LINCOLN – Jewish political activist Szmul Zygielbojm died by suicide in London in 1943, protesting the world’s inaction to stop the Holocaust. In his suicide note, Zygielbojm wrote, “With my death I wish to express my strongest protest against the passivity with which the world watches and allows the extermination of the Jewish people.”
The narrative film "The Death of Zygielbojm" tells his tragic true story. Nebraska Public Media will televise the film at 8 p.m. CT on Thursday, Jan.
16, followed by the broadcast of a related local discussion.
Nebraska Public Media Chief Content Officer Nancy Finken will interview Arthur Zygielbaum of Lincoln, who is Szmul Zygielbojm’s grandson, and Daniel Greene, adjunct professor of history at Northwestern University in Chicago and a subject matter expert at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
In “The Death of Zygielbojm,” a young British journalist played by English actor Jack Roth follows the coroner’s investigation into the suicide, revealing the significance of Zygielbojm's mission in Great Britain. Like most people at the time, the reporter was unaware of the scale of crimes against Jews in Europe by Nazi Germany.
“The Death of Zygielbojm” and the related discussion repeat at 10 p.m.
CT on Sunday, Jan. 26 on Nebraska Public Media.
The film was written by Ryszard Brylski and is presented by Sonovision.
