"The Emissary in His Own Words" – an interview with Jan Karski

KJ, 16 November 2016
After a dozen or so years after the event, the book containing the interview with Jan Karski, conducted by Maciej Wierzyński, finally hit the bookshops yesterday.  More than seventeen hours of conversation, which until now had only been heard of Voice of America radio, were published under the title The Emissary in His Own Words.

Wierzyński met Karski in Washington. Their discussions took place during the years 1995-1996. Karski was extremely frank with Wierzyński about his life. He first talked about wartime events, about how he was a courier for the Polish Underground, but also talked about his youth, his family home and his mother. During the discussions, he shared his personal reflections and values, often radical.

According to Maciej Wierzyński, "This isn’t a biographical research work. This is Karski talking about his own life in the way he presented it to me in 1995–1996 in Washington”.

The book has been published by Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN.

 

Jan Karski was a courier for the Polish underground. In 1942, he reached London and reported on occupied Warsaw. His report first concerned the extermination of Jews. He presented it to the Polish Government-in-Exile, and then to British and American politicians. USA President, Franklin D.Roosevelt, personally listened to what Karski had to say. The courier’s mission did not, however, meet with success, as those hearing him did nothing to oppose the Holocaust. In 2012, Jan Karski was posthumously awarded the highest American honour, the Medal of Freedom, awarded by the President of the United States.