Luca Fenoglio (University of Leicester), is the author of Angelo Donati e la “questione ebraica” nella Francia occupata dall’esercito italiano (Silvio Zamorani, 2013). In this presentation he will analyze the rescue efforts orchestrated by Angelo Donati, a prominent Jewish lawyer from Modena who tried to find exit pathways for Jewish refugees caught in the Italian-occupied zone of France. His plans were ultimately hindered by conflicting agendas and lack of political interest in the fate of refugees.
Donati’s family history and activity before, during and after World War II offer the opportunity to reflect on such themes as the relation between minorities and the nation-state and the transnational protection of human rights. Since the publication of Hannah Arendt’s We Refugees, 1943 and Raphael Lemkin’s reports, these topics have become integral part of contemporary sensibility and public debate. Yet, in spite of the lesson of history and the circulation of current information, the plight of refugees continues to elude a large section of the international public opinion.
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