Irene Tomaszewski (also Irena Tomaszewska, born May 1940) is a Canadian writer, editor and translator of Polish descent living in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Canada.

Early life

Irene Tomaszewski (''Tomaszewska'', in proper Polish usage, since she is female) was born in 1940 to

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

parents in the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

's Rosochy prison, in the

Arkhangelsk Oblast Arkhangelsk Oblast ( rus, Архангельская область, p=ɐrˈxanɡʲɪlʲskəjə ˈobɫəsʲtʲ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It includes the Arctic Ocean, Arctic archipelagos of Franz ...

gulag The Gulag was a system of Labor camp, forced labor camps in the Soviet Union. The word ''Gulag'' originally referred only to the division of the Chronology of Soviet secret police agencies, Soviet secret police that was in charge of runnin ...

''. In June 1941, after Germany attacked its former Soviet ally, the family was released from the ''gulag''. In 1942, along with tens of thousands of other Poles, they were evacuated from the

to the

Near East The Near East () is a transcontinental region around the Eastern Mediterranean encompassing the historical Fertile Crescent, the Levant, Anatolia, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and coastal areas of the Arabian Peninsula. The term was invented in the 20th ...

. On their way south, Tomaszewski's mother Anna, pregnant with Irena, and her two sisters Wanda and Halina, were separated from the children's father, Felix. In 1949, after six years in an

East Africa East Africa, also known as Eastern Africa or the East of Africa, is a region at the eastern edge of the Africa, African continent, distinguished by its unique geographical, historical, and cultural landscape. Defined in varying scopes, the regi ...

refugee camp, the family were reunited in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, and subsequently emigrated to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Career

Tomaszewski was a founding president of the Canadian Foundation for Polish Studies. She co-authored, with Tecia Werbowski, ''Codename

Żegota Żegota (, full codename: the "Konrad Żegota Committee"Yad Vashem Shoa Resource CenterZegota/ref>) was the Polish Council to Aid Jews with the Government Delegation for Poland (), an underground Polish resistance organization, and part of th ...

: Rescuing Jews in Occupied Poland, 1942-1945'', on a clandestine organization that helped

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

s in Poland. Tomaszewski wrote the screenplay for the 1999 film based on the book, titled ''Żegota: The Council for Aid to Jews in Occupied Poland, 1942-45''. She translated the text and acted as editor for ''Inside a Gestapo Prison: The Letters of Krystyna Wituska, 1942-1944'', published by

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public university, public research university in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 375 programs. It is Michigan's third-l ...

Press in 2006. The Tomaszewski translation was published earlier in 1997 under the title, ''I Am First a Human Being: The Prison Letters of Krystyna Wituska.''

Books in Canada ''Books in Canada'' was a monthly magazine that reviewed Canadian literature, published in print form between 1971 and 2006. In its heyday it was the most influential literary magazine in Canada. Foundation One of the co-founders of ''Books in Ca ...

reviewed the work, noting that Tomaszewski first came across the letters while working on a documentary on Poland for the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is the Canadian Public broadcasting, public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a Crown corporation that serves as the national public broadcaster, with its E ...

. The translation draws on the earlier Polish language book by Dr. Wanda Kiedrzynska and from others who knew or were related to Wituska. The book also contains an explanatory list of people mentioned in the correspondence. She is the editor of the ''Cosmopolitan Review'', the quarterly, English-language magazine on Polish affairs. In 1999, Tomaszewski was invited to give the ninth Milewski Polish Studies Lecture at

Central Connecticut State University Central Connecticut State University (Central Connecticut, CCSU, Central Connecticut State, or informally Central) is a public university in New Britain, Connecticut. Founded in 1849 as the State Normal School, CCSU is Connecticut's oldest publi ...

on the topic of: "The Holocaust: Remembrance and Education". Professor Stanislaus Blejwas, in his introduction to the published address, called Tomaszewski one of the thoughtful voices in the discussion between Jews and Poles about the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

. In 2014, Tomaszewski was the keynote speaker at the opening of Toronto's presentation of an exhibit about

Jan Karski Jan Karski (born Jan Kozielewski, 24 June 1914 – 13 July 2000) was a Polish soldier, Polish resistance movement in World War II, resistance-fighter, and diplomat during World War II. He is known for having acted as a courier in 1940–1943 to ...

, "The World Knew – Jan Karski’s Mission for Humanity". Along with Polish writer,

Małgorzata Dzieduszycka-Ziemilska Małgorzata Maria Dzieduszycka-Ziemilska (born 1 June 1949) is a Polish publicist, theatre critic and served as the Consul General in Montreal from 1992 to 1996 and is also a permanent Delegate of the Republic of Poland to UNESCO Dzieduszycka-Zi ...

, she was instrumental in encouraging contact and dialogue between Jewish students and Polish students during the annual

March of the Living The March of the Living (, ; ) is an annual educational program which brings students from around the world to Poland, where they explore the remnants of the Holocaust. On Holocaust Memorial Day observed in the Jewish calendar (), thousands of p ...

program.

References

External links

Poland at War: Preserving the Past for the Future
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tomaszewski, Irene Canadian non-fiction writers Canadian women non-fiction writers Living people Canadian people of Polish descent Year of birth missing (living people)

Early life

Career

See also

References

External links