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People from Here
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Welcome back to People from Here.
What we want to tell you today
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is the story of two young people,
of two young people with high hopes.
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There is Adelina,
a brilliant lawyer who works
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at a prestigious legal firm in Milan.
Then there is Ettore,
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an industrial chemist.
The future can only smile
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upon Adelina and Ettore.
Actually,
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their future will be more troubled
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than they could have ever imagined.
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In fact,
in 1938 Ettore
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and Adelina are Jewish.
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On September 18th,
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from the balcony
of Trieste's town hall,
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Benito Mussolini announced
for the first time the Racial Laws
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for the defense of the race.
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The world of those two young people
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suddenly collapses under their feet.
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We will tell this story
about Ettore and Adelina
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on the eve of the day.
We will tell it with the son
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of Ettore and Adelina,
Daniele Finzi, who in 2011,
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decided to donate
his parents letters and documents
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to The Archives of Pieve Santo Stefano.
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Shortly we will also discuss why
this choice was made.
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Now I would like to start
with September 1938.
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with Mussolini's announcement
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of the laws for the defense of the race.
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Ettore and Adelina immediately started
to understand that there wasn't
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a future for them in that country.
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Deciding to leave was
was a difficult decision to make.
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It was a difficult decision,
but one that will save their lives.
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Yes, Ettore Finzi, my father,
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was very knowledgable about history.
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Also because he knew German very well.
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He had two aunts, aunt Genie
and aunt Lazigudita Gentiluomo,
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who both lived in Vienna.
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He had followed
all the Nazi antisemitism
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up to March 1938.
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So, in July 1938,
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when the Race Manifesto was published,
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he didn't expect it.
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He knew what it was about,
although he hoped
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that Italy would be
a little different than Germany.
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And my father, more than my mother,
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made quick and immediate decisions.
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He was also very intuitive.
He had known my mom only a few months,
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and he returns
to these months in April 1938.
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It was love at first sight,
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and because of the Race Manifesto
and the Racial Laws,
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they decided to get married.
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They were married in Milan
on December 1, 1938.
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In 1938. We arrive in 1939.
- Yes.
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An ominous date for many.
- Yes.
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Very unjust, but there is a turning point.
- There is a...
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Ettore and Adelina decide to leave.
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Or rather, how do they depart?
Because, in a way,
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they leave informed.
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Yes and no.
The problem is immediate
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and that of money.
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Because the White Paper of the British,
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from perhaps February
or March of 1939,
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had mandated
a total of 75,000 Jews
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that could enter Palestine for five years.
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However, to qualify to enter,
every person needed to have 1,000 stars.
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Because, like we said, they had chosen.
- To go to...
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The goal was Palestine.
- Yes.
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The choice was not a coincidence,
because my father had also thought
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about Latin America.
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But the idea of going
to Palestine was because it was nearby.
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He was from Trieste so it was close.
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He also hoped his parents could join him.
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In any case,
the issue of money was really
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a huge problem
because they didn't have any.
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So, thanks to the lawyer Gianni Morandi,
who was the owner of the firm
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where my mom worked,
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they went to Zurich for their honeymoon.
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Then they went to Lugano
to gather a large sum
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of money from the lawyer's clients.
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And I still remember two leather bags
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with thousands of stars inside.
They were gold little stars.
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At this point, they reach Palestine.
A tangent about Palestine.
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The State of Israel still didn't exist.
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There wasn't any money to protect them.
Therefore, they had to start from scratch.
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Yes, and so, they started all over again
from January to April 1, 1939.
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They arrived in Haifa on April 6th.
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Yes, because as of 1922,
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the British controlled Palestine.
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There were Palestinian Arabs.
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The Jewish Palestinians were organized
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by the Yishuv,
who were more concerned
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with the kibbutz,
and wanted to dedicate themselves
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to agriculture, etc.
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But the foundation,
the political one,
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was led by the Jewish agency.
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The Jewish agency was, well,
I'll give you an example.
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Okay,
so they arrived in Tel Aviv
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on April 7th.
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Twenty days later they were
in school learning modern Hebrew,
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because there were various Jews
in Tel Aviv
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from every part of Europe.
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So it was necessary
to learn this common language.
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There was some organization,
but there were a lot of problems.
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In any case, where I mentally find...
- Ah yes.
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this small amount of protection.
However, they had to start...
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Yes, they had to restart.
- from scratch.
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On the other hand, however,
there was a lot of bitterness
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that was left behind by the fact
of having to abandon...
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Yes.
- Italy.
