(1898–1979)
Szmulek Cynamon Farber was born in Wloclawek, Poland, on September 24, 1898.
He is the eldest son in a large family.
Szmulek Farber began his activism in Poland. In 1920, he left for Berlin and then for Palestine, which was then under British mandate. Pursued by the British authorities, he returned to Europe.
In 1929, he moved to Paris, where he joined the Communist Party.
Starting in 1930, he became in charge of youth work within the Jewish section of the M.O.I.
In 1934, he joined the secretariat of the Kultur Ligue (a cultural organization of the Jewish section of the M.O.I.).
At the start of the war, he was a member of the regional labor commission, which brought together Jews who were communists. He wanted to enlist in the Foreign Legion, but was deemed unfit for service.
During the exodus, he left for Toulouse and then returned to Paris.
His partner, a member of the anti-Nazi intelligence network known as the “Red Orchestra,” was arrested in Belgium in 1941 and died in prison there.
In January 1942, he left Paris for Lyon and became a member of the secretariat for the Southern Zone of the underground Jewish section of the M.O.I. There, he was in charge of organizing the youth division.
In the fall of 1942, Szmulek Farber helped establish the UJRE combat groups in Marseille.
In August 1944, he took part in the Villeurbanne uprising.
After the Liberation, he was one of the founders of the Commission Centrale de l’Enfance (CCE) and devoted himself, in particular, to raising funds for Shoah orphans.
He is registered with the FFI under the name Szmul Cynamon.
He died on October 18, 1979, in Bobigny.
References:
– Diamant, David, 1971, *The Jews in the French Resistance, 1940–1944*, Le Pavillon, Roger Maria Éditeur.
– *Le Maitron*, by Lynda Khayat
– Photo: National Archives. Central File of the National Security Service. Le Maitron. DR
