By January 27th. 1920 The Versailles Treaty had been signed and this armed Hitler with a pretence to act against Europe and suggests a move from rhetoric toward sponsored attacks on Jewish existence will be made.
“..Herr Gemlich. ..antisemitism based on purely emotional grounds will find its ultimate expression in ..form of ..pogrom. ..ultimate objective must ..be ..irrevocable removal of ..Jews.” Adolf Hitler.
By January 27th. 1935 Poland is more aligned toward Hitler as an anti-Jewish political wing is formed in Poland. By January 27th. 1936 sponsored by cardinal hlond, pogroms and assaults upon Polish Jewry escalates. By January 27th. 1937 Pogroms are a continuing threat to Jewish life. By January 27th. 1938 as the Polish government seeks to revoke Citizenship of Polish Jews in Germany, Poland decides upon a territorial solution for all of its Jewish People, The Madagaskar Plan and:
“..No place for Jews in Poland.” General Lucjan Zieligowski.
By January 27th. 1939 with 40% of all Property in Warsaw being Jewish owned, and with 40% of all non-Jewish poles employed in Jewish owned industrial concerns, a territorial solution would be a gain for Poland from their Jewish People. 80% of skilled workforce in Poland were Jews. As anti-Jewish riots rage across Poland, Jews are Murdered and with the Polish Jewish Community having grown to some 3,650,000 People, Hitler will see his solution for the Jews of Europe more immediately resolved within Poland.
By January 27th. 1942 the Death Camp at Chelmno begins its operations and immediately Polish Jews from the Towns of Dabie, Klodawa, Kolo and Sompolno are brought to be gassed. In the 30 odd operational days prior to Wannsee, some 20,000 Jews were Murdered here. On January 27th. 1943 1,300 Grodek Jagiellonski Jews murdered and the first American bombing of Germany begins. On January 27th. 1944 over 680 Dutch Jews from Westerbork are transported to Auschwitz as the Russians retake Leningrad after a 900 day siege.
On January 27th. 1945 the Russian 322nd Rifle Division liberates Auschwitz and Birkenau and with any remaining Jewish prisoners now liberated, along with many non-Jews. There are estimates as high as 2,500,000 to 4,000,000 Jews having been murdered at Auschwitz and Birkenau. Also, the Russian forces liberate Memel.
#1 Abecassis, Prosper b. September 3rd. 1925, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
“..If world could become convinced ..Auschwitz never existed ..it would be easier to build ..second Auschwitz .. and ..no assurance it would devour only Jews”. Primo Levi.
What we seek to Remember, 75 years after the liberation of Auschwitz and Birkenau, January 27th. 1945, The Holocaust comes under closer scrutiny as more nations seek to expunge their part in the atrocity that is The Holocaust. Poland, at the centre of the storm, can never extinguish the flames of a conflagration which consumed 3,000,000 of its own Jewish Citizens. Also, and in the midst of this greatest industrial and mechanised killing operation, some 4,500,000 Jews of Europe are no more, interred also within Polish borders.
#2 Abraham, Marion b. January 15th. 1925 in Freibourg, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
02) “..There is a place on Earth ..a desolate heath ..where ..shadows of ..dead are multitudes ..where ..living are dead ..where there is only death ..hate ..pain.” Giuliana Tedeschi.
All told, what emerged as smoke in the pits and furnaces of destruction, and all Death Camps are fitted for that purpose, with the detail of these x6 Death Camps erected in Poland, their industrial capacity is assigned to deal directly with the fountain of Polish Jewry on its very doorstep. Hitler had now begun to achieve an objective that he had fully set about achieving. Here in Poland, and alongside the Town of Oswiecim, stands the Camp of Auschwitz, but it is in the Death Camp facility that is Birkenau where Jewish Destruction is practised on an such immense scale.
#3 Angel, Esther b. November 6th. 1926 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
03) “..of ..1,300,000 deported to ..Camp ..they were from amongst 20 nationalities, and these nations gave up their Jews also. Of that total, some 400,000 were registered and kept as Slave Labour and 900,000 were immediately Gassed. While Jews constituted 85% of all those deported here, they represented more than 90% of all those who were murdered. The 400,000 Slave Labourers were grdually degraded till they could persist no longer and added finally to the total number of those Jews and others Gassed or otherwise Murdered. That stated, we assess that of the 1,100,000 who were Murdered from all 1,300,000 deported to the Camp, some 900,000 Jews were Gassed immediately or otherwise murdered in the camp. Of the 400,000 of those registered for Slave Labour, 200,000 died or were otherwise Murdered. These included some 100,000 Jews, 64,000 Poles, 21,000 Gypsies, 14,000 Russian POW’s and a further 10,000 other nationals.” Auschwitz State Museum.
To see this as an all consuming truth, European Jewry has been decimated from the midst of Europe on a scale of incalculable evil, atrocity and dedicated hatred. 6,000,000 Jews, as estimates abound, are the result of both the active mechanism for the slaughter and this includes all of its components placed within Poland for ease of access to 3,650,000 Polish Jews. The constituent and proponent parts, from the participants and infrastructure of der Einsatzgruppe and The Death Camps will lay to waste more than 1,500,000 Jewish Children.
