“A person is only forgotten when his or her name is forgotten”. This quote from the Talmud encapsulates the essence of the Stolpersteine project and brings us to the Familie Levy Plaque. These small brass plates embedded in the pavement serve as poignant reminders of individual lives lost during the Holocaust. They ensure that victims are not reduced to mere statistics.
The Familie Levy Plaque is part of a larger effort to commemorate those persecuted by the Nazis between 1933 and 1945. The artist Gunter Demnig initiated the Stolpersteine project. Stolpersteine means stumbling stones. These stones mark the last voluntarily chosen residences of Nazi victims. Each plaque bears the name and fate of an individual.
Imagine living in Berlin during the 1930s. Neighbors vanish without a trace. The Stolpersteine challenge the notion that Germans were unaware of the atrocities happening around them. The Familie Levy Plaque forces us to confront this uncomfortable truth.
Erwin Levi was one such individual. He was born in Berlin on February 24, 1909. Levi married Anni Bickert on November 9, 1933. Anni was not Jewish, making it a mixed marriage by Nazi standards. They had eight children together.
Levi faced increasing persecution. He lost his job at Ford in 1937 due to Nazi policies. From 1939 to 1942 he was forced to do hard labor. This included working for the Frankfurt garbage collection. He was also imprisoned in Buchenwald concentration camp after the November Pogrom in 1938.
In a desperate attempt to protect his family Levi tried to flee to Switzerland. His attempt failed. He was arrested on January 25 1943. Levi was then deported to Auschwitz concentration camp on April 6 1943. His prisoner number was 113.341. He was last recorded in the Libiaz subcamp. The circumstances of his death remain unknown.
Before his deportation Levi’s five eldest children were forced into a Jewish home. This occurred after the Gestapo blackmailed Levi’s wife. A Gestapo officer callously remarked that the children were doomed. He said they were Jews but not children.
Despite the horrors Levi’s wife Anni fought to protect her children. She secured their release from the Jewish home. She had to guarantee their compliance with discriminatory laws. This saved them from deportation to Berlin. However the children were barred from attending school until 1946.
The parents and sister of Erwin Levi were deported to the Minsk ghetto on November 11 1941. All of them perished there. Heinrich Baab the Gestapo officer responsible for Levi’s arrest was convicted of his murder in 1950. He received a life sentence.
The Stolpersteine project intentionally avoids mass production. Each stone is handmade. It is financed by private donations. This underscores the individual nature of each tragedy.
The Familie Levy Plaque like all Stolpersteine serves as a stark reminder. It reminds us of the consequences of intolerance and hatred. It is a symbol of resilience and remembrance. By pausing to read the inscription we honor Erwin Levi’s memory. We acknowledge the lives of his family. We ensure that they are never forgotten.