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Having to leave Italy was stressful.
- Yes.
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In regard to this,
I will also read an excerpt
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from the letters
that have been donated to the archive.
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Diaries in which Ettore specifically tells
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about what he was feeling shortly after
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the time in which he abandoned Italy.
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We will read this excerpt:
"When I left Italy four months ago,
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"feeling more disgusted by the burden
of having to leave the country
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"than for the imminent danger,
many of my colleagues
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"and friends were quick
to express to me their discontent
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"about what was happening.
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"Through their conversations,
I felt they knew about condolences
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"and they ended up
only making me withdraw.
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"They were whispered conversations,
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"only because they knew me
and they valued me.
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"For many, being an example against
the persecution of Jews not being born
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"in Italy, could also be considered fair,
because it is understood that they came
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"to the country to make a fortune
by going behind other's backs.
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"They had some expert political views.
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"The Fascist government's right
to persecute people that it had let into
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"the country was generally recognized."
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So Ettore felt betrayed by Italy?
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Without a doubt.
Also because, as I was saying prior,
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my father was from Trieste.
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From his father, my grandfather,
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he also received an irredentist
and nationalist upbringing.
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Trieste had always been divided
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between people from Trieste, Austria...
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Let's say Austriacanti.
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Rather than irredentists,
who loved Italy, the Italian culture,
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the Italian language,
like my grandfather and the Slovenians.
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He had received this upbringing,
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and so he was an irredentist nationalist.
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Additionally, he was a genius official,
and he felt like an Italian.
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He loved Italy
and he felt betrayed by this terrible law.
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In addition, in Ettore's letters,
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in this text, it also highlights
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a responsibility
by the Italian people themselves
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for what was happening.
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He writes:
"The political maturity
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"of the Italian people
is apparently that of government rule
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"that it has and that it deserves."
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There is a precise responsibility
by the people.
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Well, the Italian people's problem...
(Laughter)
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Living yes...
like saying living today like yesterday.
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In other words,
the lack of personal responsibility
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and this...
Well yes, accepting anything,
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like a leader or a guide,
that which is of
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an uglier appearance, if you will.
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And that Trieste...
Not coincidentally Mussolini
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and September 18, 1938,
where they were
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at the Unity of Italy Square
to present the Racial Laws.
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Not only because of
the nationalism that was there,
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but because Trieste was
a very multiethnic, multicultural city.
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There were more than two centuries
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in which ethnic groups were diverse.
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They coexisted.
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But at the very moment
in which Mussolini showed his cruelty
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towards Jews, who were Italian,
and felt as such,
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and had also fought
for Italy during the First World War...
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At the point,
everyone was inclined
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to accept Fascist rule.
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We return to Ettore and Adelina,
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who, because of their decisions,
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leave the Second World War behind,
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in which the persecution of Jews
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and the holocaust are about to start.
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They leave behind the errors of the war,
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however, like you said,
they face a life
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that is not easy.
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Like we said,
Adelina was a lawyer with a great career.
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She finds herself having
to start her work up again.
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Yes, because the main difficulty was
a work shortage.
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There was an excess of workers
(Laughter)
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from Tel Aviv.
And then, there were few jobs
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or they were completely insecure.
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Another big problem was
a housing shortage.
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So much so that my parents were forced
to live with a family,
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with a Polish family in an apartment.
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Above all,
the main difficulty was the work shortage.
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Also because the two bags
of the two thousand stars were not
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to be touched at all.
My father was not flexible.
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Then my mom,
as long as my father remained in Tel Aviv
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until August 23, 1944,
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when he went to work
at the British oil refinery...
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(Interviewer Talking)
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No, he was also with my mom
because they then had my sister first,
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and then I was born in 1942.
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So when my father left,
he felt the need
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to work to support the family.
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He also liked the idea
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of having money to freely spend.
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As mentioned, your mother was free...
- Yes, free.
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in Palestine.
- Yes.
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Your father Ettore, on the other hand,
had to move abroad to Persia
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because, meanwhile, he found work
with an oil company.
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So two lovers
who find themselves far apart
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in foreign lands,
and the only point of contact
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between these two people becomes
the writing,
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the letters
that will then become so important
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for documentation, for their memories.
- Yes.
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In fact, my father accepted
this two year contract
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with the Iranian company.
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He was in Abadan in Persia.
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And indeed it was a military zone.
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He did his work there
as an industrial chemist.
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Of course, he had to detach
and leave his wife,
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his children in Tel Aviv.
