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A University of Ottawa history professor says he’s deeply concerned about the chilling effect a Polish court ruling could have on Holocaust scholarship like his that seeks to explore the role of individual Polish collaborators.
In a telephone interview from Poland on Wednesday, Prof. Jan Grabowski said the ruling, which demands an apology for “inaccurate information” published in a 2018 book he helped edit, has unleashed a frightening backlash.
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Court rules Barbara Engelking and Jan Grabowski disseminated false information and harmed the honor of a man they said helped kill Jews in WWII; his niece brought the suit
The Globe and Mail Vanessa Gera and Monika Scislowska WARSAW, Poland Bookmark Please log in to listen to this story. Also available in French and Mandarin. Log In Create Free Account
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The Associated Press
A court in Warsaw ruled Tuesday that two prominent Holocaust researchers must apologize to a woman who claimed her deceased uncle had been slandered in a historical work, citing alleged inaccuracies that suggested the Polish man helped kill Jews during the Second World War.
Lawyers for 81-year-old Filomena Leszczynska argued that the scholars had unfairly harmed her good name and that of her family, violating the honour of the uncle. The family says he saved Jews during the German occupation of Poland during the Second World War.
by Colin Perkel, The Canadian Press
Posted Feb 9, 2021 4:10 pm ADT
Last Updated Feb 9, 2021 at 4:25 pm ADT
TORONTO A Polish court order that an eminent Canadian historian and his co-editor apologize for suggesting a man helped kill Jews during the Second World World has angered Jewish human rights activists in Canada and abroad.
They say the ruling against Jan Grabowski and Barbara Engelking is part of an ongoing effort to obscure Polish complicity in the genocide of Jews during the Holocaust.
Michael Levitt, head of Toronto-based Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies, called the ruling shocking and shameful.
“Poland cannot continue to bury the facts and silence Holocaust scholars,” Levitt said. “Its actions must be roundly rejected by Canada and the rest of the international community.”