Can son of Nazi war hero help combat antisemitism?

IAC to feature Dr. Bernd Wollschlaeger, son of Nazi war hero, who rejected his family heritage, converted to Judaism and currently lives in Israel.

By HAGAY HACOHEN
Updated: FEBRUARY 8, 2019 01:53
Son of a Nazi Dr. Bernd Wollschlaeger, taken from a youtube video. (photo credit: YOUTUBE SCREENSHOT)
Son of a Nazi Dr. Bernd Wollschlaeger, taken from a youtube video.
(photo credit: YOUTUBE SCREENSHOT)
The Israel American Council (IAC) boldly picked a special keynote speaker, Dr. Bernd Wollschlaeger, for a panel held in Las Vegas devoted to the ongoing fight against antisemitism in the US.
Born to a highly decorated Nazi war hero who was given the Iron Cross by Adolf Hitler himself, Wollschlaeger was told that WWII cost the lives of 50 million people, among them 6 million Jews.
His turning point came during the 1972 Munich Olympics, the terrorist act that took the lives of 11 Israeli athletes made him realize that hatred is not a thing of the past - but a very real thing.
He chose to learn more about the Jewish faith and eventually converted while still in Medical school, he currently lives in Israel and wrote several books about his experiences as a convert, son of Nazis and living in Israel as a German.
“We have to be mindful of the hatred of the other. We have to have the courage to stand up and respectfully disagree,” he said. “Everybody can change. Against all odds, change is possible.”
The evening also featured IAC Las Vegas Regional Director Noa Peri-Jensch, David Brog, Executive Director of the Maccabee Task Force; Rabbi Felipe Goodman of Temple Beth Sholom; Pastor Joshua Teis of the Southern Hills Baptist Church of Las Vegas; Esther Finder, President and Founder of Generations of the Shoah – Nevada; and Jolie Brislin, Nevada Regional Director of the Anti-Defamation League.
“We see that anti-Semitism is on a rise, and by having forums such as this, it becomes harder and
harder to make hate the new norm,” said Jolie Brislin.