An Evening with Sarah Federman

The Library, with the Worldview Project and the San Diego Diplomacy Council, present an evening with Dr. Sarah Federman, author of Last Train to Auschwitz: The French National Railways and the Journey to Accountability. Join us on September 11, 2024, at 6:30 pm for an insightful discussion and a unique opportunity to meet the author in person. A “compelling blend of victims’ narratives and rigorous historical and legal analysis, making a significant contribution to our understanding of corporate accountability and transitional justice,” according to Leigh Payne of the University of Oxford, this book shares the story of how the French National Railways were complicit in the Holocaust.

Light refreshments will be provided.

About the Book

In the immediate decades after World War II, the French National Railways (SNCF) was celebrated for its acts of wartime heroism. However, recent debates and litigation have revealed the ways the SNCF worked as an accomplice to the Third Reich and was actively complicit in the deportation of 76,000 Jews and other civilians to death camps. Sarah Federman delves into the interconnected roles—perpetrator, victim, and hero—the company took on during the harrowing years of the Holocaust. Grounded in history and case law, Last Train to Auschwitz traces the SNCF’s journey toward accountability in France and the United States, culminating in a multimillion-dollar settlement paid by the French government on behalf of the railways. The poignant and informative testimonies of survivors illuminate the long-term effects of the railroad’s impact on individuals, leading the company to make overdue amends. In a time when corporations are increasingly granted the same rights as people, Federman’s detailed account demonstrates the obligations businesses have to atone for aiding and abetting governments in committing atrocities. This volume highlights the necessity of corporate integrity and will be essential reading for those called to engage in the difficult work of responding to past harms.

About the Author

Sarah Federman is an author, educator, and conflict resolution practitioner. Prior to this work, she spent a decade as an international executive working with clients such as Google and the NFL. A job transfer from Manhattan to Paris led her to an encounter with her own name on a Holocaust memorial wall. This moment prompted her to turn her attention to helping people avoid mass violence, focusing specifically on corporate complicity. She is now an Associate Professor of Conflict Resolution at the Joan B Kroc School of Peace Studies at the University of San Diego.