The Muslims Who Saved The Jews

The Muslims Who Saved The Jews

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112384539

Host Liane Hansen speaks with photographer Norman Gershman about his book Besa: Muslims Who Saved Jews in World War II, which is also the subject of a documentary called God's House. Greshman spent five years collecting stories of Albanian Muslims who harbored Jewish refugees during World War II.

Hear it on media player - http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=112384539&m=112384514

LIANE HANSEN, host:

During the Nazi occupation of Albania and Kosovo during the second World War, Jews facing persecution and death had a small group of seemingly unlikely allies - Muslims. Sixty-five people managed to save some 2,000 Jews, and have been honored by the Jewish Holocaust Memorial as righteous among nations.

Photographer Norman Gershman spent five years taking photos of them and collecting their stories. They've been published in a new book, "Besa: Muslims Who Saved Jews in World War II." Mr. Gershman joins us from Aspen Public Radio in Colorado. Welcome.

Mr. NORMAN GERSHMAN (Photographer, "Besa: Muslims Who Saved Jews in World War II"): Thank you and thank you having me.

HANSEN: First the title, "Besa," what does it mean?

Mr. GERSHMAN: Well, Besa is a tradition of the Albanian people and it goes back thousands of years. It's more than just a welcoming, it's their code of honor. And if one comes into one's besa, they would literally lay their lives down for you - friends or enemies.

HANSEN: You have a wonderful photograph on page four of baba.

Mr. GERSHMAN: The baba, yes.

HANSEN: The baba. Tell us about him.

Mr. GERSHMAN: The baba is the head of the Bektashi. The Bektashi is the most liberal form of Shiites. And I'm quoting from the book, "We Bektashis see God everywhere in everyone. God is in every pore and every cell, therefore, all are God's children. There cannot be infidels. There cannot be discrimination. If one sees the good face, one is seeing the face of God. God is beauty. Beauty is God. There is no God but God."

And under the Nazi occupation, the foreign minister of Albania was a Bektashi. And he sent out a secret message to all Bektashi that the Jewish children will sleep in the same bed as your children. The Jewish children will eat the same food as your children. The Jewish children will be your family.

HANSEN: There are so many acts of courage and creativity in this book. A doctor, for example, bandaged the face of one Jewish man and kept him safe in his infirmary. And sometimes an entire village became a shelter for Jews who were fleeing the persecution. On page 70, tell us about Yakov Kasari(ph).

Mr. GERSHMAN: Well, he is the person that rescued this family. There were Jews living in their village. He took them into hiding in the mountains of Albania because the Germans moving in were threatening to burn the Jews alive.

I mean, he says: I am proud to be recognized by the state of Israel as a righteous person. We have been family of Muslims for 500 years. Besa came from the Quran. The Jews and Muslims of Albania are cousins. We both bury our dead in coffins. I salute all the Jews. May they be honored with their homeland, because the Jews are still at war and need to be remembered. I drain my glass of Raki to honor all my Jewish friends.

And this is very typical. One family said there is no Besa without the Quran. There is no Quran without Besa.

HANSEN: The son of one of the Muslims is photographed with three books in Hebrew. And I think that tells both stories, both about the communist Albania, as well as, you know, the fact that a lot of these families were unable to reunite after the war.

Mr. GERSHMAN: Yes.

HANSEN: His name is Rifat, I believe. And…

Mr. GERSHMAN: Rifat Hoxha.

HANSEN: Yeah. Tell us his story.

Mr. GERSHMAN: It's a wonderful story. His father was given these three books to keep until after the war when they would return to get their books back. And these books are prayer books - he didn't know what they were. And he felt this - his father gave him this obligation to return these books to the rightful owners. He had no way of doing it. He had never been out of Albania. What can he do? Can I help him?

And we ultimately found Aaron(ph), the 10-year-old son now in his '70s. We found him in Israel. And we brought Rifat Hoxga with the three Hebrew books to Israel to return these books to him. And while Rifat was in Israel, he was given a Quran. So, here, Rifat is going back to Albania with the Quran and Aaron has these three Hebrew books.