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Then, although very tired,
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every evening my mom wrote
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and reported what had happened
during her workday,
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because she had found work
with a company that was part
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of the Tel Aviv pharmaceutical industry.
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After then being fired,
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she went to work at a house to iron.
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So, she could do any job.
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She reported with great ability,
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descriptive, careful about everything
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that went on during the day.
Rather, my father sometimes wrote letters
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with extensive description.
He explained to her a bit about his duty,
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weather problems because it was very hot,
relationships with the British
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and with the local population
that was in truly devastating conditions.
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They were letters that,
among other things...
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If you permit me a tangent.
- Of course.
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They were things one absolutely knew
but I didn't know
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the letters even existed.
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Then perhaps we can also elaborate
on how they were found.
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Then also about how the decision
to publish them came about.
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Let's go back.
We had said that while Ettore
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and Adelina were in Palestine,
their children were born.
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Yes, my sister...
- You were born
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and your sister Ana was born.
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It is fitting that the future
of these two children was often focused on
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in these letters that Ettore
and Adelina exchange.
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I would like to read another
particularly significant passage
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that is again written by Ettore
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from Abadan in February 23, 1945:
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"If on one hand, the war tends
to be nearing its end, on the other,
246
00:16:26,775 --> 00:16:30,075
"the situation in Palestine
is taking a favorable turn for us.
247
00:16:30,301 --> 00:16:34,102
"These days, I am overthinking
and continuously thinking
248
00:16:34,102 --> 00:16:38,384
"about the problem and worried,
not so much about our personal future,
249
00:16:38,544 --> 00:16:42,247
"but the future of our children.
I feel irresistibly taken towards
250
00:16:42,247 --> 00:16:45,734
"a solution that,
although never once explored,
251
00:16:45,734 --> 00:16:47,487
"today seems inevitable to me.
252
00:16:47,723 --> 00:16:50,068
"Perhaps in a year's time,
253
00:16:50,408 --> 00:16:54,008
"we will find the need
to return to Italy."
254
00:16:54,008 --> 00:16:57,616
"Then they will become
one hundred percent Italians."
255
00:16:58,070 --> 00:17:01,410
Probably if your father could have chosen,
256
00:17:01,453 --> 00:17:05,403
he would have never wanted
to return to Italy.
257
00:17:05,659 --> 00:17:08,307
Yes, I would not have wanted to also.
Quite the opposite
258
00:17:08,307 --> 00:17:13,035
because my father,
due to having been betrayed by Italy,
259
00:17:13,710 --> 00:17:17,520
deeply desired to return to Italy.
260
00:17:17,720 --> 00:17:20,930
Apart from the experience in Abadan,
261
00:17:21,620 --> 00:17:26,700
also because life
in Palestine was truly very hard,
262
00:17:26,700 --> 00:17:30,238
very difficult because
of the work problem,
263
00:17:30,628 --> 00:17:35,718
and the problem of the lack of apartments.
264
00:17:35,718 --> 00:17:40,475
However, we can't forget
that the attention
265
00:17:40,495 --> 00:17:42,837
from the Palestinian Arabs
266
00:17:43,177 --> 00:17:47,317
and the British made life difficult.
267
00:17:47,977 --> 00:17:53,307
If we could return back in time.
- Yes.
268
00:17:53,910 --> 00:17:57,441
In September 1940,
269
00:17:58,003 --> 00:18:02,343
Tel Aviv was bombed
by Italian planes, right.
270
00:18:02,443 --> 00:18:07,620
Yes.
- They bombed Tel Aviv
271
00:18:07,620 --> 00:18:10,527
and it seems like there were one hundred
and fifty two deaths.
272
00:18:10,527 --> 00:18:13,320
So life was very hard.
273
00:18:13,580 --> 00:18:16,170
Another tangent.
In other words,
274
00:18:17,090 --> 00:18:21,772
one of the big problems was also food.
275
00:18:22,253 --> 00:18:24,753
For example,
my sister and I went to the gan,
276
00:18:24,773 --> 00:18:28,713
which was like kindergarten.
277
00:18:29,083 --> 00:18:33,101
To help you understand, at lunch they used
to give us half an egg to eat.
278
00:18:34,471 --> 00:18:36,759
On the other hand,
279
00:18:36,829 --> 00:18:41,856
while facing this situation,
there continuously remained
280
00:18:41,856 --> 00:18:45,676
the hope of returning to Italy.
281
00:18:45,866 --> 00:18:49,513
And how did Adelina live
with the hope of returning?
