How Did a Salvadoran Colonel Save 40,000 Jews in WW2?

As the Holocaust raged, one Salvadoran diplomat quietly defied the Nazi regime. José Arturo Castellanos Contreras secretly forged Salvadoran passports to save Jewish families from Nazi extermination, turning a small consulate into a refuge for thousands.

His bold actions defied his own government and the Nazi war machine, showing that even the quiet bravery of one individual can change the course of lives—and history.

Chapters
00:00 Intro
00:37 Life prior to WW2
02:23 Contreras appeals for help from the Salvadoran government
03:20 Forging documents for Mandl
04:01 Forging fake passports and visas
05:03 Pre-signed blank nationality certificates
05:54 Legal validation of forged documents
06:08 Rediscovery of Contreras’ story
07:29 Holocaust denial

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Sources:
-“ADL Honors Salvadoran Diplomat Who Saved European Jews During the Holocaust.” ADL, 14 Feb. 2012.
-Clarfield, Geoffrey. “Righteous Among the Nations: The Rescued Tribe of Colonel Jose Arturo Castellanos Contreras.” Quillette, 11 Oct. 2018.
-Donan, Joe. “The Salvadoran Diplomat Who Saved 40,000 Jews.” Medium, 15 Aug. 2020.
-“José Arturo Castellanos.” Jewish Virtual Library, 2016.
-Miller, Yvette Alt. “El Salvador’s Schindler Who Saved 25,000 Jews.” Aish.com, 18 Jan. 2018.
-“Salvadoran Diplomat: José Arturo Castellanos Contreras.” Accidental Talmudist, 3 Apr. 2024.
-Stand for Israel. “Saving 40,000 ‘Salvadorans’ from the Holocaust.” IFCJ, 31 July 2023.
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Image and footage credits:
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, gift of Claranne Bechtler, and courtesy of Enrico Mandel-Mantello, and Paul & Anna Ornstein
Silueta Production House
Yad Vashem
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Executive Producer:
— Barry Skolnick
Co-Executive Producer:
— Shmuel Katz
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Translation credits:
Portuguese: Saymon Pires, www.livrariasafra.com.br, @safralivraria

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