HANSEN: What effect did this project have on you?

Mr. GERSHMAN: Listen, I photograph with my heart. In this particular case, clearly I'm a Jew. I'm a lay Jew. But I also have studied over the years with the Sufis. And the Sufis, those are the mystical side of Islam. The Islam I know is the Islam of beauty, of music, of dance, of poetry. I don't recognize this Islam that I read about in the papers. So it was a journey that I did with my heart. And it just reinforces that there are more good people in the world, far more good people in the world than terrorist or terrorist sympathizers.

There are well over a billion Muslims. They're good people. Unfortunately, in the media you rarely read or hear about the good people. I found the good people in Albania.

HANSEN: Photographer Norman Gershman. His book "Besa: Muslims Who Saved Jews in World War II" is published by Syracuse University Press. Mr. Gershman joined us from the studios of Aspen Public Radio. Thank you very much.

Mr. GERSHMAN: Thank you, Liane.

Copyright © 2009 National Public Radio®. All rights reserved. No quotes from the materials contained herein may be used in any media without attribution to National Public Radio. This transcript is provided for personal, noncommercial use only, pursuant to our Terms of Use. Any other use requires NPR's prior permission. Visit our permissions page for further information.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by a contractor for NPR, and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Please be aware that the authoritative record of NPR's programming is the audio.

Pictorial Report - Holocaust and Genocides

A report on the III Annual Reflections on

Holocaust and Genocides
Sunday, January 24, 2010

We applaud the people of North Texas for attending the event. They came from every religious, ethnic and race backgrounds; they were Indigenous Americans, Atheists, Bahai, Buddhists, Cherokee, Christians, Hindus, Hopi, Jains, Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, Toltec, Wicca, Zoroastrians and from several ethnicities and nationalities.

Our purpose was education to diverse population. It was a purposeful event to learn, acknowledge and reflect upon the terrible things that we humans have inflicted upon each other, and to understand that our safety hinges on the safety of all others around us.
The program featured 7 speakers who reflected on 7 topics for 7 minutes each followed by 7 commentators on 7 different types of atrocities. The range of topics included; the Holocaust, Genocides, Massacres, Atrocities and Tragedies.This is perhaps the for first time in our history, that we have acknowledged the genocides of the indigenous Americans and Native peoples of Americas in a public forum along with other tragedies.

The Jewish community has borne the suffering of the Holocaust for over sixty years; it is time for us to share it. No community should bear the suffering alone; we all have to stand up, and be there for each other. It is a Muslim initiative to build responsible civic societies. There is a shameless cruelty in us, either we shy away or some times refuse to acknowledge the sufferings of others, worrying that it will devalue our own or some how it amounts to infidelity to our own cause. Shame on us that we justifying massacres by believing and propagating that the victims deserved it or asked for it.

The Holocaust was a major human tragedy and a failure of humanity. The World stood by mercilessly when people were sent to Gas Chambers for their belief in the creator. The looks on the faces of the people, the resignation on their faces that the world silently stood by is horrifying and will haunt us for centuries to come.

Among Genocides, Massacres and other tragedies we reflected upon the Indigenous American people such as the Choctaw, Mayans, Toltecs and the massacres of the Native people right here in Dallas.

We touched upon Darfur and rolled the slides on Polpot, Congo, Armenia, Rwanda, Nanking, Falungong, Bosnia, India and other events to represent the Genocides and Massacres.

Among the ongoing tragedies, the tragedy of Gaza was highlighted with mentions of Burma, Tibet and other tragedies. The massive drowning and tragedy of the transatlantic slave trade was shared.

