As we've found out Elie Wiesel's words ring very true and this has been proven time and time again throughout history!
Tuesday, April 28, 2015
Auschwitz Now And Then
Auschwitz now and then. Look at how much has changed. The pain and torture will never quite leave even though the green grass and life has come back from such a horrid place to be.
People in some camps were fed one slice of bread in a day sadly. They died slowly of starvation which first consumed their fat, then muscles, then soul...Millions of skinny corpses laid everywhere tangle together in piles and in trenches.
This picture in English means "Work will set you free," which was what gave the prisoners hope, but unfortunately the only peace was death. Many would work themselves to death.
Experimentation From "Doctors"
Throughout the holocaust there were "doctors" who did experiments, painful ones. The big question is...
Did anything productive come out of it?
Nazis made immunizations and tested them on their prisoners. They worked on developing immunizations for: malaria, typhus, tuberculosis, typhoid fever, yellow fever, and infectious hepatitis ("Nazi Medical Experiments," par. 3). The prisoners were exposed to mustard gas and phosegene.
Phosegene makes people choke and was used a lot in World War I. It was responsible for many deaths ("Facts About Phosgene," par. 2). Other symptoms include: coughing, , a burning sensation in the throat and eyes, watery eyes, blurred vision, difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, nausea and vomiting, and skin contact can result in lesions similar to those from frostbite or burns Following exposure to high concentrations of phosgene, a person may develop fluid in the lungs (pulmonary edema) within 2 to 6 hours ("Facts About Phosgene," par. 5). Many can make a full recovery but some long term effects are chronic bronchitis and emphysema ("Facts About Phosgene," par. 6).
Mustard gas causes eyes to become irritable and skin itchy. It is colorless or has a mild green or yellow tint (the color of mustard) and smells like sulfur, horseradish, garlic, or mustard (Palmero, par. 2). Palmero from Live Science says "Mustard gas, or sulfur mustard (Cl-CH2CH2)2S, is a chemical agent that causes severe burning of the skin, eyes and respiratory tract. It can be absorbed into the body through inhalation, ingestion or by coming into contact with the skin or eyes" (par. 1). Some of the effects include temporary blindness, pus filled blisters, shortness of breath and sinus pain ("Palmero," par. 3).
Works Cited
"Facts About Phosgene." CDC. CDC, n.d. Web. 28 Apr. 2015. <http://emergency.cdc.gov/agent/phosgene/basics/facts.asp>.
"Nazi Medical Experiments." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 20 June 2014. Web. 28 Apr. 2015. <http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005168>.
Palermo, By Elizabeth. "What Is Mustard Gas?" LiveScience. TechMedia Network, 28 Aug. 2013. Web. 28 Apr. 2015. <http://www.livescience.com/39248-what-is-mustard-gas.html>.
Did anything productive come out of it?
Nazis made immunizations and tested them on their prisoners. They worked on developing immunizations for: malaria, typhus, tuberculosis, typhoid fever, yellow fever, and infectious hepatitis ("Nazi Medical Experiments," par. 3). The prisoners were exposed to mustard gas and phosegene.
Phosegene makes people choke and was used a lot in World War I. It was responsible for many deaths ("Facts About Phosgene," par. 2). Other symptoms include: coughing, , a burning sensation in the throat and eyes, watery eyes, blurred vision, difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, nausea and vomiting, and skin contact can result in lesions similar to those from frostbite or burns Following exposure to high concentrations of phosgene, a person may develop fluid in the lungs (pulmonary edema) within 2 to 6 hours ("Facts About Phosgene," par. 5). Many can make a full recovery but some long term effects are chronic bronchitis and emphysema ("Facts About Phosgene," par. 6).
Mustard gas causes eyes to become irritable and skin itchy. It is colorless or has a mild green or yellow tint (the color of mustard) and smells like sulfur, horseradish, garlic, or mustard (Palmero, par. 2). Palmero from Live Science says "Mustard gas, or sulfur mustard (Cl-CH2CH2)2S, is a chemical agent that causes severe burning of the skin, eyes and respiratory tract. It can be absorbed into the body through inhalation, ingestion or by coming into contact with the skin or eyes" (par. 1). Some of the effects include temporary blindness, pus filled blisters, shortness of breath and sinus pain ("Palmero," par. 3).
Works Cited
"Facts About Phosgene." CDC. CDC, n.d. Web. 28 Apr. 2015. <http://emergency.cdc.gov/agent/phosgene/basics/facts.asp>.
"Nazi Medical Experiments." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 20 June 2014. Web. 28 Apr. 2015. <http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005168>.
Palermo, By Elizabeth. "What Is Mustard Gas?" LiveScience. TechMedia Network, 28 Aug. 2013. Web. 28 Apr. 2015. <http://www.livescience.com/39248-what-is-mustard-gas.html>.
Monday, April 27, 2015
Rescuers
Despite all of the hate the was spread during the holocaust there were some genuinely kind people who did whatever they could at whatever risk to help their fellow people.
