In The News

      • I like to talk about Aristides as a hero of conscience – Jornal do Centro

        March 8, 2024

        Mariana Abrantes speaks about her efforts to preserve the memory of Aristides de Sousa Mendes, both in Portugal and in the United States.

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      • A family’s wartime trek through Europe – Jewish Standard

        January 18, 2024

        “Yes, mine was the kind of family that keeps secrets,” said Joan Arnay Halperin, author of My Sister’s Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II. “They were the same skeletons that thousands of Holocaust survivors kept hidden in their New World closets.”

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      • Vermont teacher inspired by a Holocaust hero – Addison County Independent

        September 14, 2023

        Middlebury Union Middle School French teacher Denise Bérubé’s recent two-week trip to France, Spain and Portugal has given her new insights into the late Aristides de Sousa Mendes, a Portuguese diplomat who saved thousands of Jewish refugees from the Nazis during the early stages of World War II.

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      • Two Righteous Portuguese Catholics and the Jewish Scholar Who United Them Across Three Centuries – The Israel Philatelist

        Summer 2023

        Dr. Arnold Wiznitzer was a leading authority on the history of colonial Brazilian Jewry. He was also a Holocaust refugee who owed his life to Aristides de Sousa Mendes.

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      • Descendentes de famílias salvas por Aristides de Sousa Mendes viajaram de Bordeaux até Lisboa – Luso

        July 26, 2023

        A Sousa Mendes Foundation de Nova Iorque organizou na semana passada uma viagem à Europa intitulada “Journay On The Road To Freedom”, com mais de 30 descendentes de 5 famílias refugiadas que obtiveram vistos passados por Aristides de Sousa Mendes, durante a II Guerra mundial.

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      • Famílias de refugiados judeus salvos por Aristides de Sousa Mendes recebidas em Belém – Presidencia

        July 24, 2023

        O Presidente Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa recebeu seis famílias de refugiados judeus que obtiveram vistos assinados por Aristides de Sousa Mendes, conseguindo assim fugir de Bordéus, em França, para Portugal durante a Segunda Guerra Mundial. Um dos presentes, Marc Cassier, na altura com cinco anos de idade, recebeu ele próprio o visto do Cônsul português.

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      • Carregal do Sal recebeu participantes da iniciativa “JOURNEY ON THE ROAD TO FREEDOM”, da Sousa Mendes Foundation – Carregal do Sal

        July 21, 2023

        Ciclicamente a Sousa Mendes Foundation promove uma “peregrinação” com familiares de refugiados que receberam vistos em 1940 do diplomata português – Aristides de Sousa Mendes.

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      • Sarah Lustig Goodman: Telling the Story of the Holocaust – JewishLink

        July 20, 2023

        Sousa Mendes visa recipient Sarah Lustig Goodman tells her story for the benefit of future generations.

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      • The man who saved more Jews than Schindler – The Forward

        November 30, 2022

        In the late afternoon of Nov. 8, a crowd gathered in a standing-room-only tent overlooking a square landscaped with 6,000 pink and red flowers, for the dedication of Sousa Mendes Square. “This small corner of Jerusalem, the eternal city, now carries the name of a hero,” Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion proclaimed.

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      • Portuguese diplomat who saved thousands during Holocaust honored with plaza in Jerusalem – Jewish Telegraphic Agency

        November 16, 2022

        “This small corner of Jerusalem, the eternal city, now carries the name of a hero,” Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion announced at a ceremony last week.

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      • Jerusalem Square Named for Portuguese Diplomat Who Saved 10,000 Jews in WWII – The Times of Israel

        November 9, 2022

        In a ceremony in Jerusalem’s Kiryat Hayovel neighborhood, with several descendants of those who he saved and his own family members present, Sousa Mendes was hailed for his courage.

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      • O SCHINDLER PORTUGUêS
        – Reader’s Digest (Portugal)

        October 2022

        The accidental hero who saved thousands of lives – Aristides de Sousa Mendes

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      • Book by book: A granddaughter lovingly dismantles “Lissy’s Library” – The Forward

        December 22, 2021

        Lissy Jarvik was a Sousa Mendes visa recipient whose library catalogued her wide range of interests.