Through these representative events, our goal was to reflect upon every human failing. The technical definitions of the words do not describe the sufferings of the people in full, we have to work with the limited choice of words, but must have a big heart to feel the pain and suffering of every human being, not just my people or my tribe, but every one. Let us be a part of all human suffering, and together work on getting out of it.Gatherings such as this offer hope and opportunity for a secure and a safer world. At this event, we learned to see each other with dignity, and honor the otherness of other.Of the several acknowledgements, a few notable ones are;

1. Other people’s suffering is as legitimate as ours;
2. Through faith, ethnicity or land mass we are related with butchers of the past;
3. It takes courage to see ourselves as perpetrators;
4. It is easy to see ourselves as Victims
5. When we strip the politics out of these events, we see hope.
6. We can value others suffering without lessening our own;
7. The overriding desire to highlight our own blinds us from other’s suffering.

A sense of responsibility for creating a better world was present in us as witnessed by the people hanging out for an hour and a half after the program.

It is an initiative of American Muslims striving to build responsible civic societies. The event was organized by the Foundation for Pluralism, where co-existence is our value. We appreciate the sponsorship by the Center for Spiritual Living, all the three are Dallas based Organizations.

To the;

Jews, we say you are not alone;
Native people, we say you are not alone;

Homosexual community, we say you are not alone;

Darfurians, we say you are not alone;

Kashmiris Pundits, we say you are not alone;

Gujarati Muslims, we say you are not alone;

Gazans, we say you are not alone;

Ugandans, we say you are no alone;

To all those, who have endured holocaust, genocides, massacres, bombs, annihilation, land mines, hunger, rape, torture, occupation and inhuman brutality, we say you are not alone. The least we can do in the process of healing is to acknowledge every one's pain in one voice. We have begun the process of coming together as one people, to stand with you, we are indeed one world and a single humanity, and caring for each other brings safety and peace to all of us. I cannot be safe if the people around me are not, and I will not have peace if people around me don't. It is in my interest to seek a peaceful world for one and all.

A full day conference is planned for Wednesday, January 26, 2011 to discuss every human tragedy, please submit a thoroughly researched 500 word abstract about the event you'd like to discuss to HolocaustandGenocides@gmail.com.

We are working on initiating a course on tolerance education, so one day, we all can learn to have a heart that opens to the pain of every human. Initial report - http://holocaustandgenocides.blogspot.com/2010/01/initial-report-on-holocaust-and.html

A full report with Speakers information and their talks will be available on the websites soon. Pictures for all the three events are available at the website, for 2010: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeghouse/sets/72157623333495277

