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Sunday 27 May RNW - NEWS AND ANALYSIS FROM THE NETHERLANDS IN 10 LANGUAGES, WORLDWIDE 24/7 ON RADIO, TV AND ONLINE
Martin Davidson's mother, Frauke (centre) as a child with her mother, Thusnelda

The State We're In - Confronting history

On air: 23 April 2011 2:00 (Photo: RNW/Martin Davidson)

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The State We're In, 23 April 2011. A British man finds out his grandfather was not only a card-carrying Nazi, but a dedicated member of the SS. After a young neo-Nazi skinhead in Poland discovers his Jewish roots, he turns to a rabbi for guidance. And an Egyptian man who fled Egypt is now considering moving back to be with his son after living apart for eight years.

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The Perfect Nazi
Growing up, Martin Davidson had suspicions about his German grandfather, Bruno Langbehn (pictured above). Outwardly everything was normal: Bruno seemed to be just a retired dentist from Berlin. But it wasn’t until he died that Martin discovered his grandfather was in an elite branch of the SS and a fervent believer in the Nazi cause. Martin talks to host Jonathan Groubert about the impact of finding out the family secrets surrounding his grandfather and how it’s changed his sense of what justice is.
Link - Review of Martin's book - The Perfect Nazi - Moment magazine
 
Video - Martin speaks about his grandfather's life (Penguin Books)

 

The rabbi and the skinhead
Rabbi Michael Schudrich first arrived in Poland in 1973, where the Holocaust and communism had virtually wiped Jewish culture out. Pawel was a neo-Nazi skinhead, who used to beat up Jews and anyone else he and his gang didn’t think were "pure" Polish. They reveal to Jonathan how an incredible discovery made their paths cross.

A cinematic exile
Wafa Abdelrahman is an Egyptian cinephile whose best friend, a filmmaker, was killed by the Mubarak regime for refusing to be their snitch. When the government started pressuring Wafa to become an informant, too, he fled Egypt, leaving his young son Tommy behind. Now Wafa dreams of a return to Egypt and is planning to make a secret film.

Click image for slideshow

  • Martin Davidson&#039;s grandfather was a member of the Sicherheitsdienst (SD) an intelligence agency inside the SS<br>&copy; Photo: RNW/Martin Davidson - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • Martin Davidson&#039;s mother, Frauke (centre) as a child with her sister, her mother, Thusnelda and father, Bruno Langbehn<br>&copy; Photo: RNW/Martin Davidson - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • Bruno visits his daughter Frauke in Edinburgh,1961<br>&copy; Photo: RNW/Martin Davidson - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • Rabbi Michael Schudrich, Chief Rabbi of Poland<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • Pawel, former skinhead turned orthodox Jew (he prefers to stay anonymous)<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english
  • Wafa Abdelrahman wants to return to Egypt to make films<br>&copy; Photo: RNW - http://www.rnw.nl/english

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Discussion

nicolien van schouwen 24 April 2011 - 10:22pm / usa

fascinating story. I adnmire the honesty about the family history, baring the hidden secrets that were garded so well and showing how little we know about our own families.This must not have been easy to bare the horrible family secrets from the past and without ever having a chance to confront grandfather bruno with his Nazi past.Will this book come out in the US?
Thanks so much for sharing your family story that is so important to hear, read or listen to. Thanks!

user avatar
The State Were In 26 April 2011 - 12:49pm / Netherlands

Hi Nicolien, thanks for your thoughts. To answer your question, The Perfect Nazi by Martin Davidson is published in the US by Penguin Group USA. Here's a link to their website: http://us.penguingroup.com/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9781101504123,00.html?...

It's also available to order from Amazon.com and Walmart.com.

 

Anonymous 22 April 2011 - 8:22pm / Lalaland

He that has no fools,knaves,nor beggars in his family, was begot by a flash of lightning.

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