We invite you to listen to the speech of Judy Batalion – Canadian writer, author of the bestseller "The Light of Days: The Untold Story of Women Resistance Fighters in Hitler's Ghettos" – at the webinar "Women's Resistance in the Ghettos" organized by the Warsaw Ghetto Museum.
Judy Batalion talked about her well-received book, which has already been translated into over 40 languages and is planned to be adapted for the screen by Steven Spielberg.
The reportage, "The Light of Days," is the result of the author's scholarly research on Jewish women fighters in ghettos during the German occupation. While working at the British Library, she came across the publication "Freuen in di Gettos" (Yiddish for "Women in the Ghettos"), which became the direct inspiration for "The Light of Days." The book, "Batalion," tells the story of Jewish women resistance fighters in Polish lands during World War II. These "ghetto girls" corrupted Gestapo guards, smuggled weapons in loaves of bread and jars of jam, helped build underground bunker systems, obtained secret information as intelligence agents, and committed numerous acts of sabotage.
Judy Batalion spoke about her work on the book and introduced selected heroines, including Renia Kukiełka , one of the key figures in the reportage. "These women did what they could. They fought for dignity. Every small act can lead to change—and that's what's truly inspiring," said the author when asked what message today's readers might find in the story of Jewish female fighters.
Judy Batalion's speech is in English.