#4Angel, Isak b. August 29th. 1925 in Lille, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
04) “..Apart from ..gassings in Auschwitz and ..Polish death camps ..more than 1,000,000 Jews must have died by ..firing squads or during round ups in ..ghettoes. Auschwitz ..in spite of its immense symbolic significance ..probably contributed less that 1/5th. of ..victims.” Gerald Reitlinger.
Also, and 4,500,000 other’s of their Parents, Relations, Friends and Neighbours have been ritually Slaughtered for the simple fact of their Jewish antecedence But, and this is ranged alongside the seeming apathy and glaring indifference of those who witnessed this catastrophe, and on a daily basis within Poland, that we recognise how abandoned the Jewish People were. Whether through moral neglect, duplicity, complicty or through participation and perpetration, the World recognises much too much was achieved in abadoning the Jews.
#5Angel, Iwan b. February 23rd. 1940 in St-Nazaire, Murdered at 2 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
05) “..Auschwitz is ..deeply etched in my memory ..I cannot forget one moment of it. ..I live next to it. Auschwitz is there ..unalterable ..precise ..enveloped in ..skin of memory an impermeable skin that isolates it from my present self.” Charlotte Delbo.
Of course, not enough was done to foster hope for the Jews of Europe that would be saved and this is a legacy for all of humanity and which is a hatred beyond compare. Here though, we have the experiences of Primo Levi, Giuliana Tedeschi and Charlotte Delbo mixed with the dedication of Gerald Reitlinger who lead us toward an expanding knowledge of what we need to know of the catastrophe. For Primo Levi, Giuliana Tedeschi and Charlotte Delbo, who were interned in the sister camp at Birkenau, their evidence ties in with what the state Museum at Auschwitz relates to.
#6Appel, Meier b. September 5th. 1924 in Lodz, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
6) “..From now on ..do not answer by your name. ..felt like ..not ..human person anymore. ..shaved our heads ..I felt so ashamed. And also when they told us to undress and to shower ..they made us feel like ..animals. ..men were walking around ..laughing and looking at us. And you take a young girl at that age ..who had never been exposed to a person ..to a man ..and you stay there naked ..I wanted ..ground to open ..and I should go into it. We were packed like sardines. ..beds were bunks ..3 layers. I was on ..top layer. If one person wanted to turn ..we all had to turn. They gave me ..little rations of hard ..dried up bread which was half mildew ..I could hardly eat it. ..a tin can of soup ..so rotten and vile ..when I tasted it I couldn’t eat it. .. I just ate ..bread and drank a little water ..which was just rust running out from ..sink that they had over there. ..finally ..got so hungry ..knew I had to eat ..soup ..so vile. ..so terrible. I never ate anything like that in my whole life. ..If I want to survive I have to eat ..soup. ..So I started eating ..soup. And I ..forcing ..soup down my throat ..big tears coming down my face. Eating ..crying ..eating ..crying ..this is how I was in Birkenau. Every day ..I woke up and I would find 1 ..2 people who wanted to end their lives and couldn’t take it anymore. ..throw themselves to ..electric wires ..make an end of it. ..every once in a blue moon ..couldn’t take it anymore. ..try to sneak out of ..barracks late at night and I would see ..sky. ..talk to myself ..can’t believe ..stars ..looking down at us in this Hell ..this camp ..same stars ..shining at ..outside of ..world. ..other people ..looking at ..same stars ..they are free. ..to do what they want to do. ..living a good life. ..we are ..in Hell ..human beings worse than animals. ..nobody is doing anything about it. ..young as I was ..asking myself these questions. ..Where is ..world ..Why isn’t ..world doing anything about this ..I would question God ..Where is God ..How can He let us be killed like that ..after I cried myself out real good ..I would go back to ..barracks.” Lily Appelbaum.
But, in a much less clinically and sanitised detail of the very narrative of such brutality, the emerging Survivor displays for History, that we are required to confront the past and all its unpalatable truths. With the delivery of all testimony however, to not only present what humanity demands, but what must always add to an honourable discourse for what Humanity has so severely lost, we edge toward a comprehension we will never fully understand. The complexities of this loss, and this is what truly confronts us as Lily Appelbaum cries, will not desist for us as we share the tears for what is a crime beyond compare.
#7Babeline, Raymond b. July 17th. 1925 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
07) “..Let me explain that even though I had been in Auschwitz I did not know about ..gas chambers. Can you imagine that. We thought ..when we were there ..that our parents and ..children were taken to camps which were much better. We assumed that they couldn’t live through ..camp we were in. It was not until a large contingent from Auschwitz came to Belsen that I had to give up that idea that they were safe. I met 2 women in their 30’s who spoke Hungarian and they asked if it was true that ..Hungarian transports were so severely selected people to ..camps and ..others to be gassed. I said ..What are you saying. ..And they looked at me as if I were foolish ..but they didn’t want to destroy my hope and so didn’t try to explain. I ran back to ..tent and collapsed. I think I cried for weeks. I finally realized that everybody was killed.” Maria Frank Abrams.