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      • The Untold Story of the Portuguese Diplomat Who Saved Thousands From the Nazis – Smithsonian Magazine

        November 2021

        As the German army marched across France, Aristides de Sousa Mendes faced a choice: obey his government or follow his conscience—and risk everything.

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      • Salvos pelos vistos de Aristides de Sousa Mendes – RTP Notícias

        October 19, 2021

        Portuguese television interviews Sousa Mendes Foundation Board member Leah Rozenfeld Sills.

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      • La historia poco conocida del “Schindler portugués” que salvó a miles de personas de los nazis – DW.COM

        October 19, 2021

        El incumplimiento de las normas hizo que el Aristides Sousa Mendes fuera despedido del servicio diplomático, con la consiguiente vergüenza pública para su familia. Murió en la pobreza y olvidado en 1954.

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      • Portugal honors diplomat who saved thousands from Nazis – The Associated Press

        October 19, 2021

        Portugal paid official homage Tuesday to Aristides de Sousa Mendes, a Portuguese diplomat who during World War II helped save thousands of people from Nazi persecution, by placing a tomb with his name in the country’s National Pantheon.

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      • Portuguese Award to Diplomat for Saving Holocaust Refugees – Esra Magazine

        September 2020

        The US-based Sousa Mendes Foundation has identified through painstaking research nearly 4000 Sousa Mendes visa recipients, Jews and non-Jews, but the true number of visa recipients may be far higher.

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      • The Portuguese diplomat who saved thousands of people and lost everything except his good name – CNN

        June 26, 2020

        Eighty years ago this month, Paris and northern France were occupied by German forces. Thousands of Jews and other refugees fled south from the Nazi onslaught. Many of them reached Bordeaux, finding temporary refuge while seeking life-saving visas through Portugal, a neutral nation, and on to the United States and other countries.

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      • Portugal Honors a Diplomat Who Saved Jews From the Nazis – The New York Times

        June 18, 2020

        Eighty years after he helped save thousands of Jews from Nazi persecution by defying the orders of his own Portuguese government, a diplomat who provided them with visas to leave Nazi-occupied France will be honored in the national Pantheon in Lisbon.

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      • Portugal finally recognises consul who saved thousands from Holocaust – BBC News

        June 17, 2020

        Eighty years ago, a middle-aged, mid-ranking diplomat sank into deep depression and watched his hair turn grey in days, as he saw the streets of Bordeaux filling with Jewish refugees fleeing the Nazis.

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      • Pope Francis praises WW2-era Portuguese diplomat on ‘Day of Conscience’ – Catholic News Agency

        June 17, 2020

        “Today is the ‘Day of Conscience’, inspired by the witness of the Portuguese diplomat Aristides de Sousa Mendes,” declared the Pontiff.

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      • Pope Francis: Freedom of conscience must be respected always and everywhere – Vatican News

        June 17, 2020

        Marking the Day of Conscience, inspired by the witness of Portuguese diplomat Aristides de Sousa Mendes, Pope Francis appeals that freedom of conscience be respected always and everywhere.

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      • Two Families and a Diplomat: Was it more than a coincidence in France? – Ami Magazine

        June 3, 2020

        On June 15, 1940, a tall diamond cutter and chess champion stood in line with hundreds of other Jews waiting for a ticket out of the death trap that was France. After many hours, the righteous gentile he had been waiting to see gave him the visa that would save his life. Three days later, a young woman stood in that same line, securing the papers that would prevent her and her family from being deported to Auschwitz.

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      • A Family of Holocaust Survivors Kept a Lifelong Secret – Kirkus Reviews

        March 16, 2020

        Kirkus calls My Sister’s Eyes “a full-color journey of terror, hope, and loss, using family photographs, letters, and legal documents.” The collected materials animate a resourceful family fleeing tragedy, and the author’s firsthand experiences depict how the pain of the past directly impacts future generations.

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      • Wie Aristides de Sousa Mendes Tausende vor den Nazis rettete – Der Spiegel

        January 3, 2020

        Im Sommer 1940 bewahrte der portugiesische Generalkonsul in Bordeaux Flüchtlinge vor dem Tod. Fast 80 Jahre später machen sich deren Nachkommen auf die Suche nach ihm.

