The Struma
Co-sponsored with WALLA
April 10, 2023, 6:30 PM
Maple-Walnut Room, West Lafayette Public Library
A documentary, directed by Simcha Jacobovici. (1 hour 32 minutes)
In 1941, 778 Romanian Jewish refugees and the crew members of The Struma were stranded in the Black Sea when the ship’s engine failed. The Struma was torpedoed by a Russian submarine; only one person survived. In 2000, divers went in search of the Struma to discover the final resting place of those who were lost and to hold a memorial service for them. Their search revealed the politics surrounding the wartime event and the subsequent cover-up.On December 11, 1941, the Struma set sail from Constanta, Romania, bound for Palestine with 778 Romanian refugees aboard. The ship was in poor repair to begin with, but when the engine gave out, it was towed to Istanbul. The passengers, fleeing persecution in their own country, became hostage to the forces of war and wartime politics in another. The British were restricting immigration to Palestine in deference to the Arabs, and the Turks, attempting neutrality, had pledged not to allow illegal immigrants into their country. The Turks would not allow Jews without valid visas to leave the ship. Instead, the boat sat in the Istanbul harbor for over two months, the passengers ill, starving, and increasingly in despair. Finally, the Turks towed the Struma out into the Black Sea and set it adrift. Soon after, it was torpedoed by a Russian submarine and sank. There was only one survivor. In 2000, divers discovered the approximate location of the wreck, and a memorial service was held at sea to honor the victims.
USHMM Holocaust Encyclopedia
Yad Vashem: The Story of the Struma: A Refugee Ship Fleeing Romania, Sunk at Sea in 1942
Wikipedia
IMDB