WARM UP #7: Read the poem. What does it mean to be a silent bystander WARM UP #7: Read the poem. What does it mean to be a silent bystander? How does this poem show the consequences of being just that? First they came for the Jews and I did not speak out— because I was not a Jew. Then they came for the Communists because I was not a communist. Then they came for the trade unionists because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for me— and there was no one left to speak out for me. Pastor Niemoeller

Antisemitism: hostility to or prejudice against Jews. Political leaders who used antisemitism as a tool relied on the ideas of racial science to portray Jews as a race instead of a religion. Nazi teachers began to apply the “principles” of racial science by measuring skull size and nose length and recording students’ eye color and hair to determine whether students belonged to the “Aryan race.”

Totalitarian State Paranoia and fear dominate Government has total control over the culture -Aggressive -Capable of indiscriminate killing Nazis passed laws which restricted the rights of Jews— Nuremberg Laws

Totalitarian State The Nuremberg Laws: stripped Jews of their German citizenship. They were prohibited from marrying or having sexual relations with persons of “German or related blood.”

Totalitarian State Jews, like all other German citizens, were required to carry identity cards, but their cards were stamped with a red “J.” This allowed police to easily identify them.

Totalitarian State The Nazis used propaganda to promote their anti-Semitic ideas. One such book was the children’s book, The Poisonous Mushroom. After presenting this slide, teacher will provide handout with timeline of events during the Totalitarian State.

How did the Nazi decide who was Jewish? At the Wannsee conference it was decided that if all three or four of the person’s grandparents were Jewish, then they were Jewish. However, if only one or two of their grandparents had been Jewish then they were classified as a crossbreed. In 1940, all Jews had to have their passports stamped with the letter “J” and had to wear the yellow Star of David on their jacket or coat. Some historians believe that Hitler’s grandfather was Jewish. His Grandmother used to work for a rich Jewish landowner in Austria and it is believed that she had an affair whilst she worked as his house keeper. He later helped his son get a job as a civil servant. Some Psychologist but this down as being one of the possible reasons why Hitler hated Jews. However, it is interesting to note that the Jewish doctor who helped his mother whilst she was dying of cancer was dropped off at the Swiss boarder by the SS in 1940!

Persecution The Nazi plan for dealing with the “Jewish Question” evolved in three steps: 1. Expulsion: Get them out of Germany 2. Containment: Put them all together in one place – namely ghettos 3. Annihilation: “Final Solution”

Persecution Nazis targeted other individuals and groups in addition to the Jews: Gypsies (Sinti and Roma) Homosexual men Jehovah’s Witness Handicapped Germans Blacks Political dissidents Teacher will now instruct and lead students in the “Other Victims” cooperative Learning Activity.

Persecution Kristallnacht was the “Night of Broken Glass” on November 9-10, 1938 Germans attacked synagogues and Jewish homes and businesses

Prelude to the Final Solution Einsatzgruppen were mobile killing squads made up of Nazi (SS) units and police. They killed Jews in mass shooting actions throughout eastern Poland and the western Soviet Union.

Change of Tactics: Einsatzgruppen Victims were taken to deserted areas where they were made to dig their own graves and shot. When the SS ran out of bullets they sometimes killed their victims using flame throwers.

The “Final Solution” In January 1942, Himmler decided to change tactics once again and called a special conference at Wannsee. At this conference, it was decided that the existing methods were too inefficient and that a new “Final Solution” was necessary.

Final Solution The Nazis aimed to control the Jewish population by forcing Jewish people to live in areas that were called ghettos. Ghettos were established across all of occupied Europe, especially in areas where there was already a large Jewish population.

Final Solution Many ghettos were closed by barbed wire or walls and were guarded by SS or local police. Jews sometimes had to use bridges to go over Aryan streets that ran through the ghetto.

Children Dying of Starvation in the Warsaw Ghetto Evil is when a few good men decide to do nothing.

