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The Japanese Scholar Who Saved a Generation of Jews

JL;DR SUMMARY This engaging article by Meir Soloveichik recounts the extraordinary story of Chiune Sugihara and Setsuzo Kotsuji, two Japanese heroes who played pivotal roles in saving Jewish lives during World War II. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

IdentityGratitudeWorld War IiJewish RefugeesJapanChiune SugiharaRescue EffortsHakarat HatovSetsuzo Kotsuji

Places mentioned

Tokyo, Japan
"found themselves in front of the Japanese Foreign Ministry in Tokyo."
Kaunas, Kaunas County, Lithuania
"the Japanese consul in Kovno (Kaunas), Chiune Sugihara, allowing them to flee across Europe and Asia and arrive in Kobe, Japan."
Kobe, Hyōgo, Japan
"allowing them to flee across Europe and Asia and arrive in Kobe, Japan."
Germany
"Nazi Germany, which was allied with Japan, had sent the Butcher of Warsaw, Gestapo colonel Josef Meisinger, to Tokyo to press for a policy of brutality toward the Jews under Japans rulea policy he stated he would gladly help design and enact."
Israel
"The land of Israel is poised between East and West, and in a certain sense, its worldview of the human person can be seen as a balance between the two."
Kyoto, Kyōto, Japan
"His family, it was said, dated back to 678 A.D., when the Kamo shrine in the Kamo section of Kyoto was dedicated."
Jerusalem, Israel
"who remembered the celebratory gathering in Jerusalem following Kotsujis conversion:"

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Cairo Item ID 65750
Cairo Source ID 10
Retrieved 2025-11-03 05:31:44 UTC
Curated 2025-11-03 08:31:55 UTC