From: Introduction to “If This Is A Man” / Primo Levy
You who live safe | |
In your warm houses, | |
You who find warm food | |
And friendly faces when you return home. | |
Consider if this is a man | |
Who works in mud, | |
Who knows no peace, | |
Who fights for a crust of bread, | |
Who dies by a yes or a no. | |
Consider if this is a woman | |
Without hair, without name, | |
Without the strength to remember, | |
Empty are her eyes, cold her womb, | |
Like a frog in winter. | |
Never forget that this has happened. | |
Remember these words. | |
Engrave them in your hearts, | |
When at home or in the street, | |
When lying down, when getting up. | |
Repeat them to your children. | |
Or may your houses be destroyed, | |
May illness strike you down, | |
May your offspring turn their faces from you. |