Final Solution Life in the ghettos was hard: food was rationed; several families often shared a small space; disease spread rapidly; heating, ventilation, and sanitation were limited. Many children were orphaned in the ghettos.

Final Solution Death camps were the means the Nazis used to achieve the “final solution.” There were six death camps: Auschwitz-Birkenau, Treblinka, Chelmno, Sobibor, Majdanek, and Belzec. Each used gas chambers to murder the Jews. At Auschwitz prisoners were told the gas chambers were “showers.”

Where were the Death Camps built? The work of the Einsatzgruppen Why do you think that they located them here? Remember that the black dots represent the work of the Einsatzgruppen; train rides took anywhere from 4.5 days to 18 days; train cars held anywhere from 50 to 200 people (depending on how many people there were); many died; used quick lime on the bottom of trains to avoid contamination (it would burn the feet of human cargo); Jews often had to pay to be transported

Auschwitz-Birkenau Hair was used to cushion mechanical parts; however, when Germany was losing the war, they used it to weave blankets for the army; Elie Weisel

Auschwitz-Birkenau 500 to 2,000 people Zyklon-B Pellets Zyklon-B: Cyanide pesticide was dropped in solid pellet form through pipes and released the gas when the pellets got wet; took 20 minutes for all to die; those closest to the gas died almost immediately; caused foaming from the mouth, bleeding from the ears, skin turned pink with red and green spots, half squatting; screaming and crying could be heard outside and scratch marks were found inside Zyklon-B Pellets

‘Destruction Through Work’ Map of Auschwitz New Arrivals ‘Showers’ ‘Destruction Through Work’

Notice how the Death camp is set out like a factory complex Auschwitz from the air Notice how the Death camp is set out like a factory complex The Nazis used industrial methods to murder the Jews and process their dead bodies It is important t emphasis that the Death Camps were basically factories

The SS would try and pack up to 2,000 people into this gas chamber. The Gas Chambers The Nazis would force large groups of prisoners into small cement rooms and drop canisters of Zyklon B, or prussic acid, in its crystal form through small holes in the roof. These gas chambers were sometimes disguised as showers or bathing houses. The SS would try and pack up to 2,000 people into this gas chamber.

The Outside of the Gas Chamber Notice the ovens are located near the gas chambers

Processing the Bodies Specially selected Jews known as the Sonderkommando were used to remove the gold fillings and hair of people who had been gassed. The Sonderkommando Jews were also forced to feed the dead bodies into the crematorium.

Dead bodies waiting to be processed

Shoes waiting to be processed by the Sonderkommando Taken inside a huge glass case in the Auschwitz Museum. This represents one day's collection at the peak of the gassings, about twenty five thousand pairs.

Destruction Through Work This photo was taken by the Nazis to show just how you could quite literally work the fat off the Jews by feeding them 200 calories a day

Destruction Through Work Same group of Jews 6 weeks later

Final Solution There were many concentration and labor camps where many people died from exposure to the elements, lack of food, extreme working conditions, torture, and execution.

Death Marches

Number by Number—6 years 1939: WWII begins when Germany invades Poland 6,000,000+ Jews were murdered -1,500,000+ Jewish children were murdered 5,000,000+ others were killed 1945: WWII ends when Germany (May 8) and Japan (August 14) surrender

Was the Final Solution successful? The Nazis aimed to kill 11 million Jews at the Wannsee Conference in 1941 The Nazis managed to kill at least 6 million Jews. Today there are only 2,000 Jews living in Poland (before WWII there were more than 3 million).

Jewish Death Statistics

Genocides Armenia 1915-1923 Darfur 2003-Present Cambodia 1975-1979 Rwanda 1994 Native Americans 1492-1900 Bosnia 1992-1995 Nanking 1937-1938 Ukraine (Stalin) 1932-1933 Pygmie 1998-Present North Korea 1990-Present Yemen 2011 Libya 2011 Syria 2011-Present