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      • Sousa Mendes exhibition opens in Luxembourg City – IHRA

        December 10, 2019

        Aristides de Sousa Mendes is celebrated with a comprehensive and ambitious exhibition at the National Archives of Luxembourg.

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      • Portland Couple Retraces Steps of Holocaust Hero – Oregon Jewish Life

        November 19, 2019

        Jill and Ed Neuwelt of Portland, Oregon had a memorable trip this summer when they joined a tour group that included descendants of both Holocaust survivors and the Portuguese diplomat who issued visas to allow them to escape Nazi-occupied Europe.

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      • US Immigration and Families: A Tale From the Holocaust Era – The Christian Science Monitor

        August 22, 2019

        One lesson these tales of heroism teach is that “sometimes we need to make ourselves uncomfortable,” says filmmaker Laura Seltzer-Duny. “God knows Sousa Mendes made himself uncomfortable – he saved more than 30,000 people, but he died a pauper.”

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      • Eleanor Roosevelt’s efforts to save Jewish refugees from the Holocaust – Jewish News Syndicate

        August 20, 2019

        “The Quanza incident is a timely reminder that individuals make a difference. Without visas supplied by the Portuguese diplomat Aristides de Sousa Mendes, many of the Jewish passengers on board might well have been stranded in Nazi-occupied Europe,” according to event moderator Michael Dobbs.

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      • Nearly Turned Back, a Ship of Holocaust Refugees Got Help from Eleanor Roosevelt – The Times of Israel

        August 15, 2019

        For Dr. Olivia Mattis, president of the Sousa Mendes Foundation, it’s vital the story of the Quanza be told, as there are parallels between immigration and refugee policy then and now.

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      • Short Stuff: Aristides de Sousa Mendes – Apple Podcast

        July 24, 2019

        This thirteen-minute Apple Podcast highlights the action of Aristides de Sousa Mendes and the work of the Sousa Mendes Foundation.

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      • Aristides de Sousa Mendes Saved Thousands From Holocaust, But Lost All – How Stuff Works

        June 11, 2019

        The educational website How Stuff Works explores the history and action of Aristides de Sousa Mendes.

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      • Righteous Gentiles: Exemplars of a Better Humanity – Yeshiva University Blog

        January 27, 2019

        Dr. Mordecai Paldiel reflects on the qualities that turned ordinary citizens into rescuers during the Holocaust, and the lessons of these stories for today’s world.

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      • He Helped Jews Escape the Holocaust. He Died Unknown – The New York Times

        January 27, 2019

        Aristides de Sousa Mendes was his name. We should remember his courage.

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      • The Lives They Lived – The New York Times

        December 28, 2018

        On June 22, 1940, a 15-year-old Belgian Jew named Sylvain Bromberger and his family found themselves in a crowd of fellow refugees in front of the Portuguese consulate in Bayonne, France. They fled to France the month before, shortly after Germany’s surprise attack on Belgium. But now France had surrendered to Hitler, and Bayonne, too, would soon be occupied by German forces. The Brombergers were desperate to acquire visas that would allow them to travel to Portugal.

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      • Continued public focus on Pittsburgh massacre – San Diego Jewish World

        October 31, 2018

        The Sousa Mendes Foundation mourns with the Jewish community of Pittsburgh and commends the brave police officers who ran into harm’s way to save innocent lives. They are true heroes.

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      • A little-known Holocaust hero saved thousands, including a boy who became a University of Utah professor – The Salt Lake Tribune

        January 27, 2018

        Hundreds of Utah teen musicians will tell the story.

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      • Utah youth to perform musical tribute to hero who rescued thousands during Holocaust – Fox News Utah

        January 26, 2018

        It’s the story of a Holocaust hero told through the power of music. The choir and orchestra are made up of teens from across the state of Utah.

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      • Holocaust Hero – BYU Radio

        January 26, 2018

        The Legacy of a Portuguese Diplomat Who Saved Thousands in WWII.

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      • Free Concert: “Circular 14: The Apotheosis of Aristides” – Good Things Utah

        January 26, 2018

        This “unsung” hero is being “sung” at a free concert, an oratorio Circular 14 at the Tabernacle.

