Edward Jesko

The Polish - American Edward Jesko

The author came to United States, for the first time, in 1943. He was then ten years old. A US Navy ship brought him to San Diego, California, straight from a concentration camp. Unfortunately, the United States government did not let him remain. So he went to Mexico, where he lived in a refugee camp for five years. When the camp was terminated, he was compelled to struggle. In order to survive, he held many jobs. At fifteen he worked as a roofer, a logger, and a sawmill helper, neglecting his formal education because of lack of time and opportunity. He immigrated to USA in 1951. This time he was allowed to stay. Here, because of his Polish origin, he suffered rejection, degradation, and discrimination. Here for the first time in his life, he was called a Dumb Polak and a White Nigger. Here he was subjected to the so-called offensive Polish jokes. This plus discrimination, rejection and degradation made his life a never-ending torment, a hell on earth! This autobiography was written in the form of a novel, and it is a continuation of author's first book: A Journey Into Exile-the first part of his life.