Leokadia Justman: A refugee Jew and her moving story in Tyrol

Leokadia Justman: A refugee Jew and her moving story in Tyrol

In the Tyrolean country house, an important event was recently held in memory of Leokadia Justman. The Polish Jews fled to Tyrol during the Nazi era, and her shattering story was recognized in an exhibition that was the title "Leokadia Justman. We break out!" carries. The event underlines the importance of memory of the victims of National Socialism and promotes awareness of the dark history of the region. Culture officer and Governor Anton Mattle emphasized the need to commemorate this past. The story of Leokadias escape and detention history makes the historical context alive, as tirol.gv.at.

The reconstruction of Leokadia's life story was carried out by the exhibition curators Niko Hofinger and Dominik Markl in cooperation with former crime officers. The research included more than 35,000 index cards as well as numerous personnel dossiers who helped to answer pressing questions and collect important information. The identification of fellow prisoners is particularly moving, including eleven -year -old Edith Singer, who was deported to Auschwitz in 1944. Leokadia's own memories are full of precise names, data and places that call the atrocities of the Nazi era. The next curator, led by the architectural historian Hilde Strobl, takes place on June 13, 2025 at 4 p.m. and illuminates the architectural change of the country house, which was originally built as a Gauhaus. The exhibition can be seen in Landhaus 1 until October 26, 2025.

memory culture and Nazi past

The country house is not only a memorial, but also plays a central role in dealing with the Nazi past. From October 5, 2023, another exhibition entitled "From the Gauhaus to the Landhaus" can be seen in the new country house. This cooperation between the state of Tyrol, Tyrolean Landesmuseen and the University of Innsbruck addresses the earlier role of the building in regional policy and the crimes of National Socialism. Written documents, photographs and plan materials are shown that offer an insight into everyday administrative life. Such events are crucial to address the dealings with the dark past and to promote social discourse, such as [uibk.ac.at] (https://www.uibk.ac.at/de/archiv-baukunstelle/ruckblick/ruck-2023/ exhibition-vom-gauhaus-zum-landhaus/) more clearly.

However, the examination of this topic also encounters resistance. In the Tyrolean state government there was already discussions about the implementation of projects to memory and dealing with the Nazi past. Critics, including representatives of the opposition parties list Fritz, Greens and Neos, complain that the winning project "We are liable for our history" was still not implemented. This delay is seen as a political intervention in artistic competition and has led to an intensive debate about the dealings of the state of Tyrol with its history. Here, Cultural State Councilor Anton Mattle was accused of blocking the project implementation, which also heats up the discussion about freedom of art and dealing with history, as meinzirk.at

The mediation of the Nazi past remains a major challenge, and initiatives for the culture of remembrance are essential. The city invites you to not only deal with history, but also to actively participate in the events in order to raise awareness of these important topics. Further information on current souvenir projects is available on the website of the state of Tirol at tirol.gv.at/erinnern.