Hannah Fisk - January 24, 1983
Receiving Extra Rations at Factory
Uh-huh. Uh-huh.
And the one thing, I was lucky through people. You know? Whoever saw me, even by the machine, even the German woman, you know? Every day they came. She, she kind of hug me and she brought me piece of bread. And she says, "Annie, sit down. I'm going to cover you up and you eat up the piece of bread," 'cause she was afraid when she see the German going, you know, the Gestapo. She says, "Throw away the bread, come right back to the machine." And I went to the machine like nothing, uh, was working.
Uh-huh. What were you making there? Were you making ju...cloth or finished articles?
No, we were just uh, uh, we were--what shall I describe you? We had those uh big, like uh, thread?
Yeah.
We put it on the machines and we weave it. Yeah?
Yeah.
And then for the thing came big one, big one, big one, and we dry this. We have a big oven, we dry it, and then somebody put it to another factory and then they make a cut from that. It was a heavy, heavy--very heavy work. Dirty, too. Dusty. That's why my vocal chords got so bad, you know.
Are there any experiences that you haven't told me about that stand out in your mind while you were there?
Well, I regret one thing. When I went for my uh, uh health, you know, after the camp, which I'm getting, I'm getting peanuts. I went to a woman doctor and he kind of almost gave me the finger in my mouth. And he says to me, "Mrs. Fisk, you are a very young girl. Think back, I'm going to ask you something. Did the German rape you?" And I cried. I was in tears. And don't mind you, I was three children already. I have a friend of mine. She collects four hundred dollars a month.
Mm-hm.
Why couldn't I say? Why couldn't I say? Got nothing to prove. But I start crying. I says, "No way. No, no, no, no, no, no, doctor, no. Don't ask me this." No, I don't think they in our barracks, no, never happened. No. First of all, the men couldn't come in. They were standing behind the wire. They were never inside. The women were inside with us, but not the men. They were at night behind the wire.
You want to stop?
Yeah.
[interruption in interview]
Husband: ...I don't know. She's don't tell me everything, she's telling you everything
Do you want me to warm up?
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