Otto Weidt Plaque

Who was Otto Weidt, and why does his name resonate here at this very spot, marked by the Otto Weidt Plaque? Here in Berlin, at the Otto Weidt Plaque, we remember a man who stood against the tide of hatred. Otto Weidt, a blind brush maker, owned a workshop at 39 Rosenthaler Straße. This workshop wasn’t just a place of business. It was a sanctuary. He employed mostly blind and deaf Jews, providing them with not only a livelihood but a shield against the horrors of the Holocaust. As the Gestapo tightened its grip, Weidt became a beacon of defiance. He bribed officers with champagne and cigars, secured through black market brush sales. He forged documents, creating lifelines for his employees. He hid them in a secret room behind a cupboard in his workshop, a testament to his unwavering resolve. One of his employees, Alice Licht, was deported to Auschwitz. Weidt, driven by a deep sense of love and duty, journeyed to the concentration camp himself, a perilous undertaking in an attempt to save her. He left clothes and money at a nearby pension, hoping to aid her escape. Miraculously, Alice returned to Berlin in 1945 and found refuge with the Weidts until the war’s end. Otto Weidt’s workshop became a symbol of hope. It stands as a testament to the power of human compassion in the darkest of times. The Otto Weidt Plaque serves as a reminder of his bravery and his unwavering dedication to protecting the vulnerable.