Jan Zwartendijk- He helped issue permits to potential victims that would help them escape with the help of De Deker a Deutsche Ambassador. The permits said "an entrance visa is not required for the admission of aliens to Surinam, Curaçao, and other Dutch possessions in America" (Zwartendijk, par 3). They helped refugees escape from Lithuania and that was all the permit was good for. He was able to save 3,000-6,000 Jews from being sent to concentration camps.
"Fits" Philips- Philips recently died at age 100 in 2005 from pneumonia (Crouch, par. 1). His strategy for saving them was to hire as many Jews as possible and then tell the Nazis that they were irreplaceable and that he needed to keep them for the sake of his business (Crouch, par. 6). Philip did this in a factory he created in a concentration camp and by keeping them he saved them from one of the largest camps, Auschwitz (Crouch, par. 5). He employed 469 Jews and 382 of them survived the war. He was given a medal for non-Jews who saved Jews in the holocaust. (Crouch, par. 8). Later on he was imprisoned, unfortunately.
Miep Gies- She famously took care of Anne Frank who wrote in a diary that was later published: Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl. She died at age 100 in 2010. Gies took in the Franks without hesitation ("Interview with Miep Gies," par. 1). Otto had been her boss for four years and now she said it was extremely painful to have him live in fear and the tables were turned and now she had to take care of him ("Interview with Miep Gies," par. 4). She had to be clever and not buy all her food from one place and look suspicious. Instead she would buy from different places ("Interview with Miep Gies," par. 11). For the full and lengthy interview, click here Anne Frank Miep Gies Interview
Pictures 1-3 Anne Frank
Picture 4- Miep Gies
Picture 5- "Frits" Philips
Picture 6- Jan Zwartendjk
"Businessman Saved Dutch Jews." The New York Times. The New York Times, 06 Dec. 2005. Web. 27 Apr. 2015. <http://www.nytimes.com/
Crouch, Gregory. "Frederik Philips Dies at 1
2005/12/07/business/07philips.html>
"Interview with Miep Gies." Interview with Miep Gies. Scholastic Inc., 2015. Web. 28 Apr. 2015. <http://teacher.scholastic.com/frank/tscripts/miep.htm>.
"Jan Zwartendijk." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 20 June 2014. Web. 27 Apr. 2015. <http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007092>.
Jan Zwartendijk- He helped issue permits to potential victims that would help them escape with the help of De Deker a Deutsche Ambassador. The permits said "an entrance visa is not required for the admission of aliens to Surinam, Curaçao, and other Dutch possessions in America" (Zwartendijk, par 3). They helped refugees escape from Lithuania and that was all the permit was good for. He was able to save 3,000-6,000 Jews from being sent to concentration camps.
"Fits" Philips- Philips recently died at age 100 in 2005 from pneumonia (Crouch, par. 1). His strategy for saving them was to hire as many Jews as possible and then tell the Nazis that they were irreplaceable and that he needed to keep them for the sake of his business (Crouch, par. 6). Philip did this in a factory he created in a concentration camp and by keeping them he saved them from one of the largest camps, Auschwitz (Crouch, par. 5). He employed 469 Jews and 382 of them survived the war. He was given a medal for non-Jews who saved Jews in the holocaust. (Crouch, par. 8). Later on he was imprisoned, unfortunately.
Miep Gies- She famously took care of Anne Frank who wrote in a diary that was later published: Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl. She died at age 100 in 2010. Gies took in the Franks without hesitation ("Interview with Miep Gies," par. 1). Otto had been her boss for four years and now she said it was extremely painful to have him live in fear and the tables were turned and now she had to take care of him ("Interview with Miep Gies," par. 4). She had to be clever and not buy all her food from one place and look suspicious. Instead she would buy from different places ("Interview with Miep Gies," par. 11). For the full and lengthy interview, click here Anne Frank Miep Gies Interview
Pictures 1-3 Anne Frank
Picture 4- Miep Gies
Picture 5- "Frits" Philips
Picture 6- Jan Zwartendjk
Works Cited
Crouch, Gregory. "Frederik Philips Dies at 1
2005/12/07/business/07philips.html>
"Interview with Miep Gies." Interview with Miep Gies. Scholastic Inc., 2015. Web. 28 Apr. 2015. <http://teacher.scholastic.com/frank/tscripts/miep.htm>.
"Jan Zwartendijk." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 20 June 2014. Web. 27 Apr. 2015. <http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007092>.
Speaking Up
First They Came...
First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.
-Martin Neimoller
Naturally people have the tendency to want to hold back, to not want to speak up, but this is what tears people apart. To be passive gives power to the oppressor which in this case were the Nazis. The bystander plays one of the biggest roles in a situation. My message to you is to not sit there when others are in pain and watch them suffer because it is not for you. This could come when you're least expecting it, and think, if it were you in that situation what would you want someone to do? If the people who'd seen the torture had taken what power they had a stuck up for fell people whatever race the holocaust would not have been able to happen.
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