Son of ‘Defiant’ holocaust hero to speak

The story of Zus Bielski — a man who saved roughly 1,250 Jews from Nazi persecution during World War II — is fit for a movie.

And his son Zvi Bielski will try to give a more personal account of that story portrayed in the 2008 film Defiance when he tells it at UNC tonight.

The story is especially personal for Edward Krakauer, a UNC student whose grandfather was one of the Jews the Bielskis saved.

Zvi Bielski’s family — his father and his uncles Tuvia and Asael Bielski — were Eastern European Jews who avoided Nazi capture when their country was invaded in 1941.

Camping out in the woods of Eastern Poland, they decided to save as many fellow Jews as possible through an underground resistance movement.

Zvi Bielski will illustrate his speech with clips from the film, which is based on the book “Defiance: The Bielski Partisans.”

“It’s a compelling story about courage,” said Ari Gauss, the executive director of N.C. Hillel, which is hosting the event with UNC Chabad.

Since the movie was released, Zvi Bielski has toured college campuses and other venues, sharing his father’s story with audiences.

Rabbi Zalman Bluming, the director of UNC Chabad, said he wanted Bielski to come not only because his tale inspires but also because it educates.

“Jewish leadership consists of ordinary people doing extraordinary acts,” Bluming said. He added that he wants students to see how much the ripple effect of doing good can accomplish.

When Bluming spoke with Bielski, Bielski mentioned how many people around the world tell him his father is the reason they are alive.

Bluming said he was skeptical until he learned that Zus Bielski saved a UNC student’s grandfather.

The student, Krakauer, will present an award to Zvi Bielski during the event.

“I’m very much looking forward to it,” Krakauer said. “I think it’s a great chance to hear firsthand what it was like.”

Krakauer’s grandfather became part of the Bielski brothers’ movement and fought with them, bringing more Jews to their hidden settlement in the woods.

The talk is tonight at 5 p.m. at the N.C. Hillel.

“It speaks to a greater audience than just Jews,” said Jonathan Boral, a junior who works as a secretary for N.C. Hillel.



Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu