Elie Wiesel
Holocaust Survivor
Elie Wiesel is a Holocaust survivor, author, humanitarian, Nobel Laureate, and distinguished visiting professor at Eckerd College. Born in Romania in 1928, Wiesel was 15 when he and his father were separated from the rest of their family and sent to Auschwitz in Poland. The next year, the two were transferred to Buchenwald where his father was beaten to death only weeks before the camp was liberated. After the war, Wiesel became a journalist for several French and Israeli newspapers. In 1954, encouraged by French author François Mauriac, Wiesel began to write about his experiences during the Holocaust and eventually published his book Night. Since then, he has published over 40 books on the Holocaust, religion, and human rights issues. In 1986 Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Since then, Wiesel has been a strong voice against violence and repression in the world and has been appointed to several university teaching positions where he remains active.