Reading and discussion "Our Father. A Sinti family tells its story."

In her book, Anita Awosusi reconstructs the story of her father, Hermann Weiss, during the Nazi terror and the struggles for justice that followed. Her daughter, Tayo Awosusi-Onutor, will read from the book and then discuss gaps in the official culture of remembrance of the Nazi era in a conversation with Jane Weiss.


The event is being held in preparation for a new exhibition on the struggles for reappraisal, recognition and remembrance of Roma and Sinti after 1945 by RomaniPhen and FHXB Museum.


Brief description of the book's content:

This is the story of the life and survival of violin maker Hermann Weiss. As a 15-year-old boy, the Sinto was persecuted, arrested, and deported by the Nazis in 1940. He survived forced labor in the Sachsenhausen concentration camp, was then "made German again" by the SS for the final battle and forced to wear an officer's uniform. He was taken prisoner by the Soviets until a Russian Jew campaigned for his release.

After the end of World War II and the end of National Socialist rule, Hermann's family did not know if he was still alive. After eight years, Hermann Weiss returned to his hometown of Karlsruhe and started a family. He confronted the trauma with his dream and the pursuit of his calling, building a new life for himself as a violin maker and musician.


(IN GERMAN)


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