Noted community leader, RENEE FIRESTONE, was born in Czechoslovakia.
At the tender age of 19, Mrs. Firestone was imprisoned for 13 months in the infamous
concentration camp, Auschwitz, during the last years of World War II. Her entire family
was murdered except for her father Morris, who died of tuberculosis shortly after liberation,
and her brother Frank who was a partisan.
Following liberation in May of 1945, Renee was reunited with her brother and
soon-to-be husband, Bernard and settled in Prague, Czechoslovakia where she completed her
education at the Prague School of Commercial Arts.
In 1948, she immigrated to the United States with Bernard and her infant
daughter Klara. After arriving in the United States, pursuing a career in fashion, she became
one of the most noted designers in the United States.
No stranger to the Los Angeles Jewish community, Renee Firestone is a
tireless leader in many areas such as world hunger, Holocaust remembrance and education.
She is most known as the founding lecturer for the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s
Educational Outreach Program. She lectures to adults and students of all ages and walks of life
throughout the United States and abroad about her experiences as a Holocaust survivor. Mrs.
Firestone has been invited on many occasions to address varied branches of the United States
Military such as the Marines, Air Force, and others. Most recently, she has been a presenter in
the "Tools For Tolerance" program of the Museum of Tolerance addressing teachers and members of
various local law enforcement agencies on issues relating to cultural diversity and sensitivity.
Renee has conducted workshops on "Human Rights and Genocide" for educators,
has lectured at the Annual Convention of the California Council for Social Studies, and has been
the subject of countless interviews regarding the Holocaust and its contemporary implications
on television and radio and in print media.
Renee served three times as president of Shelters for Israel and is on the
Board of the Council of Post-War Jewish Holocaust Organizations of Southern California.
For the past five years, Renee has been involved as a trainer and interviewer
with Steven Spielberg’s "Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation," the organization
founded to document the testimonies of the last remaining survivors of the Holocaust,
righteous Gentiles, and military liberators.
Lastly, Renee was recently rewarded for all her tireless efforts by being
one of the five survivors whose experiences were recounted in "The Last Days" which received
the 1999 Oscar for Best Feature Length Documentary.
Open to the Public:
Rosario Pu, Prosecuting Witness, International Genocide Case in Guatemala will be visiting
King's College on Thursday, October 5, 2000 at 5:00 p.m. in Moreau Auditorium
(Campus Ministry Building).
"We can't bring back the dead, but we can make change for the children of the future."---- Rosario Pú
If you are interested in the impact of U.S. foreign policy on justice and accountability
in Latin America, Rosario Pú's visit is an excellent opportunity to make a personal
connection to a leader from the region who has fought the consequences of continued and
misdirected military aid and intelligence assistance to her country. Starting with campesino
organizing of the refugees in Mexico in the early 80's, to international awareness-raising on
the civil war, and active involvement in the negotiations for the 1996 Peace Accords, to her
involvement in an international human rights case against the current President of the
Guatemalan Congress, Rosario Pú has been part of fighting impunity in Guatemala all her
life.
When the highest court in England decided that former Chilean dictator, Augosto Pinochet,
was fit to be extradited to Spain on charges of torture and crimes against humanity, the world
noticed. Now Rosario Pú, along with Nobel Peace Prize winner Rigoberta Menchú and
numerous other Guatemalans, are working to bring former Guatemalan dictator Ríos Montt to
justice in the same way. She is a witness in the genocide case being brought against General
Rios Montt, which was originally presented by Rigoberta Menchú in Spain. The case is
currently at the stage of hearing witnesses. Through this case, Rosario will give testimony
about the massacre of her grandparents, who were killed in Santa Cruz del Quiché.
Guatemalan and Chilean citizens are making justice happen against all odds. As citizens of a
country that tacitly accepted - and even actively supported - the genocide campaigns of the
Guatemalan military governments, we have a responsibility to make sure that there are no
obstacles in the way of the human rights cases brought against the former dictators.
While visiting King's College, Rosario will speak about her involvement with the
international genocide case, as well as her work with the Coalition for Peace and Harmony, to
gain reparations for the victims of Guatemala's violent war.
For more information, please contact Michelle Asha Cooper, Director of Multicultural and
International Affairs at King's College (208-5898).
Sponsored by Interfaith Peace Center, Wyoming Valley Chapter of Amnesty International, and
King's College Office for Multicultural and International Affairs
