion of Poland

George reflects on the importance of learning from the Holocaust and working to make the world a better place.

At the inaugural Scholar Lab online lecture series event, held September 14, 2022, MacArthur Grant-winner Dr. Josh Kun of USC presents commentary, music and archival recordings in his exploration of the Nazi’s use of music as a soundtrack of terror. UCLA’s Dr. Todd Presner, winner of the Digital Media and Learning Prize from the MacArthur Foundation/HASTAC, presents a computational analysis of the language survivors use to describe antisemitism in Visual History Archive testimony.  Discussion moderated by Dr.

This moderated discussion features Dr. Jonathan Judaken of Rhodes College and Dr. Jeffrey Veidlinger of the University of Michigan, both the members of the Scholar Lab on Antisemitism program. As part of the discussion, Dr. Judaken and Dr. Veidlinger present on their research projects examining how major theorists of antisemitism understand its underlying causes and what prominent writers and thinkers in the historical western tradition had written about Jews, respectively, focusing on what we can learn about antisemitism from these writings. The discussion is moderated by Dr.

Held on November 16, 2022, this moderated discussion features Dr. Mehnaz Afridi of Manhattan College and Dr. Sara Lipton of Stony Brook University, who are members of USC Shoah Foundation’s Scholar Lab on Antisemitism program. As part of the discussion, Dr. Afridi and Dr. Lipton present on their research projects examining antisemitism in the Arab world and representations of Jews in medieval Christian sermons, respectively, focusing on the insights they gained into the causes, manifestations and consequences of antisemitism through history and in relation to religion.

Following remarks by USC President Carol Folt and Finci-Viterbi Executive Director Dr. Robert Williams, this discussion and live demo event feature a panel discussion moderated by USC Shoah Foundation's Dr. Kori Street, demonstration of the new features, and opportunities to ask questions and learn from testimony. The VHA redesign, part of the Lee Liberman Visual History Archive Program was made possible thanks to the generous support of the Lee Liberman Foundation, Koret Foundation, Crown Family Philanthropies and others.

It wasn't until Renée received a phone call from the Simon Wiesenthal Center asking her to tell her story that she thought seriously about sharing her testimony with the world. Hearing about a particular antisemitic event that occurred in Los Angeles made Renée reflect on her experiences and motivated her to share her experiences.

In this clip from his 2022 testimony, Gerald Szames recalls his personal encounter with antisemitism from a fellow college student. Recorded in the Ceci Chan and Lila Sorkin Memory Studio at the USC Shoah Foundation Institute's global headquarters on the USC campus in Los Angeles, California.

Martin Greenfield, born in 1928 in what was then Czechoslovakia, was the only member of his immediate family to survive Auschwitz. He immigrated to the U.S. at age 19 and eventually made his name as a Master Tailor, making suits for six US presidents. As a new immigrant, he worked on the suit of General Dwight D. Eisenhower. In this clip, Greenfield recalls seeing Eisenhower when he was liberated at the Buchenwald Concentration Camp in April 1945.   

Holocaust survivor Samuel Geller recalls a more sober celebration than usual on Purim of 1933 in Chemnitz, Germany, with a classmate dressing up as Hitler to play Haman, Purim’s villain.

Jola Gelb is a Jewish Holocaust survivor who was imprisoned in the Metajna Concentration camp in Slana/Pag in today’s Croatia. More than 3,500 Jews, Roma and Serbs were held at Slana in the summer of 1941, and 1,000 were killed at a complex of camps run by the Ustasha regime. Researchers are using Jola’s testimony to help document and preserve the sites of persecution in Slana.

Watch and learn more about the relaunch of the Visual History Archive.