Faye Schulman, born on this day in 1919, was a Jewish partisan and photographer who took up arms against the Nazis who were responsible for killing her family.
On August 14th, 1942, the Germans killed 1,850 Jews from the “Lenin” ghetto (named after Lenin, Poland, where Faye was from), including her parents, sisters, and younger brother. Faye was spared for her ability to develop photographs, and the Nazis ordered Faye to develop their photographs of the massacre. Later, she cited taking a photo of her dead family in a mass grave as the impetus to take up arms.
During a partisan raid on the camp, Faye fled to the forests and joined the Molotava Brigade, a partisan group mostly comprised of escaped Soviet Red Army POWs. She was accepted because her brother-in-law had been a doctor and they were desperate for anyone who knew anything about medicine. Faye served the group as a nurse from September 1942 to July 1944, even though she had no previous medical experience.
During another raid on the Lenin ghetto, Faye succeeded in recovering her old photographic equipment. During the next two years, she took over a hundred photographs, developing the medium format negatives under blankets and making “sun prints” during the day. While on missions, Faye buried the camera and tripod to keep it safe. Schulman is the only known Jewish partisan photographer from this era.
“I want people to know that there was resistance. Jews did not go like sheep to the slaughter. I was a photographer. I have pictures. I have proof.”
- Faye Schulman
After liberation, Faye married Morris Schulman, also a Jewish partisan. Faye and Morris enjoyed a prosperous life as decorated Soviet partisans, but wanted to leave Pinsk, Poland, which reminded them of “a graveyard.” Morris and Faye lived in the Landsberg displaced persons camp in Germany for the next three years and immigrated to Canada in 1948.
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talked about this a bit with my most recent ex (the mini relationship one) since we both do this time to time and we both agreed that also: it kinda gives you an out from true accountability/self improvement. it’s like: oh, if i’m fundamentally, essentially bad, then that’s that then case closed nothin to see here! but real accountability means trying to be better anyway despite those feelings and trying to make amends to people harmed when appropriate.
response to your past relationship story & some thoughts on mine
what you outlined sounds messy and like everyone involved did things that hurt others, but nothing any of the people involved can’t improve on and move on from, and the fact that everyone is on good terms now sounds like a good sign. ive had friends and exes who cheated, polybombed, etc and other bad shit in their relationships, that they’ve taken accountability for and have improved upon and i still love them. i myself have done some bad shit in my life, especially when i was much younger - a lot of it i don’t like to post about on here. no one is free from doing harm, what’s important is remaining accountable and trying to be better/do your best in the present and future. honestly, one thing that’s helped me is kinda letting go of the need to be an Uncomplicatedly Good Person since that doesn’t really exist.
i am glad that i ended things with my partner before letting the work friend crush get out of hand - and honestly, i do maintain that the crush was really a symptom of other stuff/the catalyst for other (but related) stuff. otherwise i’d have regretted ending things more once that didn’t work out. i don’t think i would have cheated or anything had it been an option? but still, things could have gotten even messier if i didn’t make that judgment call. i do think that partnership had a lot of value, and i hope they can get to a better place with it as well and come to that same conclusion. but they’re on their own path now and that’s up to them, i can’t control it.
anyway thanks for sharing, i appreciate the support and hearing about other people’s experiences and i hope you can forgive yourself your past wrongs and love the person you are today
i suppose you’re right that ending it directly showed i’m not really a coward. i only wish i could have realized it without feelings for a subsequent love interest being the catalyst and the messiness that entails - but eh, that’s life sometimes 