The Glass House

Winner of the Best Documentary Prize at the Ein Yehudit Festival, this is the story of Carl Lutz, 1895-1975, Swiss Vice-Consul in Budapest during the Nazi occupation and one of the first to be named "Righteous Among the Nations” by Yad Vashem. Having been assigned as vice-consul to the Swiss Consulate General in Jaffa from 1935-1941, Lutz was sympathetic towards the Jews and in May 1944, he started working to save Jews in Budapest. He issued thousands of protective letters for emigration to Palestine. He also set up more than 70 safe houses, mostly in the ghetto, declaring them annexes of the Swiss legation. Among the safe houses was the "Glass House" at Vadász Street. Thousands of Jews found refuge in these safe houses. In the Spring of 1945, with the Soviets approaching, Lutz and his wife went into hiding in a cellar for a number of weeks. After the war, his efforts on behalf of the Jews was not recognized by the Swiss Government and he was given insignificant roles thereafter, until his retirement