Lucy Glaser Merritt - July 8, 1991
Conclusion
Um, what prompted youto, to decide to talk now?
Well uh, Gladys thought that it would be helpful.And it has gotten less painful. Lately I have been the last few years. I'm onlyfighting this other thing is what do I owe the Jewish community for havingbrought me out. My father said that when I got married. He mentioned that theyhad supported me, which they had. So I called them and I paid back the moneythat they invested, which of course you can't pay back. Just the money is not.But they also wrote a very nice letter and said it had not been a loan. It wasvery nice. And then he felt bad because I had paid, so he paid back. But I amconcerned that I felt that they saved me mainly uh, to continue the Jewishtradition and I'm not continuing it. So that I'm-in a way I've turned out adisappointment to that group, but I don't know what to do. It uh, obviouslythat was their motive, why they brought me here. I'm a relative, so theyassumed.
Um, do you think thatsuch um, enterprises as this one um, taping stories, has some function?
I think to those who have never been near anything,yes. Because it will give them a bird's eye view of what it was like.
And why do you thinkthey should know about that?
'Cause of the general human condition. It is, it isnot anything specifically Jewish, as I thought prejudice was only against Jewsuntil I found out that there are other minorities and you can be just asprejudiced. And you can get hatred to such a pitch, where it willing to murder.Like it has in the States too. And so they should know the mechanism that builtit up, hopefully so they can diffuse it. Because the young children don't seemto feel it. I work at the Haven now. I'm retired and I work at the Haven, thehome for abused women and children. And we get all kinds of backgrounds. And Idon't see any prejudice in the young children. None. They have to be older tofeel that way. They're aware that they're different, but it doesn't botherthem.
Is there any lastmessage to add to this tape?
I don'tthink so. I've talked a mile a minute.
Thank you very much.
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