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Short Stuff: Aristides de Sousa Mendes · Stuff You Should Know

• 0:04
  Speaker 1: Hey, and welcome to short Stuff. I'm Josh. There's Chuck,
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: and there's Josh the other Josh, and this is short stuff.
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: Did I say that already? I don't know enough talk, Chuck.
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: Let's get to it. We're talking today about a man
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: who is shamefully or was shamefully overlooked by history, starting
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: to get his due, finally named Aristide de Susa Mendez
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: do amaral at Branches. I think I came awfully close.
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: My Portuguese is a little rusty, seeing as how I've
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: never spoken a word of it in my life, and
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: not bad. We can call him, uh, the Portuguese Oscar Schindler,
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: and that should give you a good idea of where
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: this episode is headed. Okay, Ariste di Susa Mendez, We're
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: just gonna leave it at that. Um. By the time
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: rolled around had become a career diplomat for Portugal, he
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: was trained as a lawyer and um. By the time
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: he was assigned to Bordeaux, France in night Um, he
• 1:04
  Speaker 1: had been all over the world. He was definitely a
• 1:07
  Speaker 1: senior diplomat in the diplomatic corps for for Portugal. That's right,
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: so uh. In nineteen thirty eight, like you said he
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: was in France. World War two comes knocking on his door.
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: Germany invades Poland, and Portugal was like, I really like,
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: we're Portuguese. We're not into this World War stuff. I
• 1:26
  Speaker 1: don't know if you got the memo, but we'd like
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: to remain sort of neutral and happy over here, growing
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: olives and drinking wine. Um. And so we're gonna we're
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: gonna distribute this thing called Circular fourteen that basically says,
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: all of our our consoles all over the world, you
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: need to deny travel into Portugal for for refugees. We
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: don't like that you're being persecuted, but we want to
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: stay out of this as much as possible. Um A
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: k A. We don't want to make Hitler mad, so
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: we're not gonna take your your refugee, including the Jewish people. Right.
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: And this is the Circular fourteen. It gots sent out
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: to all consulates in Europe. And um, that was supposed
• 2:09
  Speaker 1: to be that. But this this, this this came at
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: like a time chuck, when they were apparently the New
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: York Times estimated something between six and ten million people
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: moving around Europe because chaos was just starting to brew
• 2:24
  Speaker 1: as Germany invaded Poland and then invaded France. Um. It
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: was pushing and displacing a lot of people around who
• 2:30
  Speaker 1: are trying to get out of here. Um. And I
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: looked up, like that's a pretty big number, but like,
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: what is it in in today's terms? In Germany, ten
• 2:41
  Speaker 1: million people move around the country a year on their
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: train system. In a year, this was like at once
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: there were six to ten million people moving around, and
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: they were moving around chaotically. But again Portugal said, now
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: we're not taking part in this. Just just stand there, motionless,
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: silent and don't do any thing. They're gonna have to
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: figure out a different way. Uh and and if Germany
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: gets them, well then that's too bad. And this aristide
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: to Susa. Mendez said, I don't think I can do that. Yeah.
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: So he's in southern France. So that was a hot
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: spot for these refugees because they were thinking we can
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: from there just go into Spain then right into Portugal.
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: That's what Lauren but called it. In Casablanca, she she
• 3:24
  Speaker 1: flew to she flew to Lisbon, that's right. But you know,
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: I don't think they could fly into Lisbon at the time. Yeah,
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: they could. She hops on a plane at the end.
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: Well she did right, sure, Oh oh you're saying the
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: people who are seeking help from Susan Mendez, that's right, Sure,
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: sure got you. So he knows that if he goes
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: directly against his government, this is gonna be bad news
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: for him. It's gonna be bad news for his family.
• 3:47
  Speaker 1: He would be wilfully disobeying a direct order of Circular fourteen. Um.
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: But he befriended a Polish rabbi UH name chime Hurt
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: Kruga uh, and he offered visas to this guy in
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: his family. But Krueger was like, you know what, UM,
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: I don't. I'm gonna turn down this offer because what
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: you really need to do is save everybody that you can.
