This Holocaust survivor impresses the Freedom Writers with her courage and determination. After losing her entire family in the concentration camps, she decides to leave for the United States, arriving in the country with only four dollars in her pocket. Despite her personal history of oppression, she makes a deep impression on the students by insisting that they should never judge groups of people collectively, since that is how the Holocaust started. In this way, she inspires the students to use their own difficult pasts not as an excuse for violence but, rather, as an opportunity to become better people, committed to ideals of peace and tolerance.
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Renee Firestone Character Timeline in The Freedom Writers Diary
The timeline below shows where the character Renee Firestone appears in The Freedom Writers Diary. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Part II: Diary 21
...who were able to become successful individuals. The person who impressed this student most is Renee Firestone, a Holocaust survivor who later became a clothing designer in the United States. Renee’s...
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...where Ms. Gruwell has special advantages since she works there on the weekend. At dinner, Renee shows the student the tattoo she was given to identify her during the holocaust and...
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Part VI: Diary 85
When the students visit the Holocaust museum, accompanied by Renee Firestone and Gerda Seifer, this student is horrified to see images of thousands of bodies...
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