Joseph Schleifstein

Joseph Schleifstein (born March 7, 1941) was a Polish-born American who survived the Buchenwald concentration camp during the Holocaust at the age of four. He was hidden by his father in a large sack, enabling him to avoid detection by SS guards when arriving at the camp. Other prisoners helped his father keep him hidden, and Schleifstein survived until the Americans liberated the camp. After World War II, Schleifstein and his parents emigrated to the United States. He did not discuss his wartime experiences for decades, even with his children. His case gained publicity in 1999 with the anniversary of the 1997 movie Life is Beautiful; it was discovered Schleifstein's story was an inspiration for the script. This led to a search for him and an eventual newspaper interview.

Survival Schleifstein was born Josef (Janek) Szlajfsztajn to Israel and Esther Szlajfsztajn (née Svitzman) in the Jewish ghetto outside Sandomierz, Poland during the German occupation. Schleifstein and his parents lived in the Sandomierz ghetto until it was evacuated in June 1942, because Nazi guards would take children, too young to be used as laborers and therefore "useless", and send them to be murdered in the gas chambers at Auschwitz. but he was eventually discovered. The SS guards took a liking to him and came to treat him as a "camp mascot", having a small camp uniform made for him and having him take part in morning appells, including nearly 1,000 minors, mostly teenagers. Schleifstein was photographed numerous times when the camp was liberated, including one notable photo of him sitting on the running board of a United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration truck. Schleifstein's memories of liberation were recorded by the JDC in the 1947 document. "Joseph recalls that day with joy for several reasons. First, because from that day on he no longer had to hide. Secondly, because he started getting 'lots more to eat and drink.' And thirdly, Joseph remembers this with greatest glee, because there were 'lots and lots' of rides that the Americans gave him on their tanks and jeeps." He also took part in the Buchenwald Camp trial, held in Dachau, Germany by an American military tribunal from April 11, 1947, to August 14, 1947. Schleifstein testified for the prosecution against the defendants, 31 former guards and camp officials.

Schleifstein did not talk about his experiences, even with his own children, until decades later. After the release of Roberto Benigni's 1997 film, Life Is Beautiful about a child in a concentration camp, a JDC archivist came across records about Schleifstein while doing research for an exhibit. One of the photographs in the exhibit was by Wendy Ewald, of Schleifstein. A search by the JDC and The Jewish Week had but a few leads to go on, but after a month, Schleifstein was found, living in New York City. The family had settled in Brooklyn, where Joseph's brother Benjamin was born in 1950. Israel Schleifstein died in 1956 and his wife, Esther, in 1997. Joseph Schleifstein worked at AT&T for 25 years, retiring in 1997.