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: And it was a really sort of monumental moment for uh,
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: for Susan Mendez because he was a devout Catholic and
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: this guy was a rabbi and you know they they
• 4:22
  Speaker 1: had their mind on the same thing. It's except the
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: rabbi was just saying like, be bold, and Susan Mendez
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: was in fear of his life basically yeah, because I
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: mean like him him not listening to the Circular fourteen
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: is not it wasn't like listening. You're not listening to
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: in order from like the Jimmy Carter administration. There was
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  Speaker 1: a dictator running the show in Portugal at the time
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  Speaker 1: and would continue to run the show until nine seventy
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  Speaker 1: I believe. So it was a real conundrum that he
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: found himself in. But ultimately he consulted his own conscience
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  Speaker 1: and he said, no, morally, I I have to do something.
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  Speaker 1: I can't just sit by. And he did. He he he
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: took um, he took the advice of this rabbi and
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: at the in Bordeaux Um he's set up basically an
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  Speaker 1: assembly line for for stamping and signing any and every
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: visa application into Portugal that was was handed to him
• 5:17
  Speaker 1: by anybody. He tried to get as many people safe
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: passage into Portugal as he he physically could. Yeah, and
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  Speaker 1: I think, given what's uh, I'm going to get minor
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: political here, what's going on in this country today? We
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: should read this quote uh from Susan Mindez. I have
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: it all in my hands now to save the many
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  Speaker 1: thousands of persons who have come from everywhere in Europe
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  Speaker 1: and the hope of finding sanctuary in Portugal. They are
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  Speaker 1: all human beings and their status in life, their religion
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  Speaker 1: or color are all together immaterial to me. So let's
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  Speaker 1: dwell on that during the message break and UH, we'll
• 5:52
  Speaker 1: be back right after this. I hope that that was
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: a UM. Everybody got a sixty second mid role from
• 6:14
  Speaker 1: the A C l U just now. So they're running
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: a lot of people through this thing. I mean, like
• 6:21
  Speaker 1: you said, it was like an assembly line, and they
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: were stamping visas like they were running out of stamps.
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: They were stamping visa so fast. Yeah, there's there's no
• 6:31
  Speaker 1: way that he didn't get a hand cramp on the rig. Uh.
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: Tens of thousands of people, UM, many thousands of which
• 6:39
  Speaker 1: were Jewish, were granted these visas under his authority. UH.
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  Speaker 1: And it was later said it was perhaps the largest
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: rescue action by single individual during the Holocaust, and that
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: includes Oscar Schindler. That's huge, yeah, Schindler. I think UM
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: was responsible for making sure that twelve hundred people successfully
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: escaped the Holocaust. UM sus Amendez UH was responsible for
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: for likely many many thousands more than that, Like they've
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  Speaker 1: identified so far at least thirty eight hundred recipients from
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: forty nine different countries. UM but they're like, there's there's
• 7:14
  Speaker 1: thousands and thousands more just from this assembly line that
• 7:18
  Speaker 1: they set up from I believe the beginning of May
• 7:21
  Speaker 1: until um July when Bordeaux was overrun by the Nazis
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: and the whole operation was broken up. So repercussions for sure. Uh.
• 7:31
  Speaker 1: July nineteen forty, he was recalled from Bordeaux to face
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: trial for in subordination and uh he basically says in court,
• 7:41
  Speaker 1: you know what, um, I answered to God, I would
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: rather stand with God against man than man against God.
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  Speaker 1: And he was convinced that he was had a moral
• 7:51
  Speaker 1: defense and he was right, and he was convinced that
• 7:55
  Speaker 1: the actual constitution of Portugal prohibited persecution based on religion,
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: and he was right there as well. But it didn't
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  Speaker 1: matter because, like you said, they were living under a dictatorship.
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  Speaker 1: In in in October of nineteen forty, he was found guilty.
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  Speaker 1: He was relieved of his duties and blacklisted by the
• 8:11
  Speaker 1: government for the rest of his life, and very, very
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: sadly died in nineteen fifty four at the Franciscan Hospital
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: for the Poor in Lisbon. Yes, not penniless. I noticed
• 8:22
  Speaker 1: this article said he was broke. I don't know how
• 8:24
  Speaker 1: much you dislike the word pennyless to describe somebody who
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: dies broke. I didn't not see that said penniless. There
• 8:30
  Speaker 1: was like I think in the Tesla episode we did,
• 8:33
  Speaker 1: you're like, I hate that word really, yeah, because you're like,
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: I'm sure he's got a penny I didn't know that
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: he was supposedly didn't have any money, but yeah, he
• 8:43
  Speaker 1: was broke. I mean like they they broke him. They
• 8:46
  Speaker 1: basically said, you're not gonna have any more government work, um,
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: and good luck finding anything but a government work in
• 8:52
  Speaker 1: a bureaucratic dictatorship. So he, uh, yeah, he was. He
• 8:56
  Speaker 1: was blacklisted, he was black bald, and he died in
• 8:59
  Speaker 1: poverty with his family also taken down with him. You know,
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: like this guy said, and he knew the risk, and
• 9:07
  Speaker 1: he said, I'm I'm going to put all these other
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: families in front of my own family. And like, if
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: you're a utilitarian, that makes a lot of sense because
• 9:16
  Speaker 1: even two families are worth more than one family. But still,
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: this is this guy's own family that he's putting under
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  Speaker 1: the under the gun to help all of these others.
