Casanova, Danielle, 1909-1943

Danielle Casanova (born Vincentella Perini; 9 January 1909 – 9 May 1943) was a French communist activist and member of the French Resistance during World War II. A dentist by occupation, she was a high-ranking figure within the Communist Youth and founded its women's organisation Union des Jeunes Filles de France (UJFF, Union of Young French Women) in 1936. Casanova was arrested on 15 February 1942 as she brought coal to Georges Politzer and his wife; she had been involved in organising actions against the German occupiers. First incarcerated at La Santé Prison in Paris, she was transferred to the Fort de Romainville for causing unrest with the help of fellow prisoners. Casanova was deported to Auschwitz on 24 January 1943, where she began working as a dentist at the camp infirmary. She died of typhus shortly thereafter. She was posthumously awarded the Legion of Honour.