282
00:18:49,513 --> 00:18:52,120
I will read another significant passage:
283
00:18:52,610 --> 00:18:57,410
"I will never ask who is taking that step.
Here I undoubtedly feel hesitant
284
00:18:57,410 --> 00:19:00,902
"by instinct and by force of tradition.
And I won't ever ask myself,
285
00:19:00,902 --> 00:19:04,421
"not only out of obedience,
but because, more than anything else,
286
00:19:04,421 --> 00:19:07,803
"I am concerned
about doing everything possible
287
00:19:07,803 --> 00:19:10,587
"for the future of our children."
288
00:19:10,947 --> 00:19:14,784
It's like saying,
she was also willing to do her part.
289
00:19:14,784 --> 00:19:18,704
There was a sense of pride
of returning to Italy,
290
00:19:18,718 --> 00:19:22,306
that country that had dismissed them,
in order to guarantee
291
00:19:22,306 --> 00:19:24,000
a future for you children.
292
00:19:24,000 --> 00:19:27,914
Here there is a...
(Laughter)
293
00:19:27,914 --> 00:19:31,716
There are many letters.
In any case, when my father says
294
00:19:31,716 --> 00:19:34,439
that they will become
one hundred percent Italians,
295
00:19:34,839 --> 00:19:40,377
he also suggested
to my mom the idea
296
00:19:40,984 --> 00:19:43,684
of converting us to Catholicism,
297
00:19:43,991 --> 00:19:46,284
because we were Jews.
- (Interviewer) Of course.
298
00:19:46,807 --> 00:19:51,027
Then, meanwhile,
the Finzi
299
00:19:51,027 --> 00:19:55,217
of Trieste were
almost completely assimilated.
300
00:19:55,457 --> 00:19:58,485
That is to say,
they went to the temple twice a year.
301
00:19:59,128 --> 00:20:03,990
Instead, my mom was
from a much more orthodox family,
302
00:20:04,444 --> 00:20:08,483
They came from the Parrdo lineage,
303
00:20:08,483 --> 00:20:12,153
which was a very important Iberian family.
304
00:20:12,203 --> 00:20:14,324
Parrdo which used to be Prado.
305
00:20:14,404 --> 00:20:18,744
They came from Spain after the expulsion.
306
00:20:18,744 --> 00:20:21,659
So my father proposes this idea
307
00:20:21,949 --> 00:20:25,349
of converting to Catholicism.
308
00:20:25,619 --> 00:20:30,762
in order for his children...
- (Interviewer) To become...
309
00:20:30,825 --> 00:20:34,506
Yes, to become entirely Italian,
even as a religion.
310
00:20:34,556 --> 00:20:39,192
However my mom...
Here it says that she was reluctant.
311
00:20:39,192 --> 00:20:43,165
Not because she was personally orthodox,
312
00:20:43,325 --> 00:20:48,765
but because,
when it was known what was happening
313
00:20:49,105 --> 00:20:54,693
in Europe with the extermination camps
or some other difficult situation,
314
00:20:54,703 --> 00:20:57,741
they absolutely didn't know
where my paternal
315
00:20:58,211 --> 00:21:00,877
and maternal grandparents were.
316
00:21:00,936 --> 00:21:03,537
However, the news arrived,
317
00:21:03,747 --> 00:21:08,617
even betraying the origin and...
318
00:21:08,617 --> 00:21:12,320
(Interviewer) It was quite heavy.
- Yes, very heavy.
319
00:21:12,716 --> 00:21:18,527
Speaking of, how did the news
about the war arrive meanwhile
320
00:21:18,527 --> 00:21:22,558
it continued in Europe?
Was there just an awareness
321
00:21:22,558 --> 00:21:25,522
of what was happening?
Was there an awareness
322
00:21:25,522 --> 00:21:29,823
of the existence
of the extermination camps?
323
00:21:29,823 --> 00:21:32,752
Above all, how did they also live
with these dual feelings?
324
00:21:32,752 --> 00:21:34,860
Because, on the one hand,
there was this hope
325
00:21:34,860 --> 00:21:38,927
of being able to return one day
to a normal life in Italy.
326
00:21:39,219 --> 00:21:42,063
On the other hand, however,
there was a lot of fear
327
00:21:42,063 --> 00:21:43,598
also for the fate of loved ones.
328
00:21:45,064 --> 00:21:46,317
They knew everything.
329
00:21:47,137 --> 00:21:52,008
Both about the Jewish agency
and about the British.
330
00:21:52,691 --> 00:21:56,707
The news arrived quite detailed.