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      • Local choirs sing of this WWII hero on International Holocaust Remembrance Day – The Deseret News

        January 18, 2018

        The Salt Lake City performance by the Utah Youth Orchestras & Ensembles will feature the University of Utah Chamber Choir, the University of Utah A Cappella Choir, seven Utah high school choirs, several vocal soloists and narrator Michel Gill, the son and grandson of Sousa Mendes visa recipients.

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      • Sousa Mendes’ List – Salt Lake City Weekly

        January 17, 2018

        Holocaust rescuer’s legacy lives on in Utah.

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      • The Moral Choice of a Diplomat who Defied Orders – The Jerusalem Post

        September 26, 2017

        On October 29, dozens of families will gather at a gala event at the Museum of Jewish Heritage, in New York, to celebrate their rescue 77 years ago at the hands of a single person, and to commemorate him.

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      • “Life is filled with opportunities for individuals to make a difference” – Open Democracy

        September 4, 2017

        Gerald Mendes applies the lessons of his grandfather’s actions to the world of today.

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      • Aristides de Sousa Mendes: A Light in the Darkness – Open Democracy

        July 26, 2017

        Aristides de Sousa Mendes chose his conscience over his orders. His altruism should be an example for all those struggling to change a world that is once again failing to protect its citizens.

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      • O Museu dos Fugitivos Judeus et de Aristides – Sábado

        July 13, 2017

        Dezanove descendentes de refugiados da II Guerra Mundial fizeram a mesma viagem dos pais que sobreviveram graças ao cônsul português.

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      • He stood ‘with God against man’ – The Chicago Tribune

        July 7, 2017

        Jewish refugees pay tribute to consular officer who saved thousands in WWII.

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      • They Were Aided by Portugal’s ‘Schindler’ – The Washington Post

        July 2, 2017

        A handful of former Jewish refugees and their descendants returned last week to the craggy and verdant border between France and Spain, mostly to pay tribute to the largely forgotten Portuguese diplomat who saved their lives in the early days of World War II.

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      • The Portuguese Consul who Disobeyed Orders to Save Jewish Lives – Aish

        July 1, 2017

        In May 1940, Rabbi Haim Kruger escaped Brussels with his family and fled to Bordeaux in southern France. He joined thousands of Jewish refugees who were running from the advancing German army and believed France was a safe haven. Soon enough, though, it became clear that the Germans were overcoming the French army as well. On June 14, Paris fell.

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      • Presidente da República homenageou Aristides de Sousa Mendes – Presidéncia da República Portuguesa

        April 3, 2017

        O Presidente Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa homenageou Aristides de Sousa Mendes condecorando-o, a título póstumo, com a Grã-Cruz da Ordem da Liberdade, tendo o seu neto Gerald Tremblay de Sousa Mendes recebido as insígnias.

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      • Holocaust Organizations, Scholars Slam Possible Defunding of Anti-Semitism Office – NEWSWEEK

        March 13, 2017

        Statement of the international Holocaust remembrance community spearheaded by the Sousa Mendes Foundation gains national coverage.

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      • El ‘Schindler’ portugués que salvó a 38.000 refugiados de las garras de los nazis – EL ESPAÑOL

        February 2, 2017

        Cuando el presidente de Estados Unidos inicia su cruzada contra inmigrantes y refugiados, resurge la figura de un diplomático luso instalado en Burdeos en la II Guerra Mundial que desobedeció la orden del dictador Salazar. Ayudó incluso a Dalí y Gala.

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      • Dr. Olivia Mattis, President of the Sousa Mendes Foundation, interviewed by Mike Stubbs for AM 980 – London, Ontario, Canada

        December 22, 2016

        Dr. Olivia Mattis, President and co-founder of the Sousa Mendes Foundation, talks about Aristides De Sousa Mendes and the impact he had on history and the lives of tens of thousands of Holocaust refugees.

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      • 90 Holocaust organizations, 70 educators bemoan rise in hate speech – The Times Of Israel

        December 7, 2016

        Sousa Mendes Foundation-led effort gains international attention.

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      • Jewish Insider’s Daily Kickoff – HAARETZ

        September 27, 2016

        NYC SCENE THE OTHER DAY: The American Sephardi Federation hosted the President of Portugal Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa at the Center for Jewish History in Chelsea for a tour of Portugal, The Last Hope: Sousa Mendes’ Visas for Freedom. “Your history is our history,” said the President.

