David Simmonds

It’s sometimes hard to find true heroes in our wrongly described Earth Is Flat world that we have sadly become. We all too often praise the likes of Gates, Pickens, Slim, spoiled athletes and that dude who runs Dubai with all that rancid oil money, while real people of character and integrity toil along in anonymity, doing what is right every day, asking nothing in return. They are of every religion (or not) and belief, every race, every color. Gilberto Bosques Salvidar from Mexico was one such man.

I had never heard of him until recently, but thanks to the Anti-Defamation League I have learned the amazing story of the man they call “The Mexican Schindler”. Bosques was installed in France as Mexico’s Consul General in 1939, where he proceeded to make it possible for anyone who wanted to escape the Nazi regime of Germany to be allowed to enter Mexico. He rented two large chateaus where Jews and others could reside who were destined for concentration camps. He also chartered boats to facilitate their escape. He and his wife and children were eventually held captive by the Germans for over a year. He is credited with helping over 40,000 people flee Europe. Some people make money, some save lives.

The ADL has now presented one of his daughters with its Courage To Care Award in a Los Angeles ceremony. Here is the ADL press release for the full story: http://www.adl.org/PresRele/HolNa_52/5391_52.htm