North African Jews in war-torn Europe were resisters, deportees, subjects of forced labor, victims of the death chambers, and survivors. But their experiences have been left out of the historical record
When Gabriel Bénichou returned home from Auschwitz, he was still wearing the jacket and striped cap assigned to him at the terminus of his forced death march, the German concentration camp of Dachau. Like other survivors, he was wasted, physically, and traumatized. Like others, he was haunted by memories of Auschwitz – memories that terrorized his sleep, driving him to eating disorders and anxiety. He returned with a numerical tattoo on his arm that few knew how to recognize, let alone understand.
