Senator for life
Liliana Segre
OMRI
Segre in 2018
Member of the Senate of the Republic
Assumed office
19 January 2018
Appointed bySergio Mattarella
Personal details
Born (1930-09-10) 10 September 1930
Milan, Kingdom of Italy
Political partyIndependent
Spouse
Alfredo Belli Paci
​
​
(m. 1951; d. 2007)​
Children3
Alma materSapienza University of Rome
University of Bergamo
University of Trieste
University of Verona
LUMSA University
Known forHolocaust survivor

Liliana Segre OMRI (Italian pronunciation: [liˈljaːna ˈsɛːɡre, - ˈseːɡre]; born 10 September 1930) is an Italian Holocaust survivor, named senator for life by President Sergio Mattarella in 2018 for outstanding patriotic merits in the social field.[1]

Born in 1930 into a Milanese family of Jewish origins, in 1938 Segre was expelled from her primary school after the promulgation of the Italian Racial Laws. In 1943, she was arrested with her family and deported to the Auschwitz concentration camp. The only survivor among her relatives, with the end of the World War II in 1945, she returned to Milan. After decades of silence, in the 1990s she started to speak to the public, especially young students, about her experience.

Biography

Segre and her father Alberto

Born in Milan into a family of Jewish origins, Segre lived with her father Alberto and her paternal grandparents, Giuseppe Segre and Olga Loevvy. Her mother, Lucia Foligno, died when Liliana was not yet one year old. Her family was secular, and the awareness of being Jewish came to Liliana only after the drama of the Italian Racial Laws of 1938, after which she was expelled from school.[2]

After the intensification of the persecution of the Italian Jews, her father hid her at a friend's home, using false documents. On 10 December 1943, at the age of thirteen, together with her father, Segre tried to flee to Switzerland, but both were rejected by the Swiss authorities.[3]

On 11 December 1943, she was arrested by fascists in the province of Varese at Selvetta di Viggiù. After six days in prison in Varese, she was transferred to Como and finally to Milan, where she was detained for 40 days. On 30 January 1944, Segre was deported from platform 21 of the Milan Central railway station to the Auschwitz concentration camp, where she arrived seven days later. She was immediately separated from her father Alberto, whom she never saw again and who would be killed on 27 April 1944 (see the memorial plaque below). On 18 May 1944 her paternal grandparents were arrested in Inverigo, in the Province of Como, and deported after a few weeks to Auschwitz, where they were also killed on their arrival on 30 June.[2]

At the selection, Segre was tattooed with the serial number 75190. She was employed in forced labour in the Union ammunition factory, which belonged to Siemens, for about one year. During her imprisonment, she underwent three other selections. In January 1945, after the evacuation of the camp, she faced the death march towards Ravensbrück concentration camp in Germany. After some weeks spent there in terrible conditions, she was marched on to its satellite Malchow concentration camp where she was liberated by the Red Army on 1 May 1945.[4] Out of the 776 Italian children aged 14 or younger who were deported to the Auschwitz concentration camp, only 35 survived.[5]

After the Nazi Holocaust, Segre moved to the Marche region where she lived with her maternal grandparents,[6] the only surviving members of her family. In 1948, she met Alfredo Belli Paci, a Catholic political prisoner who had also survived the Nazi concentration camps.[7] The two married in 1951 and had three children.[8][9]

Testimony

Stolperstein for her father Alberto

For a long time, Segre never wanted to speak publicly about her experience in concentration camps. Like many Holocaust children, returning home and to a normal life was far from easy. She also remembers that she did not find in those years any ear willing to listen to her. In 1996, she recalled:

It was only in the early 1990s that she decided to break her silence: since then she went to school assemblies and conferences to tell young people her story, also on behalf of the millions of others who shared it with her and who have never been able to communicate it. In 1997, she was among the witnesses of the documentary film Memoria, presented at the Berlin International Film Festival.[11]

Segre in 2017

In 2004, Segre was interviewed, together with Goti Herskovits Bauer and Giuliana Fiorentino Tedeschi, by Daniela Padoan in Come una rana d'inverno. Conversazioni con tre donne sopravvissute ad Auschwitz (Like a frog in winter. Conversations with three women who survived from Auschwitz). In 2005 her story was retraced with more details in a book-interview by Emanuela Zuccalà, Sopravvissuta ad Auschwitz: Liliana Segre fra le ultime testimoni della Shoah (Survived in Auschwitz: Liliana Segre among the last witnesses of the Shoah.[12] Also in 2005, she gave a video interview lasting more than five hours to Doris Felsen which is available in the Online Archive Forced Labor 1939–1945.[13]

In 2009, Segre lent her voice Racconti di chi è sopravvissuto ('Tales of those who have survived'), a research project conducted by Marcello Pezzetti between 1995 and 2008 on behalf of the Center of Contemporary Jewish Documentation of Milan, which led to the collection of testimonies of almost all the Italian survivors from Nazi concentration camps who were still alive. In the same year, she participated in Moni Ovadia's film-documentary Binario 21 (Platform 21) directed by Felice Cappa, which was inspired by the poem Dos lid funem oysgehargetn yidishn folk ("The Song of the Murdered Jewish People") written by Polish poet Itzhak Katzenelson.[14]

