- Irene Gabriel Langley '44
I was born in Germany and lived through the early Nazi years, but my family and I were spared the horrors of the concentration camps.
As early as 1933 my father was ushered out of his law office. “Don’t ever come back,” the Nazis told him. My two sisters and I were told the same at school. We left the country immediately and headed for Italy, where we stayed for two years.
But as conditions deteriorated, we had to return to Breslau, our hometown in Germany. Now, as Jews we were not allowed in public swimming pools, nor were we permitted to attend the theatre, the movies or the opera. Yes, sheltered by my parents I did have a happy childhood, but they surely felt the constant danger of living under the Nazi regime, witnessing the arrests, the disappearances, all the restrictions for Jews.
Germany under the Nazis would not allow emigrants to take money out of the country, and it took my parents more than two years to find a sponsor in America who would guarantee that our family of five would not become financially dependent on the government in the United States, as the laws stated at the time.
I was twelve when we arrived in New York. The date was November 3, 1938, six days before Kristallnacht. So we were spared the worst of the Nazi atrocities.
I belonged to the class of ’44. We were the war time girls. We had first aid instead of gym. There was no prom. There were no boys left at home anyway.
I am 97 years old now, living in Florida. I wonder how many of us are left.
- January, 2023
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