331
00:21:57,527 --> 00:21:58,903
I don't want to forget
332
00:21:58,903 --> 00:22:02,743
that there was a noteworthy group
333
00:22:02,763 --> 00:22:05,437
of young Jews
334
00:22:05,837 --> 00:22:08,997
that were part of the Jewish brigade.
335
00:22:09,707 --> 00:22:13,530
They fought alongside the British
336
00:22:13,530 --> 00:22:16,170
and they also fought in Italy.
337
00:22:16,170 --> 00:22:17,811
Then in all of Europe.
338
00:22:18,291 --> 00:22:22,071
They were the ones who said
339
00:22:22,101 --> 00:22:27,564
that they offered very detailed news
of what was happening.
340
00:22:27,587 --> 00:22:31,253
So, they knew about everything
that was coming
341
00:22:31,273 --> 00:22:33,853
to Italy and Europe.
342
00:22:34,403 --> 00:22:39,442
The concerns were precisely
343
00:22:39,502 --> 00:22:43,692
that my paternal grandparents,
344
00:22:43,692 --> 00:22:48,285
who later died in Auschwitz,
didn't...
345
00:22:48,285 --> 00:22:53,875
The last official news was transmitted
by a type of telegram
346
00:22:54,265 --> 00:22:58,625
of the Red Cross
in July of 1943.
347
00:22:58,985 --> 00:23:01,733
My father knew absolutely nothing.
348
00:23:02,091 --> 00:23:03,432
My mom didn't know either.
349
00:23:03,542 --> 00:23:08,642
She knew that her parents were in hiding.
350
00:23:08,792 --> 00:23:10,957
Her brother was in Switzerland.
351
00:23:11,467 --> 00:23:14,317
But they had absolutely no news.
352
00:23:14,577 --> 00:23:18,615
They couldn't say or write anything,
353
00:23:19,045 --> 00:23:21,775
because the mail was altered.
354
00:23:22,625 --> 00:23:26,074
Both the outgoing
and the incoming mail was altered.
355
00:23:26,634 --> 00:23:29,048
I found that some of the letters...
356
00:23:29,048 --> 00:23:30,968
(Interviewer talking)
- Yes, the details.
357
00:23:30,978 --> 00:23:36,724
They were deleted
by the person that made the changes.
358
00:23:36,724 --> 00:23:40,883
So, dad needed to be attentive,
because they were altered by the British.
359
00:23:41,214 --> 00:23:43,769
They were altered by the Persians.
(Laughter)
360
00:23:43,859 --> 00:23:46,099
Then they were altered
on arrival in Palestine.
361
00:23:46,099 --> 00:23:46,884
So, they were...
362
00:23:46,884 --> 00:23:50,453
In this situation,
they also found themselves in a state
363
00:23:50,453 --> 00:23:56,180
of uncertainty being far
from Europe.
364
00:23:56,370 --> 00:23:59,809
Being far
from what was happening in Europe.
365
00:24:00,019 --> 00:24:01,999
Far from the war.
366
00:24:03,059 --> 00:24:08,363
For a moment, Adelina perhaps had hoped,
from what Ledi writes,
367
00:24:09,363 --> 00:24:13,273
that her family would have an advantage
368
00:24:13,273 --> 00:24:17,753
over the immense tragedy
that afflicted the Jews of Europe.
369
00:24:18,035 --> 00:24:21,255
That they would all find themselves
reunited upon their return.
370
00:24:21,255 --> 00:24:23,675
There was almost this illusion, this hope.
371
00:24:24,060 --> 00:24:28,538
Having high hopes is often the last idea.
They did have hope.
372
00:24:28,985 --> 00:24:33,907
They hadn't had detailed news,
373
00:24:34,421 --> 00:24:39,071
even though then my dad's brother,
who was...
374
00:24:39,571 --> 00:24:44,932
He was a doctor who lived in Bologna,
375
00:24:44,952 --> 00:24:50,400
but in the mountain area
of Monghidoro and Loiano.
376
00:24:51,137 --> 00:24:55,290
He knew
that his parents had been arrested,
377
00:24:55,293 --> 00:24:56,843
that they had been deported.
378
00:24:57,233 --> 00:25:02,515
However, he had not communicated anything.
Even though assuming,
379
00:25:02,905 --> 00:25:06,711
that they went to Auschwitz,
there could have always been
380
00:25:07,121 --> 00:25:10,681
the hope of their return
Therefore, they hoped.
381
00:25:11,311 --> 00:25:14,575
Unfortunately, however,
the terrible news arrived.