On 27 November 2008, the University of Trieste awarded Segre with an honorary degree in Law.[15] On 15 December 2010, the University of Verona awarded her with an honorary degree in Pedagogy.[16] On 26 October 2020, LUMSA University awarded her with an honorary degree in International relations.[17]

Senator for life

Senator Segre with President Mattarella in 2019

On 19 January 2018, the 80th anniversary of the Italian Racial Laws, the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella, on the basis of article 59 subsection 2 of the Italian Constitution, appointed Segre as senator for life for outstanding patriotic merits in the social field.[18]

Segre is the fourth woman to hold such position, after Camilla Ravera, Rita Levi-Montalcini, and Elena Cattaneo. As the first legislative act, she proposed the establishment of a Parliamentary Control Commission on racism, antisemitism and incitement to hatred and violence, supported by Senator for life colleagues Renzo Piano and Elena Cattaneo. On 30 October 2019, the Senate of the Republic, with 151 votes in favor, approved the motion, which established the commission.[19]

On 7 November 2019, due to numerous threats received on social media, she was assigned a bodyguard by the Prefect of Milan, Renato Saccone.[20]

On 29 January 2020, invited by David Sassoli for the International Holocaust Remembrance Day and the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, she spoke before the European Parliament, where she received an ovation by the full assembly.[21]

On 18 February 2020, during the Sapienza University of Rome academic year inauguration, also attended by President Mattarella, she was awarded a PhD honoris causa in European history, which she dedicated to her father Alberto, "killed for the guilt of being born (Jewish)".[22]

On 9 October 2020, after 30 years of public witnesses about her life, she gave her last public speech in Rondine (Arezzo, Tuscany), where she invited the young not to blame others for their own failures and weakness, because they are very strong. The event was streamed and followed by thousands of students all across Italy.[23]

On 2 February 2021, the University of Pisa awarded Segre with an honorary degree in peace and conflict studies.[24]

