Proposal and Application for Funds for an Anthology of Holocaust Testimonies
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Summary
This document is a proposal and application for funds for a project to compile an anthology of literary works and personal testimonies from Holocaust survivors and victims. The author states that these valuable materials, including children's writings, have been found in the archives of "Yad Vashem", "The Katzenelson Museum", and "Moreshet", remaining largely unpublished for thirty years. The proposal emphasizes the critical importance of publishing these works in multiple languages to preserve the culture and memory of the Jewish people who suffered during the Holocaust.
The document highlights the raw and powerful nature of these writings, which recount harrowing experiences of survival in camps, ghettos, and hideouts. It provides examples, such as an anonymous author's story written with a toenail, Oscar Rosenfeld's unpublished memoir from the Lodz Ghetto, and S. Dratwa's poem "A Jewish Grave". The project is planned for twelve months, with the first six dedicated to selecting and shaping the texts, and the latter six to translation and editing.
A detailed budget totaling $15,000 is provided, covering salaries for a chief researcher, assistant, and typist, as well as living accommodations, travel, translation fees, xerox, editing, and miscellaneous expenses. The author underscores the urgency of the project, echoing Elie Wiesel's view that time is crucial for collecting these authentic testimonies from a dwindling survivor population.