Holocaust survivor Ernie Brod in 1940 (courtesy of Ernie Brod) and as an adult today. US Holocaust Memorial Museum
Holocaust survivor Ernie Brod was born in 1938, the same year Nazi Germany annexed Austria. After unleashing a wave of restrictive laws, arrests, and violence targeting the Jewish community, authorities ordered Ernie and his mother, Pepi, to report to a holding facility in Vienna.
But when young Ernie started coughing and crying inconsolably, a Nazi officer instructed Pepi to leave and take him to a doctor. Instead of following those orders, Pepi made the desperate decision to go to the American consulate in hopes of securing papers to escape the country with her son. Watch to discover what happened next.
Speaker
Ernie Brod, Holocaust Survivor and Museum Volunteer
Moderator
Bill Benson, Journalist and Host, First Person: Conversations with Holocaust Survivors
Watch live at youtube.com/ushmm. You don’t need a YouTube account to view our program. After the live broadcast, the recording will be available to watch on demand on the Museum's YouTube page.
Marking 25 years, First Person is a monthly, hour-long discussion with a Holocaust survivor that is made possible through generous support from the Louis Franklin Smith Foundation.