Heading into the 2022 Italian general election, Segre told Pagine Ebraiche that Giorgia Meloni, leader of Brothers of Italy (FdI), should remove the tricolour flame, which is considered to be a neo-fascist symbol, from the party's logo. She was supported by the Democratic Party. FdI's co-founder Ignazio La Russa rejected this view,[25] and Meloni ignored the request, keeping the tricolour flame in the party's election logo.[26] On 13 October 2022, she presided the Senate's section during which she proclaimed La Russa as new President of the Senate.[27]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Rastelli, Alessia (18 January 2019). "Liliana Segre senatrice a vita, la decisione di Mattarella" [Liliana Segre senator for life, Mattarella's decision]. Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Retrieved 24 March 2018.
  2. 1 2 Picciotto 2001
  3. ↑ "Liliana S., Italian Jew, deported to Auschwitz at age 13, Selected Short Biographies from the Interview archive Forced Labor 1939–1945. Memory and History". 7 May 2008. Retrieved 21 September 2019.
  4. ↑ "Segre, Liliana, Interview za124, 8 June 2005, Interview archive Forced Labor 1939–1945. Memory and History". Retrieved 21 September 2019.
  5. ↑ Maida 2013, pp. 254, 267.
  6. ↑ Greco, Silvana (2019). "Liliana Segre, or the courageous struggle against 'indifference' and for social recognition" (PDF). Academicus International Scientific Journal. 19 (3): 9,31. doi:10.7336/academicus.2019.19.01. ISSN 2079-3715.
  7. ↑ D'Amato, Alessandro (13 August 2022). "La vera storia del marito di Liliana Segre candidato con il Msi" [The true story of Liliana Segre's husband candidate with the MSI]. Open (in Italian). Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  8. ↑ Rastelli, Alessia (13 August 2012). "Mi capì vedendo il tatuaggio" [He understood me by seeing the tattoo]. Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Archived from the original on 5 February 2016. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  9. ↑ "Liliana Segre senatrice a vita, grande emozione a Pesaro/FOTO" [Liliana Segre senator for life, great emotion in Pesaro / PHOTO] (in Italian). il Resto del Carlino. 19 January 2018. Archived from the original on 19 January 2018. Retrieved 19 January 2018. Cittadia onoraria, trascorre in città molta parte delle sue vacanze e qui ha incontrato il marito [Honorary citizen, she spends most of her holidays in the city and met her husband here]
  10. ↑ Segre, Liliana (1996). "Un'infanzia perduta" [A lost childhood]. Voci dalla Shoah testimonianze per non dimenticare (in Italian). Firenze: La Nuova Italia Editrice. pp. 20–24. ISBN 88-221-1696-8.
  11. ↑ "Memoria – Italy 1997 – Dir: Ruggero Gabbai". Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  12. ↑ Segre, Liliana; Zuccalà, Emanuela (2005). Sopravvissuta ad Auschwitz: Liliana Segre fra le ultime testimoni della Shoah [Survived in Auschwitz: Liliana Segre among the last witnesses to the Shoah] (in Italian). Milan: Paoline. ISBN 9788831527699 – via Google Books.
  13. ↑ "Segre, Liliana, Interview za124, 8 June 2005, Interview archive Forced Labor 1939–1945. Memory and History". Retrieved 21 September 2019.
  14. ↑ "Binario 21 (2009)".
  15. ↑ "Trieste: laurea "honoris causa" in Giurisprudenza a Liliana Segre" [Trieste: "honoris causa" degree in Law from Liliana Segre]. ANED (in Italian). Archived from the original on 25 December 2008.
  16. ↑ "Laurea honoris causa a Liliana Segre" [Honorary degree to Liliana Segre]. UniVRmagazine (in Italian). 6 December 2010.
  17. ↑ "Awarding of the honorary master's degree to Senator Liliana Segre". lumsa.it. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
  18. ↑ "Il Presidente Mattarella ha nominato Senatrice a vita la dottoressa Liliana Segre" [President Mattarella has appointed Dr. Liliana Segre as Senator for life]. Presidenza della Repubblica (in Italian). 19 January 2018. Archived from the original on 19 January 2018. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  19. ↑ "She survived Auschwitz. Now Liliana Segre gets attacked 200 times online each day". The Sydney Morning Herald. 7 November 2019. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  20. ↑ Galli, Andrea; Santucci, Gianni (11 July 2019). "Escort for Liliana Segre following insults and threats". Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  21. ↑ International Holocaust Remembrance Day – 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz: speech by Liliana SEGRE, senator for life, Senato della Repubblica, survivor of Auschwitz, retrieved 19 March 2020
  22. ↑ "Segre cites Levi as gets honorary degree – English". Agenzia Nazionale Stampa Associata. 18 February 2020. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  23. ↑ D'Amico, Paola (10 September 2020). "Liliana Segre: "Ragazzi siete fortissimi": l'ultimo messaggio della testimone della Shoah" [Liliana Segre: "You guys are very strong": the last message of the witness of the Shoah]. Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Retrieved 18 December 2020.
  24. ↑ "Conferita la laurea magistrale honoris causa in Scienze per la Pace a Liliana Segre" [Awarded an honorary master's degree in Peace Sciences to Liliana Segre]. unipi.it (in Italian). 8 February 2021. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  25. ↑ "Liliana Segre e Pd chiedono a Meloni di togliere la fiamma tricolore dal simbolo di Fdi: 'Partiamo dai fatti, non dalle parole'" [Liliana Segre and Pd ask Meloni to remove the tricolor flame from the Fdi symbol: 'Let's start with facts, not words']. Il Fatto Quotidiano (in Italian). 12 August 2022. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  26. ↑ "Elezioni, finora depositati 70 simboli. Meloni tiene la fiamma in quello di Fdi, Conte va personalmente al Viminale" [Elections, 70 symbols deposited so far. Meloni holds the flame in that of Fdi, Conte personally goes to the Viminale]. Il Fatto Quotidiano (in Italian). 13 August 2022. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  27. ↑ La superstite Segre e il fan del Duce La Russa: al Senato la staffetta degli opposti. La Stampa

Bibliography

  • Maida, Bruno (2013). La Shoah dei bambini [The Shoah of children] (in Italian). Torino: Einaudi.
  • Picciotto, Liliana [in Italian] (2001). Il libro della memoria [The book of memory] (in Italian). Milano: Mursia.

Further reading

  • Consenti, Stefania (2011). Il futuro della memoria. Conversazioni con Nedo Fiano, Liliana Segre e Piero Terracina, testimoni della Shoah [The future of memory. Conversations with Nedo Fiano, Liliana Segre and Piero Terracina, witnesses of the Shoah] (in Italian). Edizioni Paoline.
  • Fantini, Sara (2005). Notizie dalla Shoah. La stampa italiana nel 1945 [News from the Shoah. The Italian press in 1945] (in Italian). prefazione di Liliana Segre. Bologna: Edizioni Pendragon. ISBN 88-8342-403-4.
  • Greco, Silvana (2017). Busi, G.; Finzi, E. (eds.). La spirale del misconoscimento e la lotta per il riconoscimento di Liliana Segre, testimone della Shoah [The spiral of misrecognition and the struggle for recognition of Liliana Segre, witness of the Shoah] (in Italian). Milano: Giuntina. pp. 107–136.
  • Padoan, Daniela (2004). Come una rana d'inverno [Like a frog in winter] (in Italian). Milano: Bompiani. ISBN 88-452-0117-1.
  • Pezzetti, Marcello (2009). Il libro della Shoah italiana [The book of the Italian Shoah] (in Italian). Torino: Einaudi.
  • Zuccalà, Emanuela (2005). Sopravvissuta ad Auschwitz. Liliana Segre fra le ultime testimoni della Shoah [Survivor of Auschwitz. Liliana Segre among the last witnesses of the Shoah] (in Italian). Milan: Paoline Editoriale Libri. ISBN 978-88-315-2769-9.
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