Lionel Romney, an Afro-Caribbean sailor, was deported to the Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria during the Second World War [1].

His experience highlights the intersection of Nazi racial ideology and systemic discrimination, as Romney faced a unique form of isolation within the camp system. While many prisoners suffered under the SS, Romney endured what is described as double persecution, targeted by both the Nazi regime and other inmates because of his black skin [1, 2].

Romney was born in 1912 in the Dominican Republic [1]. He began his career in the merchant navy after enlisting at age 22 [1]. His transition from a sailor to a prisoner of war occurred during the global conflict spanning 1939 to 1945 [1, 2].

At Mauthausen, the racial policies of the Third Reich placed Romney in a precarious position. He was viewed as an inferior subject by the SS guards who managed the facility. Simultaneously, he faced discrimination from other detainees, who mirrored the racial prejudices of the era [1, 2].

This pattern of abuse underscores the specific challenges faced by Black prisoners of war in Nazi camps. The combination of official state policy and peer-level prejudice created an environment of extreme vulnerability for Afro-Caribbean detainees [1, 2].

“Romney endured what is described as double persecution”

The account of Lionel Romney provides critical historical evidence of the 'double persecution' experienced by Black individuals in the Holocaust. It demonstrates that racial animosity was not exclusively a tool of the SS oppressors but was also present among the victimized populations, complicating the narrative of solidarity among concentration camp prisoners.