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      • Would You Hide a Jew From the Nazis? – The New York Times

        September 18, 2016

        Portugal issued strict instructions to its diplomats to reject most visa requests from Jews, but Sousa Mendes violated those orders. “I would rather stand with God and against man,” he said, “than with man and against God.”

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      • Film explores legacy of World War II hero – Stamford Advocate

        September 1, 2016

        A city woman whose Jewish relatives escaped Europe during World War II with the help of a Portuguese consul will speak at the viewing of a film about the man’s life.

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      • ‘Portugal’s Schindler’ Is Remembered, Decades After His Life-Saving Deeds – NPR

        August 4, 2016

        A group of about 50 people gathered in late June in the sunny courtyard of the Portuguese consulate in Bordeaux, France. It was from here in 1939 and 1940 that Portuguese diplomat Aristides de Sousa Mendes do Amaral e Abranches issued approximately 30,000 visas to Jews and other stateless refugees.

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      • The difference one brave man can make to the world – South African Jewish Report

        July 20, 2016

        Aristides de Sousa Mendes was the Portuguese consul in Bordeaux, France in 1940. In defiance of then Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio de Oliveira Salazar, he issued approximately 30,000 forbidden visas to refugees fleeing Hitler and the Nazi terror.

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      • Aristides de Sousa Mendes e a viagem do caminho da liberdade – Diário de Notícias

        July 4, 2016

        Lissy e Stefan receberam vistos dados pelo cônsul no início da II Guerra Mundial. Mais famílias fizeram o percurso da fuga

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      • Sur les traces d’un « juste », Aristides de Sousa Mendes – La Croix

        June 24, 2016

        En juin 1940, ce consul du Portugal à Bordeaux a accordé des milliers de visas à des personnes fuyant le nazisme. Certains d’entre eux ou leurs descendants participent à partir du 25 juin à un voyage organisé sur le parcours suivi à l’époque par les réfugiés.

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      • Rabbi and Consul
      • The Consul and the Rabbi – AMI Magazine

        May 4, 2016

        Researching your roots is part detective work, and a lot like puzzles of any kind: crossword, Sudoku, or a Rubik’s Cube. You need an open mind and patience, some talent and it doesn’t hurt to have a professional as a close friend.

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      • Portuguese Holocaust Hero Remembered in NYC – Voices of New York

        April 6, 2016

        When visitors enter “Portugal, The Last Hope: Sousa Mendes’ Visas to Freedom,” which opens April 7 at the Center for Jewish History in Manhattan, they will be face to face with a daughter’s plea.

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      • This Day in Jewish History 1954: Portuguese Diplomat Disgraced for Saving Refugees From Nazis Dies – HAARETZ

        April 3, 2016

        Aristides de Sousa Mendes prayed for guidance, heard a voice, and to the dismay of Lisbon, opened Portugal’s door to Jews, for which he was fired and disgraced.

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      • Exhibit: New York City celebrates the life of Aristides de Sousa Mendes – New York, NY – The Portuguese American Journal

        April 3, 2016

        The American Sephardi Federation is hosting an exhibit and public program celebrating the life of former Portuguese diplomat Aristides de Sousa Mendes.

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      • La Valise de Jacob Livre Ses Secrets – Les Diplomés de l’Université de Montréal

        April 1, 2016

        En lisant des documents cachés depuis la Deuxième Guerre mondiale, Andrée Lotey apprend la vérité sur l’exil de son père. Un roman historique s’écrit sous ses yeux.

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      • How a Southern Baptist and a Portuguese Holocaust hero came together – JNS

        March 30, 2016

        On the surface, it seems unlikely that an American composer—let alone a Southern Baptist from Alabama—would write a musical treatment about a largely unknown Holocaust hero.

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      • Singing the praises of a Portuguese Holocaust hero – The People’s World

        January 26, 2016

        Five years ago the newly formed Sousa Mendes Foundation, dedicated to honoring the memory of this extraordinary man, commissioned Connecticut composer Neely Bruce to write an oratorio about the Portuguese rescuer. Bruce agreed, at no fee, but asking only for the commitment to a performance of the work. That commitment was fulfilled to great acclaim on Jan. 24.

