Heroes of the Holocaust and Their Stories of Courage

Chiune Sugihara (1900 – 1986)

Japanese Diplomat

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Though Sugihara was named vice-consul of the Japanese consulate in Kaunas, Lithuania in 1939, his main duty was to keep the Japanese forces informed of the Soviet and German troop movements. Following the 1940 Soviet invasion of Lithuania, Polish Jews as well as Lithuanian Jews had difficulty acquiring exit visa, making it unsafe to travel and difficult to find countries that will issue them. With no discernible motivation other than to do the right thing, he started issuing visas to all who applied including those who did not meet immigration requirements, allowing them to enter Japan for up to 15 days, in direct violation of his orders. He was subsequently reassigned to Berlin when the Soviet took over Lithuania. While en route to the train station, he continued to give out visas for a mob of desperate refugees surrounding his car. However, many passports remained unstamped when he boarded the train, so he threw the official stamp to the crowd. His altruistic acts saved anywhere between 2,000 and 10,000 Jews based on some estimates. Sugihara, the “Japanese Schindler,” was honored as “Righteous among the Nations” by the Israeli government in 1985.

“I cannot allow these people to die, people who have come to me for help with death staring them in the eyes. Whatever punishment may be imposed on me, I know I should follow my conscience.” – Sugihara

Varian Fry (1907 – 1967)

American Journalist

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Distressed by what he personally saw of Nazi barbarities against Jews during his 1935 Berlin visit as a foreign correspondent for an American journal, the Harvard-educated Fry started to help raise funds for European anti-Nazi movements. Following the 1940 invasion of France, he went to Marseille and ran an elaborate rescue network in direct opposition to French and even some American authorities. Despite being under constant surveillance by the puppet Vichy regime, he was able to secure visas with the aid of American Vice-Consul in Marseille Hiram Bingham IV for around 3,000 anti-Nazi and Jewish refugees (among whom were many prominent artists and intellectuals including Marc Chagall and Wilhelm Herzog among others) escape to neutral Portugal before making their way to the United States. A few months prior to his death, France presented him with the Legion of Honor for his heroic work in Marseille from 1940 to1941. Fry, also known as the “American Schindler,” was posthumously honored by Yad Vashem in 1996, the very first American to be listed as “Righteous among the Nations.”

More Holocaust-themed articles:

·        Heroes of the Holocaust & Their Stories of Courage 2

·        Famous Holocaust Survivors

·        Six Classic Holocaust Literatures