Mike Ghouse, Chairperson

Annual reflections on Holocaust and Genocides

http://www.holocaustandgenocides.com/
http://www.foundationforpluralism.com/
http://www.worldmuslimcongress.com/
~~~
# # #

Holocaust and Genocides - Crescent

My Crescent News magazine
January 25, 2010

http://www.mycrescent.com/profiles/blogs/holocaust-amp-genocides

I am not sure to what to say about the "2nd Annual Reflections on Holocaust & Genocides" program organized by Mike Ghouse Learning about the darkest episodes of "humanity" was not a great experience. Hearing stories about how far people would go to destroy another human being or an entire community was extremely distressful. I came to the program to see the good that humanity has to offer, but it seemed like evil and injustice always prevail -- years after years and decades after decades. We keep jumping from one atrocity to another.

The program started just before Maghrib, so few minutes into the speeches I headed out for prayers. I kept thinking about what would motivate people to commit such horrific crimes? What kind of ignorance inspires a person to kill innocent victims? So many un-Godly acts in the name of God?

Maghrib prayers helped me get some perspective on all this chaos. I re-remembered our purpose on this earth and duty to mankind. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) once said that when you see injustice and evil, try and stop it with your hands, if you are unable to do so then speak out against it and if you are unable to speak out then in your heart condemn it, but that's weakest sign of faith. I began thinking about the panel of speakers and the attendees. They are trying to stop evil from spreading, aren't they? Some have even dedicated their entire lives to bring an end to these atrocities. They organize protests, work with aid groups, they are going out raising funds for various causes and not only speaking out against genocides but empowering the victims to take action as well.

Suddenly, I was not feeling as hopeless. Actually, I felt pretty dandy, if I may say so. I thanked God for allowing me to spend some time in the company of those who care and and are stepping up to the challenge. I had the opportunity to socialize with real role models. They came together regardless of their ethnicity, faith or nationality to acknowledge crimes against humanity. They came together to do every thing in their power to help the victims stand up in the face of injustice against fellow humans. And I think that's pretty cool.

Press Release on Holocaust and Genocides

7 Minutes, 7 Topics and 7 reflections, an educational program
5:00 PM on Sunday at Center for Spiritual living

It is an educational program, where 7 speakers will reflect on 7 topics for 7 minutes each along with simple things that you and I can do to prevent such tragedies. The topics range from the Holocaust to Genocides, massacres and tragedies. It is a purposeful event to learn, acknowledge and reflect upon the terrible things that we humans have inflicted upon each other.

Holocaust is a major human tragedy and failure of humanity. Among Genocides, Massacres and other tragedies we will reflect upon the Indigenous American people, the Maya, Toltec, Darfur, Polpot, Congo, Nanking, Armenia, Rwanda, Falun Dafa, Burma, Tibet, Bosnia, India, Gaza and the transatlantic slave trade. Through these representative events, our goal is to reflect upon every human tragedy. We plan to have a full day conference to touch upon every issue in the coming years and we hope you would attend the full day event next year.

Please join us on Sunday at 5:00PM at Center for Spiritual Living, 4801 Spring Valley road, Dallas, Tx 75244. Please find the directions before hand as no one would be available to take the phone calls on the day of the event.

Website - www.HolocaustandGenocides.com
Email – HolocuastandGenocides@gmail.com
Phone – As a last resort (214) 325-1916

It is an initiative of American Muslims striving to work for responsible societies. Organized by the Foundation for Pluralism, where co-existence is our value.

PRESS RELEASE

3rd Annual Reflections on the Holocaust and Genocides.

DALLAS – (January 14, 2010) –The Foundation for Pluralism announces the 7/7 speakers Panel to reflect upon the Holocaust and Genocides event at 5:00 PM on Sunday, January 24, 2010 at the Center for Spiritual Center, 4801 Spring Valley Road, Dallas, TX. 75244.

Each individual in the seven member panel would acknowl
edge the inhumanity in us and reflect upon the solutions for co-existence. It is a purposeful event to learn, acknowledge and reflect upon the terrible things, that we humans have inflicted upon each other.

What can you do as individual?

Join us with individuals and leaders from different faiths, races, ethnicities and cultural backgrounds to express your solidarity and commitment to co-existence. It is a tribute to those who stood up, raised their voices and risked their lives to save the life of others.

The seven-minute topics would range from the Holocaust to Genocides and massacres, such as Genocides and massacres of Indigenous American people, the Maya, Toltec, Darfur, Polpot, Congo, Nanking, Armenia, Rwanda, Falun Dafa, Burma, Tibet, Bosnia and others. They will also speak about the tragedy in Gaza and other places, and the effects of cultural massacres through the transatlantic slave trade.

Mike Ghouse, Chairperson of the event adds, “We mean to include all genocides, but due to time limitations and funding, we will limit to the few as representations of all other, if you would like to include a specific event, we will include the event name at this time.”

The Jewish and other communities have borne the suffering of the Holocaust for over sixty years; it is time for us to share it. No community should bear the suffering alone; we all have to stand up, and be there for each other.

We have to learn to see each other with dignity and honor the otherness of other. Gatherings such as this offer hope and opportunity for a more secure and safer world. I would appreciate your attendance. Please bring your friends along.

The event is sponsored by the Center for Spiritual Living and World Muslim Congress.

It is an initiative of American Muslims striving to work for responsible societies. Organized by the Foundation for Pluralism, where co-existence is our value.

Contact: Mike Ghouse (214) 325-1916,
email: MikeGhouse@aol.com
event email: HolocaustandGenocides@gmail.com
Website: http://www.holocaustandgenocides.com/
# # #