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camp, Auschwitz. Displayed above the gates are the words, “Arbeit macht frei.” In literal
translation, these words mean, “Work makes one free.” This was all but the case for
most, if not all Jews, Catholics, gypsies, and homosexuals that set foot in this hell would
not leave alive.
This is the entrance to one of the gas chambers of Auschwitz, into which many
strayed awaiting their imminent fates. It was later converted into a bomb shelter. Shown
in the background is a building that was once used as one of the Gestapo headquarters.
These electric, barbed wire fences gave agony and strife to all contained within
them. Displayed on the sign is the word “vorsicht,” meaning danger or caution. A
ruthless form of punishment, the fences provided all the security that the soldiers could
not.
This is but a glimpse of the horrors caused by the Nazi regime. Shown above are
over twenty corpses, mercilessly slaughtered by Nazi troops. A young, German girl is
forced to see this wicked occurrence take place. During this corrupt era, mass killings
much larger than this took place more than needed as part of a common schedule of
terror.
This picture shows a 1942 Nazi map of the Baltic states. The map, in rough
English translation, is labeled “the number of Jews taken for executions” while the
bottom (in rough translation) reads, “the estimated number of remaining Jews: 128
thousand.” Maps like these tracked Jewish populations in areas throughout Europe, and
possibly the world. Certain areas were labeled “judenfrei” or Jew free, as seen in the
northern part of the map.
Adolf Hitler
I hastily read this quote and found myself coming back to it; of all the 78 people
in this poor man’s family, he was the only survivor. I cannot grasp how such a serious
offense can be done without pain or guilt.
“I still believe people are really good at heart… that it will all come right, that this
cruelty too will end, and that peace and tranquility will return again.”
- Anne Frank
Despite unbearable loads of pain and strife, some such as Anne Frank were able
to stay optimistic throughout the Nazi regime. This young girl, naïve as she may have
been, was able to see the inevitable ending to the physical suffering and agony, though
forced to endure a controlled life as a Jew in an anti-Semitic world. She clung onto what
mattered most, hope.
Victor Paul P. Tejada
AP Euro Block III
March 25, 2009
WWII Activity