The Life, Times and Work of Jokūbas Robinzonas — Jacob Robinson

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The purpose of this book is to remember, to bring back to public awareness, and to honor the life and work of JACOB ROBINSON – a prominent Jewish international lawyer, diplomat, and politician – and to highlight his merits in Lithuania, the United States, Israel and Germany as well as his achievements in consolidating and in developing further the principles of justice, humanity and the rule of law on the international arena.What makes JACOB ROBINSON’s biography so fascinating is the immediate application of personal experiences to the political and legal debates of his time. As a subject of the Russian Empire, a Lithuanian citizen and a citizen of the United States – but above all as a Jew – ROBINSON continually worked for the protection of national minorities. As a survivor, he supported documentation of, and research on, the genocide of European Jews and took part in the discussion on a legal framework for compensation after World War II. As a witness to the Shoah, ROBINSON pushed for universal human rights to be codified, and in doing so, he placed the Jewish experience of persecution in a universal context. He raised vital questions that we are still struggling to answer at the beginning of the 21st century. Present and future debates on international legal and ethnic issues in Europe and around the world will therefore certainly continue to be enriched by JACOB ROBINSON’s ideas.