Willem Arondeus was a Dutch resistance fighter who gave his life trying to protect his Jewish countrymen from the Nazis.
Born in Amsterdam in 1895, Willem was one of six children. From a young age, he was a talented artist and his parents encouraged his creativity, until he came out as homosexual at age 17.
In a time when nearly all gay people were in the closet, Willem’s parents could not accept his choice to live openly. Their rejection led Willem to run away from home.
On his own, Willem took odd jobs and eventually became a successful visual artist and writer. He was commissioned to paint a mural for Rotterdam’s town hall, in a style that combined modern abstract painting with a traditional Dutch motif. Willem was a well-respected author who published a popular biography of Dutch painter and political activist Matthijs Maris.
In 1940, Germany invaded the Netherlands. Willem immediately joined the resistance movement, and urged his fellow artists to fight against the Nazi occupation. WIllem published illegal anti-Nazi pamphlets calling for mass resistance against the Germans.
Willem was especially committed to saving Amsterdam’s Jewish community. Bringing in others to the cause, Willem arranged for Dutch Jews to be hidden in people’s homes. He used his artistic skills to create false identity papers.
In 1943, Willem hatched a brazen plan. Dressed as a German Army captain, and with 15 men behind him, Willem boldly marched into the Public Record Office, where lists identifying people as Jews were kept. Willem drugged the guards and planted a firebomb. The resulting blaze destroyed tens of thousands of documents, and delayed or prevented many Jews from being identified by the Nazis.
Unfortunately, Willem was captured by the Germans and sentenced to death. Willem’s last words before being executed in July, 1943 were, “Let it be known that homosexuals are not cowards.”
In 1986 Yad Vashem recognized Arondeus as Righteous Among the Nations.
Because of his sexual orientation, Willem’s story was omitted from Dutch history books. Only in the last 20 years has his courage become widely known.
i have never heard of this!
gay hero 💖💖💖
“Let it be known that homosexuals are not cowards.”
my laptop: *starts hissing and wheezing and got her fans whirring on high speed*
me:
A huge thanks to @gerbildine for tagging me! I feel honored!!
1ST RULE: tag 9, or however many, people you want to get to know better.
2ND RULE: copy and past this post and bold the statements that are true.
APPEARANCE – I am 5’7 or taller – I wear glasses – I have at least one tattoo – I have at least one piercing – I have blonde hair – I have brown eyes – I have short hair – My abs are at least somewhat defined when I don’t eat too much – I have or had braces
PERSONALITY – I love meeting new people – People tell me I am funny – Helping others with their problems is a big priority of mine – I enjoy physical challenges – I enjoy mental challenges- I am playfully rude to people I know – I started saying something ironically and now I can’t stop saying it – There is something I would change about my personality
ABILITY – I can sing well – I can play an instrument – I can do over 30 pushups without stopping – I am a fast runner – I can draw well – I have a good memory – I am good at doing math in my head – I can hold my breath underwater for over a minute – I have beaten at least 2 people arm wrestling – I can make at least 3 recipes from scratch – I know how to throw a proper punch
HOBBIES – I enjoy sports – I’m on a sports team at my school or somewhere else – I was in an orchestra or choir at my school or somewhere else – I have learned a new song in the past week – I exercise at least once a week – I have gone for runs at least once a week in warmer months – I have drawn something in the past month – I enjoy writing – Fandoms are my #1 priority – I do some form of Martial arts
EXPERIENCES – I have had my first kiss – I have had alcohol – I have scored a winning point in a sport – I have watched an entire TV series in one sitting – I have been at an overnight event – I have been in a taxi – I have been in the hospital or ER in the past year – I have beaten a video game in one day – I have visited another country – I have been to one of my favorite bands concerts
MY LIFE – I have one person that I consider to be my Best Friend ™ – I live close to my school/work – My parents are still together – I have at least one sibling – I live in the United States – There is snow where I live right now – I have hung out with a friend in the past month- I have a smart phone– I own at least 15 CDs – I share my room with someone
RELATIONSHIPS – I am in a Relationship – I have a crush on a celebrity – I have a crush on someone I know – I’ve been in at least 3 relationships – I have never been in a Relationship – I have admitted my feelings to a crush – I get crushes easily – I have had a crush for over a year – I have been in a relationship for over a year – I have had feelings for a friend
RANDOM – I have break-danced – I know a person named Jamie – I have had a teacher that has a name that is hard to pronounce – I have dyed my hair – I’m listening to a song on repeat right now – I have punched someone in the past week – I know someone who has gone to jail – I have broken a bone – I have eaten a waffle today – I know what I want to do in life – I speak at least two languages – I have made a new friend in the past year
what i mean: i haven’t written a single word about this. in fact i haven’t held a pen since 2015. every day when i take the train i maldaptive daydream about the possibilities of this fic and how the characters would interact, specifically when they have long intense heated glances across a busy room with enough raw yearning force to set off a jet plane and blueball me into oblivion. yes i have a ‘writing prompts’ tag for no fucking reason. no i can’t spell maladaptive
