Holocaust Survivor and Author Dr. Inge Auerbacher Prescribes Tolerance and Understanding in Response to Prejudice and Hatred

In honor of Holocaust Remembrance Day, Dr. Inge Auerbacher spoke to Winston attorneys and professional staff about her experience during the Holocaust. The presentation was sponsored by the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee and was moderated by New York Associate Scott Sherman, whose two grandparents survived the Holocaust.

Dr. Auerbacher described in vivid detail how her young life dramatically changed in 1938 following Kristallnacht—a two-day riot where Jewish shops and homes were ransacked and destroyed across Germany. Overnight, at the tender age of four, she went from living a comfortable life in Kippenheim, Germany to being an outcast and watching her beloved father and grandfather being arrested and sent temporarily to the Dachau concentration camp.

Four years later, Inge and her mother and father were deported to Theresienstadt—a concentration camp in the Czech Republic. Nearly 90,000 people—mostly Jews—were sent from the Theresienstadt concentration camp to the gas chambers in Auschwitz and another 35,000 perished from starvation and disease. After three years of immense suffering, at the age of 10, Inge and her family were liberated by the Red Army in 1945. Inge is among the 1% of children imprisoned in the Theresienstadt concentration camp who survived. She and her family immigrated to New York City in May 1946. Suffering from malnutrition and tuberculosis, she was hospitalized for two years. Eventually, Inge earned a Bachelor of Science in chemistry from Queens College in Brooklyn and spent 38 years working as a chemist.

Today, Dr. Auerbacher spends her time telling her story to audiences around the world in the hope of educating people about the dangers of intolerance. She is the author of six books and hundreds of poems about the Holocaust. One year ago, she was given an opportunity to speak directly to the German people about her experience when she was asked to address Germany’s Federal Parliament.

When Dr. Auerbacher spoke about the rise in antisemitism around the world, she said, “I can’t believe this is happening again. Antisemitism is like cancer. It grows and grows.” 

She ended her inspiring talk by saying, “Get to know a Jew. We are not so bad. Let us all live in peace together. Amen.”

Pictured: Associate Scott Sherman and Dr. Inge Auerbacher, who is holding the original star she was forced to wear.