Belt worn by Simon Palevsky as a partisan
Gift of Simon and Chaya Palevsky
Id no. 2000.A.95, Textile
Subject(s): Resistance
Simon Palevsky wore this leather belt while living in the forest as a partisan. He took the belt from the house of a peasant during a partisan mission and used it to hold his gun and other supplies. In the Vilna ghetto, Palevsky was associated with the FPO (United Partisan Organization). He eventually fled the ghetto and joined the Jewish partisan group Nekamah (Revenge) in the Narocz forest, located in the Belarusian area of Poland. There Palevsky met his future wife, fellow partisan Chaya Porus.
During WWII 20,000 to 30,000 Jews escaped the ghettos and work camps of Nazi-occupied Europe, and fled to the forests to fight as partisans. Primarily active in Eastern Europe with its dense forests, they formed armed groups and fought back against the Nazis and their collaborators.
During WWII 20,000 to 30,000 Jews escaped the ghettos and work camps of Nazi-occupied Europe, and fled to the forests to fight as partisans. Primarily active in Eastern Europe with its dense forests, they formed armed groups and fought back against the Nazis and their collaborators.