382
00:25:14,575 --> 00:25:19,609
They also arrived in Palestine while
the war by now...
383
00:25:19,609 --> 00:25:22,092
It was over.
- By now it was over.
384
00:25:22,276 --> 00:25:26,075
And like you said,
the terrible news arrived by mail.
385
00:25:26,405 --> 00:25:31,742
News so terrible
that Adelina cannot even transcribe them
386
00:25:31,742 --> 00:25:34,153
in a letter to Ettore.
She writes:
387
00:25:34,343 --> 00:25:38,025
"My dear, unfortunately,
the dreary news has arrived.
388
00:25:38,275 --> 00:25:41,129
"I am sending you the letter
because I don't have the courage
389
00:25:41,379 --> 00:25:42,330
"to write about it."
390
00:25:42,330 --> 00:25:47,086
It's terrible.
Unfortunately, they were effects
391
00:25:47,086 --> 00:25:51,448
of what just happened
in the war in Europe.
392
00:25:52,466 --> 00:25:55,684
In a communication letter separate
from the international cross.
393
00:25:55,747 --> 00:25:59,213
Maybe in that exact moment Ettore
and Adelina understood
394
00:25:59,853 --> 00:26:03,168
what they had escaped from?
395
00:26:03,712 --> 00:26:08,954
Yes without a doubt.
I will also tell you
396
00:26:08,954 --> 00:26:14,752
that when dad had
the great idea of going to Palestine,
397
00:26:14,845 --> 00:26:19,890
everyone criticized him;
friends, parents, brothers, the sister,
398
00:26:19,946 --> 00:26:25,663
because they said:
"You are always pessimistic".
399
00:26:26,395 --> 00:26:31,497
He would rather have wanted them all
to also come with him.
400
00:26:32,038 --> 00:26:36,209
However, we can say
that he expected it,
401
00:26:36,213 --> 00:26:39,353
also because the war
402
00:26:39,873 --> 00:26:43,773
in Europe ended on May 8, 1945.
403
00:26:44,103 --> 00:26:46,587
The news gets to him in August.
404
00:26:47,357 --> 00:26:53,147
Given that months go by
where he doesn't receive
405
00:26:53,147 --> 00:26:57,124
positive news,
he feared for the lives of his parents.
406
00:26:57,744 --> 00:27:00,066
Excuse me, if you allow me...
(Interviewer) Sure.
407
00:27:00,066 --> 00:27:04,320
But before the communication
408
00:27:04,480 --> 00:27:07,560
about the deaths of his parents,
409
00:27:07,560 --> 00:27:10,336
he received communication from Sweden
410
00:27:10,685 --> 00:27:14,936
that said his sister was saved.
411
00:27:17,106 --> 00:27:23,103
Then my aunt Yolanda Clara was part
of that group of prisoners
412
00:27:23,103 --> 00:27:28,008
that were moved
from Auschwitz in December 1944.
413
00:27:28,008 --> 00:27:32,150
They were moved west
because the Red Army was coming.
414
00:27:32,150 --> 00:27:34,709
Since they didn't want them to see
415
00:27:34,709 --> 00:27:39,989
a mass of prisoners in Auschwitz,
they were moved.
416
00:27:40,409 --> 00:27:44,858
She was then liberated
in the north of Ravensbrück
417
00:27:46,288 --> 00:27:49,088
in April 1945.
418
00:27:49,088 --> 00:27:52,952
She was then transferred
to Sweden to recover.
419
00:27:53,535 --> 00:27:59,169
We have said that at this point,
the war had ended and Ettore and Adelina
420
00:27:59,403 --> 00:28:04,286
along with their children decide
to return to Italy.
421
00:28:04,714 --> 00:28:09,234
How difficult was it once again to start
from scratch because they actually had
422
00:28:09,234 --> 00:28:10,284
to start from scratch.
423
00:28:10,290 --> 00:28:12,409
Ah yes.
It was difficult.
424
00:28:12,619 --> 00:28:17,951
My father's brother helped him obtain
a job at his work in Sansepolcro.
425
00:28:18,460 --> 00:28:22,143
He spoke with Mr. Marco Vittoni,
who said:
426
00:28:22,143 --> 00:28:26,364
"I am willing to hire your brother
because he is a chemist.
427
00:28:26,660 --> 00:28:32,109
Also, I want a change
for the company, etc".
