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151: Ladies of Liberty [Righteous Resistance pt.1]

Women are expected to be quiet and complacent. Where such an expectation would limit most women, a few have managed to use it for the greater good. When the NAZIs occupied the Netherlands during the second World War, resistance took many forms. For these ladies of liberty, it took on a violent and righteous resistance. Hannie Schaft, Freddie and Truus Oversteegen were known to on occasion to use their beauty to lure NAZI soldiers to their deaths, but that hardly scratches the surface of these courageous women. This week on Well, I Laughed we take a moment to appreciate these fearless freedom fighters.


Chapters

00:00:00 Catch-Up

00:23:07 Lady Liberty

00:34:04 The Oversteegen Girls

00:43:30 First Acts of War & Rebellion

01:00:28 Here is your mission, should you choose to accept it

01:10:04 Meet the Team

01:15:17 Learning the Dirty Work

01:33:52 Beginning of the End

02:04:14 Remembering Hannie "Jo" Schaft

02:08:54 Living After the War

02:17:26 Recognition... Finally



Photos Referenced

Schaft family - Jo being the smallest child - courtesy of North Holland Archives
Schaft family - Jo being the smallest child - courtesy of North Holland Archives
L-R Truus, Robbie, Freddie in 1935 taken for their mother’s birthday - courtesy of North Holland Archives
L-R Truus, Robbie, Freddie in 1935 taken for their mother’s birthday - courtesy of North Holland Archives
Jo Schaft as a student near her parent's home - Courtesy of North Holland Archives
Jo Schaft as a student near her parent's home - Courtesy of North Holland Archives
Truus Oversteegen in 1943 - Courtesy of North Holland Archives
Truus Oversteegen in 1943 - Courtesy of North Holland Archives
Freddie "Nanni" Oversteegen in 1943 - Courtesy of North Holland Archives
Freddie "Nanni" Oversteegen in 1943 - Courtesy of North Holland Archives
Hannie in disguise, her red hair dyed black, wearing glasses made with window glass - photo by Harm Elsinga, courtesy of North Holland Archives
Hannie in disguise, her red hair dyed black, wearing glasses made with window glass - photo by Harm Elsinga, courtesy of North Holland Archives
Procession at the reburial of Hannie Nov 27 1945 - Courtesy of North Holland Archives
Procession at the reburial of Hannie Nov 27 1945 - Courtesy of North Holland Archives
Statue of Hannie Schaft “Woman in Resistance” by Truus Menger-Oversteegen (left), unveiled on May 3, 1982 by Princess Juliana (right; Queen from 1948-1980). (Courtesy of North Holland Archives)
Statue of Hannie Schaft “Woman in Resistance” by Truus Menger-Oversteegen (left), unveiled on May 3, 1982 by Princess Juliana (right; Queen from 1948-1980). (Courtesy of North Holland Archives)
In 2014, Ms. Freddie Oversteegen, left, and her sister, Truus, were awarded the Mobilization War Cross by Mark Rutte, the Dutch prime minister - Dutch Ministry of Defense
In 2014, Ms. Freddie Oversteegen, left, and her sister, Truus, were awarded the Mobilization War Cross by Mark Rutte, the Dutch prime minister - Dutch Ministry of Defense
Freddie Oversteegan, she passed on Sept 5 2018 - National Hannie Schaft Foundation
Freddie Oversteegan, she passed on Sept 5 2018 - National Hannie Schaft Foundation




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