This resource is based around the testimony of Scottish second-generation Holocaust survivors, and provides material for teachers to use in the classroom. Each video is accompanied by questions for pupils and a glossary of words mentioned in each video. There is also a document of notes for teachers. We are very grateful to the people who have shared their parents’ experiences, and their own stories, with us.

The aims of the resource are to:

Tell the stories of Holocaust survivors who made their lives in Scotland.
Reveal the effects of antisemitism on the lives of the speakers’ parents.
Show the impact of the Holocaust across generations

Geraldine Shenkin on her mother Marianne Grant

Marianne was born in the Czech Republic. In 1942, she was sent to Theresienstadt ghetto with her mother, and later survived various concentration camps. Whilst in Auschwitz, Marianne’s bravery and artistic talent saved her and her mother’s life. Recorded in January 2025.

Judy Russell on her father Ernest Levy

Ernest spent most of the war in Budapest, Hungary before he was deported on one of the first trains out of Budapest to Auschwitz in 1944. Ernest was chosen for work as he was young and healthy, and spent the next year in work camps until liberation. Recorded in January 2025.

Philip Rodney on his father Wolfgang Rimalower

Wolfgang left Germany to go to an aunt in Switzerland in a fear of being deported, after getting involved in an argument following a car accident. He was turned away at several embassies and borders before receiving a British visa and later serving in the army. Recorded in January 2025.

Q&A with Speakers

Speakers Geraldine Shenkin, Judy Russell and Philip Rodney take questions from the audience. Recorded in January 2025.

Further resources on Scotland and the Holocaust

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