That was powerful. Thanks for this. I can see why that image stuck with you for years. I learned a lot by reading your book last year, and in fact, it inspired a writing salon I hosted in my DC apartment. (And I just mentioned you and your excellent book in my most recent Substack post).
My heartfelt thanks to you, Ruth Franklin, on your fearless truth-telling in contrast to the deceitful & murderous speech & acts of the Criminal-in-Chief who is tearing our White House down in an attempt to build a shrine to his unfortunate selfishness.
And congratulations on your successful book which apparently earned the "New Yorker Best Book of the Year" award & great praise from the L.A. Times. I can't wait to add it to my library and begin reading it. By the way, one of my favorite quotes from Anne Frank is: "We all live with the objective of being happy. Our lives are all different and yet the same." This happens to match-up well, I think, with another great quote that is from the late American poet, essayist, social activist, Audre Lorde: "It isn't our differences that divide us but our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences." These precious gems also blend well with the wisdom from compassionate Tibetan Buddhism Lineage Holder: the Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje; who explains in his book, "Interconnected" that, in our spiritual tradition, we speak metaphorically of individual differences as our branches; and that diversity is beautiful as well as very valuable, useful. At our roots we are all equal and have the same core essence of peacefulness, wisdom that is completely impartial - the instinct of AWAKE.
What do you think?
MAY YOU & ALL BEINGS BE FREE OF SUFFERING & THE CAUSE OF SUFFERING...
In my upcoming updated full color version of my own "Meeting" Anne Frank book I speak very favorably of your book Ruth and draw readers toward it. However, I take complete issue with seeing how Anne gets dragged into these shameful comparisons and utterly reject them. Tragic mistakes are being made by agents in Democratic strongholds where protesters are being deliberately urged to make a stand at huge risk to themselves but no one is being dragged off to an Auschwitz equivalent and being gassed if they are detained. You do address how Anne gets dragged into modern concerns but the fifteen year old Anne from the 1940s is highly unlikely to understand why she would.
"More than 100 refugees with no criminal record from about a dozen countries have been arrested in Minnesota by immigration agents in recent weeks and flown to detention centers in Texas for interviews, according to lawyers, family members and faith leaders." I urge you to read this story and ask yourself if there are no parallels. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/us/politics/ice-minnesota-refugees.html?searchResultPosition=2
Comparing Anne Frank (or any victim of the Holocaust) to illegal immigrants with criminal convictions and legal orders of removal is pretty sickening, actually.
If Anne's family had been offered $2,600 and a plane ticket out of the country, I'm sure they would have jumped at the chance.
"If Anne's family had been offered $2,600 and a plane ticket out of the country, I'm sure they would have jumped at the chance." Assuming this were true, Val, where would they have gone? The members of the Frank family were all born in Germany. They were not citizens of the Netherlands, and they had no passports. People today who flee for their lives & enter the USA seeking asylum ("the protection granted by a nation to someone who has left their native country as a political refugee"), where are they to go? You do know, yes, that despite his connections, Otto Frank was refused entrance into the USA? See Hannah Arendt for the implications of "stateless" status.
"More than 100 refugees with no criminal record from about a dozen countries have been arrested in Minnesota by immigration agents in recent weeks and flown to detention centers in Texas for interviews, according to lawyers, family members and faith leaders." I urge you to read this story and ask yourself if there are truly no parallels here. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/us/politics/ice-minnesota-refugees.html?searchResultPosition=2
That was powerful. Thanks for this. I can see why that image stuck with you for years. I learned a lot by reading your book last year, and in fact, it inspired a writing salon I hosted in my DC apartment. (And I just mentioned you and your excellent book in my most recent Substack post).
Thanks so much for reading and appreciating my book!
My heartfelt thanks to you, Ruth Franklin, on your fearless truth-telling in contrast to the deceitful & murderous speech & acts of the Criminal-in-Chief who is tearing our White House down in an attempt to build a shrine to his unfortunate selfishness.
And congratulations on your successful book which apparently earned the "New Yorker Best Book of the Year" award & great praise from the L.A. Times. I can't wait to add it to my library and begin reading it. By the way, one of my favorite quotes from Anne Frank is: "We all live with the objective of being happy. Our lives are all different and yet the same." This happens to match-up well, I think, with another great quote that is from the late American poet, essayist, social activist, Audre Lorde: "It isn't our differences that divide us but our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences." These precious gems also blend well with the wisdom from compassionate Tibetan Buddhism Lineage Holder: the Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje; who explains in his book, "Interconnected" that, in our spiritual tradition, we speak metaphorically of individual differences as our branches; and that diversity is beautiful as well as very valuable, useful. At our roots we are all equal and have the same core essence of peacefulness, wisdom that is completely impartial - the instinct of AWAKE.
What do you think?
MAY YOU & ALL BEINGS BE FREE OF SUFFERING & THE CAUSE OF SUFFERING...
In my upcoming updated full color version of my own "Meeting" Anne Frank book I speak very favorably of your book Ruth and draw readers toward it. However, I take complete issue with seeing how Anne gets dragged into these shameful comparisons and utterly reject them. Tragic mistakes are being made by agents in Democratic strongholds where protesters are being deliberately urged to make a stand at huge risk to themselves but no one is being dragged off to an Auschwitz equivalent and being gassed if they are detained. You do address how Anne gets dragged into modern concerns but the fifteen year old Anne from the 1940s is highly unlikely to understand why she would.
"More than 100 refugees with no criminal record from about a dozen countries have been arrested in Minnesota by immigration agents in recent weeks and flown to detention centers in Texas for interviews, according to lawyers, family members and faith leaders." I urge you to read this story and ask yourself if there are no parallels. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/us/politics/ice-minnesota-refugees.html?searchResultPosition=2
Comparing Anne Frank (or any victim of the Holocaust) to illegal immigrants with criminal convictions and legal orders of removal is pretty sickening, actually.
If Anne's family had been offered $2,600 and a plane ticket out of the country, I'm sure they would have jumped at the chance.
Shame on you.
"If Anne's family had been offered $2,600 and a plane ticket out of the country, I'm sure they would have jumped at the chance." Assuming this were true, Val, where would they have gone? The members of the Frank family were all born in Germany. They were not citizens of the Netherlands, and they had no passports. People today who flee for their lives & enter the USA seeking asylum ("the protection granted by a nation to someone who has left their native country as a political refugee"), where are they to go? You do know, yes, that despite his connections, Otto Frank was refused entrance into the USA? See Hannah Arendt for the implications of "stateless" status.
Ruth: Trying to reach you to see if you want to sell/sign copies of "The Many Lives of Anne Frank" at the E25 event on 3/28. If yes, please let me know. https://www.einpresswire.com/article/894829975/anne-frank-to-be-honored-in-nyc-on-swan-day-2026
"More than 100 refugees with no criminal record from about a dozen countries have been arrested in Minnesota by immigration agents in recent weeks and flown to detention centers in Texas for interviews, according to lawyers, family members and faith leaders." I urge you to read this story and ask yourself if there are truly no parallels here. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/us/politics/ice-minnesota-refugees.html?searchResultPosition=2