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  Speaker 1: But he did not regret it. Towards the end of
• 9:27
  Speaker 1: his life, he said, I could not have acted otherwise,
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  Speaker 1: and I therefore accept all that has befallen me with love.
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  Speaker 1: How's that for a lesson? It is a great lesson.
• 9:37
  Speaker 1: And now he is typically mentioned along with Oscar Schindler,
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: who is no slouch himself. No, no, what he did,
• 9:45
  Speaker 1: but I mean, like Susan Mendez also deserves a decent
• 9:48
  Speaker 1: amount of credit as well. And slowly but surely it
• 9:51
  Speaker 1: started to come around. His daughter, Joanna Susa Mendez Um
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: really started to beat the drum to to revive for
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: father is standing in the world. In nineteen sixty six,
• 10:04
  Speaker 1: she got a petition approved so that her father would
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: be named a righteous among nations, which is what the
• 10:11
  Speaker 1: Yad Vashem, which is the Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem. It's
• 10:16
  Speaker 1: an honor that they bestow on non Jews who went
• 10:21
  Speaker 1: to great links and placed themselves at great risk to
• 10:24
  Speaker 1: save people from the Holocaust. So that was a big
• 10:27
  Speaker 1: first step, and that took place in nineteen sixty six.
• 10:30
  Speaker 1: But they kept going and then eventually a daughter from
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: one of the people that he saved directly joined this too. Yeah,
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  Speaker 1: I mean he was. He was honored a few times
• 10:41
  Speaker 1: in eighty seven, the US Congress um convinced the Portuguese
• 10:45
  Speaker 1: government to officially apologize. And then after these ancestors of
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: the survivors started coming forward, and they started digging these
• 10:53
  Speaker 1: people up and compiled of a list. So far, this foundation,
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: the Susan Mindees Foundation UM, which is co founded by
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: his grandchildren and descendants of the people that he saved,
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  Speaker 1: which is just an amazing story. Uh. They've compiled a
• 11:06
  Speaker 1: list of about thirty eight hundred visa recipients in forty
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  Speaker 1: nine different countries, and they are still on the lookout
• 11:12
  Speaker 1: for more people. It's like this big uh, sort of
• 11:15
  Speaker 1: dispersed family all over the world. Yeah. And and they
• 11:19
  Speaker 1: make the point too that not only did he save
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  Speaker 1: all these people, you know, this minimum of thirty eight hundred,
• 11:24
  Speaker 1: but probably thousands and thousands and thousands more. He he
• 11:27
  Speaker 1: directly saved their lives, he also ensured the lives of
• 11:31
  Speaker 1: their offspring who hadn't even been born yet, who are
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: now born and have have, um, you know, managed to live,
• 11:37
  Speaker 1: who otherwise wouldn't have lived had it not been this
• 11:39
  Speaker 1: for the direct intervention of this guy. Amazing. Yeah, So
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: hats off Aristide Susan Mendez that's a great name. When
• 11:48
  Speaker 1: you're a great guy. We do a lot of hats
• 11:50
  Speaker 1: off in these shorties. I like it. I yeah. It's
• 11:52
  Speaker 1: kind of a celebratory series, isn't it. Yeah? Here and
• 11:55
  Speaker 1: there is for sure, or we talked about to some weird,
• 11:58
  Speaker 1: dumb thing that no one knows about ever understands. Right,
• 12:01
  Speaker 1: but that's what people like, right, that's right. Okay, Well
• 12:04
  Speaker 1: hopefully you like this one. UM. If not, don't tell us. Okay,
• 12:08
  Speaker 1: see you later. M H. Stuff you Should Know is
• 12:12
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