Prefer Jewish News on Google
Italian woman who survived Auschwitz as a child given top honour
Liliana Segre made a senator for life as Italy marks 80 years since Fascist-era laws were introduced discriminating against Jews
A woman who was one of the few Italian children to survive deportation to a Nazi death camp has been made a senator-for-life in Italy.
President Sergio Mattarella’s office said on Friday that he chose Liliana Segre for the honour because she had made the nation proud with her social commitment.
Italy is marking 80 years since Fascist-era laws discriminating against Jews came into effect.
Segre and her family went into hiding after the 1938 law was introduced.
They were arrested in 1943 and put on to trains departing from Milan’s central station toward Nazi-run deportation camps.
Only 25 of 775 Italian children survived the Nazi death camps.
For decades, Segre, 87, appeared reluctant to discuss her experiences in Auschwitz, Corriere della Sera newspaper said.
But in the 1990s, she began speaking to schoolchildren throughout Italy about the Holocaust.
(Source: Wikipedia)
Segre said she was just an ordinary woman, and being chosen for the honour caught her by complete surprise.
“I cannot assign myself other importance, other than that of being a herald, a person who recounts what she has witnessed,” the Ansa news agency quoted her as saying.
“I feel like any other woman, a grandmother, and I never thought about this. Knowing I’ll be among senators-for-life is an honour and a great responsibility,” she added.
“Liliana Segre’s life is testimony to freedom,” prime minister Paolo Gentiloni said in a tweet.
“As a senator she will point out the value of memory. A precious decision 80 years after the racial laws.”
Benito Mussolini’s Fascist regime introduced the laws targeting Italy’s tiny Jewish minority, forcing them out of institutions such as schools and discriminating against them economically.
When German troops occupied Italy during the Second World War, many of Italy’s Jews were rounded up in Rome and elsewhere for deportation to Nazi-run death camps.
Senators-for-life vote in Parliament’s upper chamber along with ordinary senators.
Considered role models because of their achievements, they have included figures from politics, business, the arts and science.
Keep community journalism free.
Jewish News is free for everyone. No paywall. No barriers. Just trusted journalism for anyone who wants to stay connected to Jewish life in Britain.
If you value that, please support us.
From as little as £5 a month, you can help keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Every day, we report on the issues that matter to our community. We celebrate achievements, support charities, challenge antisemitism and ensure Jewish voices are heard more widely.
From as little as £5 a month, you can help us continue to:
- Report on the stories shaping Jewish life in the UK and beyond
- Bring our community together through shared stories, events and campaigns
- Celebrate the people, culture and moments that define our community
- Support organisations doing vital work across Jewish Britain
You can make a one-off donation or become a regular supporter. Every contribution helps keep our journalism free, independent and accessible to all.
If everyone who values Jewish News gave a small amount, it would make a real difference to our future.