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      • Moral Man in an Immoral World: Celebrating Aristides de Sousa Mendes – The Huffington Post

        January 25, 2016

        Amidst the current refugee crisis in the Middle East and North Africa, many people have looked back at the dismal record of the world in responding to the refugee crisis on the 1930s from Nazi Germany. Hesitant to compare, I only seek to understand and to ponder.

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      • ‘Circular 14: The Apotheosis of Aristides’ honors the Portuguese Oskar Schindler – The Los Angeles Times

        January 19, 2016

        Aristides de Sousa Mendes faced a massive humanitarian crisis: It was June 1940, and the Portuguese diplomat stationed in Bordeaux, France, could not ignore nearly 120,000 refugees amassed down the road from the Portuguese consulate.

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      • Celebrating Aristides de Sousa Mendes, diplomat and Holocaust hero, who saved 10,000 Jews – The Jewish Journal

        January 15, 2016

        Los Angeles Jews will celebrate the life and moral courage of a devout Catholic beginning Jan. 22, with the world premiere of an oratorio, an exhibition, film screenings and a memorial service.

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      • The Portuguese Schindler that the world forgot – The Times of India

        October 18, 2015

        For Gerald Mendes, based in Paris and who visited Goa recently, Aristides, his grandfather, is a hero. “His story and that of the refugees he helped need to be heard again and again, even more so today, when we are dramatically witnessing history repeat itself,” he told The Times of India.

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      • “Sousa Mendes’s List” — The Search for Survivors – Avotaynu Online

        May 9, 2015

        The Sousa Mendes Foundation actively seeks families who received lifesaving visas from the Portuguese diplomat Aristides de Sousa Mendes in the Spring of 1940.

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      • Ski to Sea
      • Ski to Sea team honors WWII hero who saved 30,000 refugees – The Bellingham Herald

        April 25, 2015

        The theme for this year’s Blossomtime Parade in downtown Bellingham is “Honoring our Heroes,” and that’s the idea behind an unusual entry in this year’s Ski to Sea Race.

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      • This Portuguese Diplomat Was Disgraced For Saving Jews. Now, He’s Getting His Due. – The Forward

        April 26, 2015

        On a sunny Sunday morning in late April, the family of an unheralded hero diplomat during the Holocaust took one more step forward in their effort to rehabilitate his ruined name.

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      • L’incroyable histoire de la valise verte de M. Lotey – Radio-Canada

        November 11, 2014

        En 2007, la fille d’Andrée Lotey lui demande si elle n’a pas quelques vieilles poupées qui traînent quelque part. Mme Lotey est loin de se douter qu’elle va découvrir la vie cachée de son père et l’épopée d’un consul du Portugal qui a sauvé 30 000 personnes des persécutions nazies.

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      • A Pilgrimage to the Home of ‘The Portuguese Schindler’ – HAARETZ

        August 1, 2013

        Aristides de Sousa Mendes saved the lives of an estimated 10,000 Jews in World War II, and Eric Moed is determined to shine a light on his actions.

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      • In Portugal, a Protector of a People Is Honored – The New York Times

        July 9, 2013

        CABANAS DE VIRIATO, Portugal — Lee Sterling knew that his sister had not survived the harrowing journey 73 years ago that allowed him and his parents to escape Nazism by traveling from their home in Brussels to Lisbon and eventually on to New York.

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      • Diplomat who saved Jews gains recognition – Newsday

        November 29, 2012

        As a girl growing up in Scarsdale, Olivia Mattis heard her grandmother speak often and with passion about how a Portuguese diplomat saved their family after Hitler invaded Belgium in 1940.

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      • Holocaust Remembrance Day: Honoring a Rescuer Who Saved 30,000 People – Huffington Post

        April 18, 2012

        Aristides de Sousa Mendes was neither a superhero endowed with supernatural powers nor a saint capable of working miracles, but rather a man who loved others and who believed in humanity above all else. He was a man who was truly alone during one of the darkest moments in history. This man was my grandfather…

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      • Sousa Mendes saved more lives than Schindler so why isn’t he a household name too? – The Independent

        October 16, 2010

        With the Nazi invasion of France came an order from Portugal that no Jews or dissidents be granted passage. But one man stood tall against the decree – and in issuing visas for 30,000 people, Aristides de Sousa Mendes was to risk everything. Seventy years on, the people whose lives he saved are battling to restore his honour…

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