Dear Clara
Dear Clara,
Eighty years ago, they came to arrest you. It was early, summer was approaching along with the end of the war. They came for you, following a denunciation.
For several years now, I’ve been sharing what I know of your story. I even reimagined you in the character of Emily, the Englishwoman from L’harmonica le trombone et le parapluie. I know you were mistreated. I know you didn’t talk. From the Kommandantur in Honfleur to Pont l’Évêque and Romainville, you weren’t spared. Finally, you ended your life in Ravensbrück, in August—or perhaps it was November 1944.
As Ferrat sang, « they tell me now that these words are out of date, » that we shouldn’t compare everything, that our current situation has nothing to do with that time… Certainly…
And yet… Humanity’s memory is so short.
Of course, I’m worried. How can one not see the resurgence of antisemitism, racism, intolerance, and violence? I don’t know what scares me more: these ideas making a comeback, or the words of those who say, « you can’t compare everything. »
How can we fight these ideas if we refuse to recognize them?
