(born 1928) Émigré Jewish author, activist and historical consciousness. Born in Romania, both his parents were killed in Auschwitz. His works, fiction, memoirs and non-fiction, have poignantly explored the Holocaust and the Jewish experience. Wiesel became an American citizen in 1963 and chaired the President’s Commission on the Holocaust. He received the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1985 and the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986 for his work in promoting human rights. The next year he established the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity.