My name is Joshua Kaufman. They used to call me Sheibe in Yiddish, my Hebrew name was Yehoshua. I was born February 20, 1928 in a city named Debrecen, Hungary. My father was areligious fanatic. Basically all our family life was Talmud, Torah study. One day the rabbi gave a speech to our parents, “Watch out for your children, there exists a Jewish organization called Hashomer Hacair and they raise children, teenagers to be anti religious, not to eat kosher, boys and girls are together, horrible!”
I went to the city and I said I have to find this organization. They told me they teach self-protection.When the fascists beat you up, you do not run, you do not cry for help, you stand up and you beat them back. I said this is a very beautiful education. I told them, “Write down my name, I am now a member of your organization.”
That was easy to say, but to tell your parents, it was a tragedy for them. No more old Joshua. I was embarrassed to tell my parents. I went to the barber, I cut down my payes, I threw away the hat. I said to my mother: “Ima, I do not pray anymore, I will behave different.” And I said to my brother,“From now on, I am not asking for shelter to save me. They beat me up, I beat them back. The more they beat me, the more wild I get and the more stronger I get.”
You never knew what is the next step, what is waiting for you. Authorities told you to take what you can into your hand and stand in front of where you live. And I was standing there like a horse, nobody talks to you. After two days, they marched us, they said to a ghetto. I was happy, I wanted to move from that street in front of our home, I did not know what a ghetto is. Ghetto had a gate and it was closed. When we went to the rail station, I was very happy. I said: “We are improving!” I looked forward only for happiness.
When we arrived to Auschwitz, Mengele was standing there with a stick, pointing you go there and you go here. I did not know what was here, what was there. But I knew one thing - they said my brother and my mother to go there. And for me they said go here. I wanted to go with them.Wherever they go, I go. And the [Nazis] beat me up two or three times, but I always went back.Then they brought a dog, the dog jumped on me, threw me to the ground, and I said: “Joshua, don’t be smart, you cannot fight them.” They said go here and I went here, I did not go with [my mother and brother]. If I did go with them, I would go out the chimney as smoke the same day, like they did. I was tall, athletic. They wanted me to work, and decided this guy is not for the crematorium. I did not decide.
I always was curious what will be the next step. And the next step was: I know that I have to survive. This was in my mind. They used to ask for volunteers. And I was the first all the time in the barrack to say: “I am volunteering.” For everything. This was a very dangerous volunteering. One day, with all my volunteering, I volunteered for the gas chamber. What my job was, you have to separate the people who died from the gas. I became an animal. You fight for your life.
I was in a death march from Birkenau to Dachau, 1,000 kilometers. I volunteered, of course. They offered three days food in advance. We were liberated by American soldiers. And then I promised myself, that one day, if I am alive, I will go to America, whenever I see an American soldier, I always will kiss his feet. But I never did it. Can you imagine, here in Los Angeles? I never did it.
My name is Joshua Kaufman. They used to call me Sheibe in Yiddish, my Hebrew name was Yehoshua. I was born February 20, 1928 in a city named Debrecen, Hungary. My father was areligious fanatic. Basically all our family life was Talmud, Torah study. One day the rabbi gave a speech to our parents, “Watch out for your children, there exists a Jewish organization called Hashomer Hacair and they raise children, teenagers to be anti religious, not to eat kosher, boys and girls are together, horrible!”
I went to the city and I said I have to find this organization. They told me they teach self-protection.When the fascists beat you up, you do not run, you do not cry for help, you stand up and you beat them back. I said this is a very beautiful education. I told them, “Write down my name, I am now a member of your organization.”
That was easy to say, but to tell your parents, it was a tragedy for them. No more old Joshua. I was embarrassed to tell my parents. I went to the barber, I cut down my payes, I threw away the hat. I said to my mother: “Ima, I do not pray anymore, I will behave different.” And I said to my brother,“From now on, I am not asking for shelter to save me. They beat me up, I beat them back. The more they beat me, the more wild I get and the more stronger I get.”
You never knew what is the next step, what is waiting for you. Authorities told you to take what you can into your hand and stand in front of where you live. And I was standing there like a horse, nobody talks to you. After two days, they marched us, they said to a ghetto. I was happy, I wanted to move from that street in front of our home, I did not know what a ghetto is. Ghetto had a gate and it was closed. When we went to the rail station, I was very happy. I said: “We are improving!” I looked forward only for happiness.
When we arrived to Auschwitz, Mengele was standing there with a stick, pointing you go there and you go here. I did not know what was here, what was there. But I knew one thing - they said my brother and my mother to go there. And for me they said go here. I wanted to go with them.Wherever they go, I go. And the [Nazis] beat me up two or three times, but I always went back.Then they brought a dog, the dog jumped on me, threw me to the ground, and I said: “Joshua, don’t be smart, you cannot fight them.” They said go here and I went here, I did not go with [my mother and brother]. If I did go with them, I would go out the chimney as smoke the same day, like they did. I was tall, athletic. They wanted me to work, and decided this guy is not for the crematorium. I did not decide.
I always was curious what will be the next step. And the next step was: I know that I have to survive. This was in my mind. They used to ask for volunteers. And I was the first all the time in the barrack to say: “I am volunteering.” For everything. This was a very dangerous volunteering. One day, with all my volunteering, I volunteered for the gas chamber. What my job was, you have to separate the people who died from the gas. I became an animal. You fight for your life.
I was in a death march from Birkenau to Dachau, 1,000 kilometers. I volunteered, of course. They offered three days food in advance. We were liberated by American soldiers. And then I promised myself, that one day, if I am alive, I will go to America, whenever I see an American soldier, I always will kiss his feet. But I never did it. Can you imagine, here in Los Angeles? I never did it.