Richard Stern: A Neurologist's Fight Against Prejudice

Richard Stern was born in Vienna in 1878. He became a neurologist and also studied neuropathology. His teacher was Lothar Frankl-Hochwart, a doctor known in a now‑forgotten school of thought. Stern learned the basics of brain science from him and started working in hospitals and labs.

Even before Hitler took over Austria, Jewish doctors faced bias. Universities often kept them out of teaching jobs. Hospitals sometimes refused to hire them for senior roles. However, the social insurance system, which handled workers' health, was more open. Stern found a place there, doing clinical work and research while being blocked from university posts.

After the First World War, the pressure on Jewish physicians grew. Stern was pushed to the edges of the medical world. He kept his job in social insurance, but chances to advance shrank. When Germany annexed Austria in 1938, the situation got worse. Jewish doctors were thrown out of their positions. Stern had to leave Vienna and went to Slovakia, which was then under strong Nazi influence.

In Slovakia, Stern did not find safety. The local government, cooperating with Nazi Germany, continued to target Jews. He was arrested, put on a train, and sent to Auschwitz. There he was killed in 1942. His story shows how hatred against Jews crossed borders and how fleeing one country did not guarantee safety.