Fabio Andina tells of his grandfather and the horror of the Mauthausen concentration camp

Fabio Andina tells of his grandfather and the horror of the Mauthausen concentration camp

The history of Italian Judaism during fascism is often a painful but necessary topic. Fabio Andina, a Ticiner writer, is currently illuminating the dramatic life story of his grandfather Giuseppe Vaglio, who supported Italian Jews while fleeing Switzerland in 1944. In the story that will appear in the Rotpunkt publishing house in 2025, Andina combines historical documents with literary fiction to impressively trace the life of his grandfather and the persecution of the Jewish population. Loud NZZ come to the prospects of giuseppe and his wife concetta equally Validity.

Giuseppe Vaglio, like many others, was freed from American troops on May 6, 1945 in the Mauthausen concentration camp. While the time of his detention, which was shaped by terrible conditions, he tried to flee from the sawmill with another prisoner when a guard was deducted. After escaping, the two men were forced to feed on what they found in nature and avoided areas inhabited for fear of being resounded. On July 6, 1945, Giuseppe was registered with his family in Cremenaga after a month in a passage camp in Bolzano.

The shadows of the past

The Italian Jewish community was initially not directly affected by state discrimination. Until the introduction of anti -Jewish laws in 1938, it was fully integrated into society - one aspect that should soon change dramatically. With the German crew from September 8, 1943, the situation deteriorated significantly through deportations, which cost several thousand of them, as the Wikipedia Show data.

Many Jews who were initially patriotic and loyal to the fascist regime were now faced with a brutal system that ruthlessly destroyed their social position. The racial laws not only led to discrimination, but also for forced labor and loss of jobs. Some even decided to convert to Catholicism to escape the persecution.

a respectful look at the horror

In “sixteen months”, Andina interweaves fictional letters that illustrate the desperate search for hope and the traumatic experiences of the spouses. Giuseppe only sent his wife Concetta a short letter in which he informed her about his arrest. Tragically, Giuseppe was revealed by a villager who initially stood aside as an escape assistant, but then gave up his loyalty for money.

Andina succeeds in presenting the horror of events respectfully and at the same time impressive without glorifying the cruel details. His work is not only a literary homage to his grandfather, but also an important contribution to memory of the persecution of the Jews during fascism in Italy and beyond. While the story is still being discussed in Austria and Italy, "sixteen months" brings a personal, human perspective in these often tabaded discourse.

fabio Andina and his novel are clear proof of how important it is not to forget the voice of history and to pay respect to the victims of the past.