428
00:28:32,662 --> 00:28:38,159
But when we arrived in Italy in May 1946,
429
00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:40,680
with a short stop in Bologna
and then to Parma
430
00:28:40,680 --> 00:28:42,571
with my maternal grandparents,
431
00:28:42,571 --> 00:28:45,351
and then to Sansepolcro precisely
432
00:28:45,906 --> 00:28:51,122
in November of 1946,
we had absolutely nothing.
433
00:28:51,898 --> 00:28:54,212
And there was nothing...
(Laughter)
434
00:28:54,212 --> 00:28:56,832
(Interviewer) Without a doubt,
a country in devastation.
435
00:28:56,832 --> 00:28:58,512
Yes, a country in devastation.
436
00:28:58,512 --> 00:29:03,040
I remember the path with holes.
I remember the Tower of Berta Square
437
00:29:03,040 --> 00:29:06,523
in a pile of ruins.
- The Tower of Berta Square was destroyed.
438
00:29:06,771 --> 00:29:12,297
I repeat, it was also a problem to eat.
439
00:29:12,367 --> 00:29:16,527
I remember my dad rented
a furnished apartment
440
00:29:16,527 --> 00:29:21,762
in Saint Claire Square
in which the conditions were really...
441
00:29:21,911 --> 00:29:24,129
Insecure.
- Very, very insecure.
442
00:29:24,129 --> 00:29:28,309
However, they were young
and they wanted to start over.
443
00:29:28,707 --> 00:29:31,269
There was my sister and myself.
444
00:29:31,272 --> 00:29:36,776
So, they wanted to put a painful time
445
00:29:36,776 --> 00:29:39,546
of their lives behind them and start over.
446
00:29:39,546 --> 00:29:44,762
You have previously already answered
that there was resentment towards
447
00:29:44,762 --> 00:29:49,694
that country that made them escape
and also towards those friends
448
00:29:49,701 --> 00:29:52,467
that...
- No.
449
00:29:52,467 --> 00:29:56,208
were against the idea
of the Racial Laws.
450
00:29:56,418 --> 00:29:59,018
No, absolutely not.
451
00:29:59,018 --> 00:30:02,690
Other than it being something
that is part of our DNA,
452
00:30:02,690 --> 00:30:06,305
resentment is useless.
453
00:30:06,305 --> 00:30:09,545
I was taught
that it's best to let things go,
454
00:30:10,815 --> 00:30:12,192
move forward,
455
00:30:12,195 --> 00:30:17,047
have the will to start again,
and to overcome difficulties.
456
00:30:17,047 --> 00:30:17,825
Not resentment.
457
00:30:17,935 --> 00:30:23,530
I never heard my father
nor my mother speak ill
458
00:30:23,530 --> 00:30:25,002
of Italians.
459
00:30:25,332 --> 00:30:28,911
Yes, it was upsetting to have lost.
460
00:30:29,411 --> 00:30:30,701
(Interviewer talking)
- Yes.
461
00:30:30,701 --> 00:30:36,332
To having lost parents.
To having lost years of work.
462
00:30:36,342 --> 00:30:41,473
My mom could not return to work
in Milan because there was no way
463
00:30:41,773 --> 00:30:42,766
to find a home.
464
00:30:44,518 --> 00:30:47,365
In 2011,
the epistolary
465
00:30:47,375 --> 00:30:52,925
of Ettore Finzi and Adelina was donated
466
00:30:52,925 --> 00:30:57,000
to the Pieve diary archives.
It's awarded the Premio Pieve.
467
00:30:57,048 --> 00:31:02,938
First and foremost, how were you able
to find these letters again,
468
00:31:02,938 --> 00:31:06,199
because they were made public
by the decision of donating them.
469
00:31:07,327 --> 00:31:11,486
My father died on June 18, 2002.
470
00:31:13,724 --> 00:31:18,572
He lived in an apartment
in Parma and in August,
471
00:31:18,592 --> 00:31:20,772
I was ready to let go
of the apartment.
472
00:31:21,612 --> 00:31:27,001
By chance, I found a bag in his office,
473
00:31:27,451 --> 00:31:31,411
a leather one with straps
that holds documents.
474
00:31:31,961 --> 00:31:37,704
There were letters inside
this document holder.
475
00:31:38,691 --> 00:31:42,948
And there were two notebooks,
black ones with a red border
476
00:31:42,948 --> 00:31:46,444
that were used in the past,
and inside was his diary.
477
00:31:48,297 --> 00:31:51,653
I understood right away
because I have done historical research
478
00:31:51,653 --> 00:31:55,606
for many years, so I understood
it was something interesting.
