StoryCorps Chicago: ‘Human Beings Are Capable Of Cruelty, But Goodness Too’

Estelle Glaser Laughlin came to the StoryCorps booth in the Chicago Cultural Center.
Estelle Glaser Laughlin came to the StoryCorps booth in the Chicago Cultural Center. Courtesy of StoryCorps
Estelle Glaser Laughlin came to the StoryCorps booth in the Chicago Cultural Center.
Estelle Glaser Laughlin came to the StoryCorps booth in the Chicago Cultural Center. Courtesy of StoryCorps

StoryCorps Chicago: ‘Human Beings Are Capable Of Cruelty, But Goodness Too’

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Estelle Glaser Laughlin was just a child when the Nazis forced hundreds of thousands of Jews to live in a tiny area of the city, little more than a square mile. Her strongest memories of the time are of the courageous actions of the Jewish people living in the Warsaw ghetto.

A while back she came to the StoryCorps booth in the Chicago Cultural Center to talk about the ways she and her family fought back against the Nazis. Laughlin wrote a memoir about her experiences called Transcending Darkness: A Girl’s Journey Out of the Holocaust.

StoryCorps’ mission is to provide Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to share, record and preserve their stories. These excerpts, edited by WBEZ, present some of our favorites from the current visit, as well as from previous trips.