Jewish Heritage Collection: Oral history interview with Benedict "Dick" Rosen
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- Title:
- Jewish Heritage Collection: Oral history interview with Benedict "Dick" Rosen
- Date:
- 2021
- Interviewer:
- Rosengarten, Dale, 1948-
- Interviewee:
- Rosen, Benedict, 1936-
- Description:
- Benedict "Dick" Rosen, in the third of three interviews, talks about his children, Andrew, Greg, and Heidi, and his grandchildren. He identifies primarily as a southerner, rather than a Jew. "That's because being Jewish has never made any difference in my life." And yet, interviewer Dale Rosengarten observes, he and his children married within the faith. He revisits the subject of growing up in Georgetown, South Carolina, noting that he did not experience any antisemitism. "I never had a feeling I was different than anybody else." The same has been true for him as an adult. Rosengarten speculates about the reasons why that may be so. Dick's recollection of segregation prompts a discussion of present-day issues of police brutality, black-on-black crime, mass shootings, gun control, and the death penalty. Dick and Dale share their personal views on Israel. Dick has no special affinity for Israel and doesn't see it as a Jewish homeland. "Being Jewish is not a nationality. It's a religion." Both Rosen and Rosengarten have served as trustees on the board of the Belle W. Baruch Foundation of Hobcaw Barony in Georgetown. Dale raises the question of how their Jewish identity might have been considered useful to the board's mission. Both touch on the effect the Holocaust has had on their lives. The transcript contains corrections made during proofing by Dick's son Andy. For a related interview, see Sylvan and Meyer Rosen, Mss. 1035-035.
- Collection Title:
- Jewish Heritage Collection Oral Histories
- Contributing Institution:
- College of Charleston Libraries
- Media Type:
- Oral Histories
- Topical Subject:
- Segregation--South Carolina, Jews--Identity, Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Influence, Antisemitism--South Carolina, Jews--South Carolina--Georgetown--Interviews
- S.C. County:
- Georgetown County (S.C.)
- Language:
- English
- Shelving Locator:
- MSS 1035-579
- Date Digital:
- 2022-06-15
- Digitization Specifications:
- Mp3 derivative audio created with Audacity software. Archival masters are wav files.
- Format:
- audio/mpeg
- Copyright Status Statement:
- Copyright © Jewish Heritage Collection
- Access Statement:
- All rights reserved.
- Access Information:
- For more information, contact Special Collections, College of Charleston Libraries, 66 George Street, Charleston SC 29424.
- Admin ID:
- 263079
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