Secret Courage: The Walter Suskind Story

Walter Suskind was a German Jew living in Amsterdam during World War II when he was forced to serve as the head of deportation at the Hollandsche Schouwburg, the Jewish Theater in Amsterdam. The theater was used as the main deportation site in Holland; as Jews arrived there, adults were kept in the theater while their children were removed to a dormitory across the street. Using his German, his skills as an actor and businessman, and his courage, Suskind and an intrepid group of resistance workers arranged for the escape of hundreds of Dutch children who were marked for transport to the death camps. In SECRET COURAGE, we hear the stories of five of the saved children, plus those of eleven resistance workers. They tell of an incredible rescue operation wherein workers in the theater orchestrated their efforts with those of nurses caring for the children. Survivors who were adults at the time speak of their moral dilemma at having to decide which children to send off and which to keep there. The film challenges viewers to think about what they might have done in similar circumstances. – BB