479
00:31:56,022 --> 00:31:59,670
I found it strange
that my father never told me anything,
480
00:31:59,670 --> 00:32:02,141
because he didn't say to me:
"Listen,
481
00:32:02,791 --> 00:32:06,071
"there are letters and diaries".
482
00:32:06,671 --> 00:32:10,739
And so I took them all to my house,
to my office and I left them there
483
00:32:10,739 --> 00:32:12,870
for a year, a year and a half.
484
00:32:13,340 --> 00:32:16,734
Then I slowly began to read them
with a bit of fear.
485
00:32:17,538 --> 00:32:21,698
Because with diaries and letters...
- (Interviewer) One will find...
486
00:32:21,698 --> 00:32:26,119
always find something intimate.
Then I think in my family,
487
00:32:26,119 --> 00:32:31,574
nothing would ever be talked about.
No one had ever commented,
488
00:32:31,574 --> 00:32:35,307
or made any references.
489
00:32:35,899 --> 00:32:40,136
Then I gradually began
to transcribe these letters.
490
00:32:40,136 --> 00:32:43,837
I can't tell you how I did so,
because they were written...
491
00:32:43,897 --> 00:32:45,573
(Interviewer) No doubt handwritten.
492
00:32:45,573 --> 00:32:49,340
Yes, handwritten with a fountain pen,
on tissue paper,
493
00:32:49,339 --> 00:32:51,827
because back then it was airmail paper.
494
00:32:52,217 --> 00:32:56,357
In short, it was a type of job
495
00:32:56,357 --> 00:32:58,977
that strained the eyes.
496
00:32:59,627 --> 00:33:05,530
In any case, I did this transcription job
of the diary, of the letters, etc.
497
00:33:05,530 --> 00:33:08,136
I had the idea of publishing
498
00:33:08,764 --> 00:33:13,865
the copy or, in other words,
the full version
499
00:33:14,305 --> 00:33:16,655
of this diary, of these letters...
500
00:33:18,925 --> 00:33:22,759
Just to be certain...
I was already collaborating
501
00:33:22,759 --> 00:33:26,979
with the diary archives
for some time for my own research
502
00:33:27,239 --> 00:33:30,529
in the fields of Rinisce, Paganini, etc.
503
00:33:31,029 --> 00:33:35,810
Just to be certain,
I went to Pieve Santo Stefano
504
00:33:36,760 --> 00:33:39,550
and I had the volume in hand.
505
00:33:40,212 --> 00:33:43,096
It was Cristina Cangi, who you will meet.
506
00:33:43,946 --> 00:33:46,926
And she asked me:
"What is that professor"?
507
00:33:46,930 --> 00:33:52,281
"It's work that I did".
- "Why don't you submit it for the award"?
508
00:33:52,930 --> 00:33:57,227
I said I really had not thought
about wanting to publish it.
509
00:33:58,045 --> 00:34:03,656
Then I start reading
some very interesting things,
510
00:34:03,676 --> 00:34:04,965
and then I submit it.
511
00:34:04,965 --> 00:34:09,972
They asked me for the archive
and also for the letters,
512
00:34:09,972 --> 00:34:11,745
but I wasn't going to do that.
513
00:34:11,781 --> 00:34:17,007
It's possible
to read this publication
514
00:34:17,007 --> 00:34:19,611
that is titled Transparenti,
in which the documentation
515
00:34:19,611 --> 00:34:23,531
is presented
and published by Il Mulino.
516
00:34:23,876 --> 00:34:28,146
Our arrangement time has ended,
although we would like to talk for hours
517
00:34:28,146 --> 00:34:34,142
about this story that is a bit similar,
by certain passages and elements,
518
00:34:34,142 --> 00:34:36,660
to the story
of many other families.
519
00:34:36,915 --> 00:34:41,568
Also of the province of Arezzo.
Perhaps there will be a way
520
00:34:41,568 --> 00:34:46,937
to talk more about it in the future.
Thank you Daniele Finzi.
521
00:34:46,937 --> 00:34:52,562
Thanks to all of you
who have followed our episode,
522
00:34:52,562 --> 00:34:54,776
a special episode
that was made possible
523
00:34:54,776 --> 00:35:00,425
in collaboration
with The Archives of Pieve Santo Stefano.
524
00:35:00,425 --> 00:35:05,443
I naturally thank The Archives.
Specifically,
525
00:35:05,443 --> 00:35:08,245
the archives
for this episode were made available
526
00:35:08,245 --> 00:35:10,307
by Nadia Frulli.
527
00:35:10,630 --> 00:35:15,017
Thank you to all of you
for watching the program.