About the Book
Alfred Landecker was a businessman, a devoted father, and a proud German patriot. He settled in Mannheim in 1913, served as a soldier in the First World War, and started a family upon his return. A successful senior commercial executive, he was firmly established in the city's social and professional life. But when the Nazis came to power in 1933, everything changed for the Landecker family.
Alfred Landecker and his three children faced increasing antisemitic discrimination, exclusion, and the systematic stripping away of their rights. As a father, he did everything he could to protect his family from persecution. In 1942, he was deported to the Izbica Ghetto in German-occupied Poland and murdered during the Holocaust. The exact location of his death remains unknown to this day.
His story is emblematic of the systematic destruction of German-Jewish life under National Socialism.
In her book Alfred Landecker. Ein deutsch-jüdisches Leben 1884–1942 (Alfred Landecker: A German-Jewish Life, 1884–1942), journalist Annette Prosinger offers a moving and compassionate account of the Landecker family's experiences in Mannheim. She traces how, from 1933 onwards, their everyday lives became increasingly restricted, and how Alfred, a caring and protective father, struggled in vain to keep himself and his children safe.
In conversation with Ulrich Nieß, former director of the MARCHIVUM, Prosinger will introduce her book and read selected passages.
About the New Brochures and Exhibition Features
Alfred Landecker and Holocaust survivor Ernst Michel (known as Ernest W. Michel from 1946 onwards) will both be featured in the MARCHIVUM's multimedia permanent exhibition, Was hat das mit mir zu tun? (What Does This Have to Do with Me?).
Two new brochures, edited by Michael Caroli, will also be presented and made available to visitors free of charge.
Through the life stories of Alfred Landecker and Ernst Michel, visitors will gain new insights into Jewish life in Mannheim and the history of Nazi persecution.
Karen Strobel and Silvia Köhler will introduce the new exhibition features. Guests will also have the opportunity to explore the exhibition themselves and discover the stories of Alfred Landecker and Ernest W. Michel.
The book and the new exhibition features have been made possible through the generous support of the Alfred Landecker Foundation. Named in Alfred Landecker's memory, the Foundation is committed to preserving the memory of the Holocaust, combating antisemitism, and strengthening democracy.