Voice/Vision Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive

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Abraham Asner - October 10, 1982

Then uh, I hear was uh, was uh, rumors who was a Polish citizens up 'til 1939. They call 'em, they can leave to go in Poland. Like, or Polish or Polish citizen Jewish uh, that Jewish can li... uh, live at Poland. I was working that time for the... in Lithuania. And was a fellow, he was uh, working uh, been in the partisans too together. And uh, he was working for the, for a mayor... a major in that Alytus. You know, and I asked him, how can you get free of the job, get rid of it. Because I was already fed up. And I know the dangers uh, very great for us to go and catch them Germans and Lithuanians. And all kind of traps was made up uh, against us. Uh, then I asked him to release me from the, from the job. He said, I can't, and do that and do that. Finally, it was uh, uh, one uh, colonel in the Russian army, a Lithuanian. He was in charge of all the Lithuanian Republic. And I know it, he's at that time in Alytus. And I decided I want to get rid of that job to get free and to emigrate somewhere. I went to him, I salute him and I stop him and I told him the story I'm from White Russia and according from the partisans where the, where we were liberated I was uh, pointed out to being from that place myself, uh... [interruption in interview]

And from uh, and, I, I told him. And I said, I have my mother--well, of course, I don't have my mother, by that time my mother died already--and uh, and I want to get freed from the, from that job. They release me the job. He said, "Okay." He took right away a pencil and paper and signed up releasing. That's it. I we... I... They release me, I come home and I said to, to my wife, "I'm free. I'm released." Then I start to work on papers to, to emigrate to, to Poland. Because at that time I get to Poland. And then uh, I come to Poland. Then I visi... I was in a place on ??? number three. Used to be a Jewish synagogue down there, I find a room. And I find a room that was so anti-Semitic. They don't want let us to take some water and everything, you know. And that time I know. Uh, daughter was six months old. And uh, I used to--I don't have no weapon or nothing, you know--I used to have just a little shovel, a military shovel to keep by the door. In case something happened. What happened, what happened, first one going to get.