Questions abound. How then could this happen? How did it happen? Why did we allow it to happen? As we truly seek to answer such disparite questions of uniqueness and their unparalleled scale of atrocity, we recognise that there were places on earth which we allowed into existence that were not belonging to the progress nor the promotion of human life. As we seek to Remember the Catastrophe, that is The Holocaust, we have entered this period of reflection where we recognise that survival was almost impossible during the Jewish sojourn within Hitler’s reach.
#8Balin, Kurt b. January 6th. 1926 in Vienna, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
08) “..When I stand before you ..to lead ..Prosecution of Adolf Eichmann ..I am not standing alone. With me are 6,000,000 accusers. ..they cannot rise ..and point an accusing finger. ..For their ashes are piled up on ..hills of Auschwitz and ..fields of Treblinka ..and are strewn in ..forests of Poland. Their graves are scattered throughout ..length and breadth of Europe. Their blood cries out ..but their voice is not heard. ..I will be their spokesman and in their name I will unfold ..awesome indictment.” Gideon Hausner.
However, and from a place on Earth that was constructed for Jewish destruction, annihilation, decimation and erasure, other’s too were obliterated in that time. But such were the historical cruelties, as they pale into an almost insignificant marker in the vile history of abuse and bestial atrocity, and toward any People for who they are, such was the precedence which was established against the Jewish People we have termed it The Holocaust. For me, that there was ever a person called Adolf Hitler, who then invented a demand for the Death Camp system, and the Einsatzgruppe killing machine, creates the term which becomes exclusively a Jewish continment.
#9Bandler, Nathan b. February 9th. 1925 in Kolomea, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
09) “..Twisted Road to Auschwitz ..published 1970 ..Nazi decision.making ..Jewish policy in particular . ..Nazi persecution of ..Jews during ..1930’s underwent an incremental radicalisation ..a product of dynamics ..stresses ..tensions ..conscious planning ..design ..of ..Nazi leadership.” Karl A. Schleunes.
In history too though, it must be completely recognised and recognisable that in Hitler, not only had he sought to exaserbate the requirement for a more intensive hatred against the Jews, he promoted it. Hitler utilised a World’s latent antisemitism, an undercurrent promoted politically and religiously to radically embolden acts of sheer brutality against all living Jews as the road twisted all the way to Auschwitz and then Birkenau. Here, as we seek to measure the atrocity with Birkenau, there are 1,100,000 Jews and 200,000 other’s, and maybe more fixed to that space.
#10Baum, Pierre b. November 23rd. 1926 in Berlin, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
10) “..daytime ..arrived ..Judenrampe ..my group reached Auschwitz I. ..walked ..distance while ..others unsuspectingly headed ..for ..gas chambers ..Birkenau.” Shlomo Venezia.
Of course the unparalled nature of the assault upon Jewish existence, and the unrelenting tenure of the avalanche of the destruction of these Jewish People, has established a clear route to this resolve. This is a precedent of atrocity that is motivated by hatred and the rhetoric of Hitler led incrementally to where we stand to this day. Armed with an impunity for future generations, The Holocaust is used to this day for the murder of differing People’s, in differing places but for ostensibly the same reasoning, hatred. Clearly, and for the fact that it can be achieved, humanity has learned nothing from the sheer slaughter of 6,000,000 Jewish People, be they Men, Women or even Their Children.
#11Behar, Beatrice b. November 6th. 1924 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
11) “..when hatred and defamation quietly germinate ..we have to be alert ..on guard. ..legacy of ..victims of Auschwitz. ..dead were strong ..in their destruction they displayed a strength…Can ..living ..be any weaker.” Lucie Adelsberger.
I know all too well that the Jewish People, who suffered most, and from amidst the carnage inflicted upon them, for the 6,000,000 who reeled under the most abundant duress and atrocity ever proposed against any human being, we are still reeling from and coming to terms with the Catastrophe. It is an overwhelming calamity which saw 6,000,000 of the Jewish People Slaughtered wholesale for the single act of being born as Jews. However, the very accuracy of the accounting, which recognises this exists upon an unprecedented scale, and that the treatment of the Jewish People was clinically managed and resolved with precision, will not deliver such an incisive accounting as an Einsatz bullet, or a molecule of Zyklon ‘B’ would deliver.
#12Behar, Nissim b. November 16th. 1927 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 14 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
12) “..I saw an iron gate ..Arbeit Macht Frei. ..Auschwitz. ..we passed by ..carried on for some distance. .. ..Women only ..passed through a gate. ..Birkenau.” Kitty Hart.
Arriving at Hitler’s blood letting, and from more than 2,000 years of an unbridled fear, envy, and with an animosity beyond reason, the Jewish People are continually seeking to gain back what has always been taken from them. Such a calamitous destruction, and waged not solely by Hitler and his minions, has not freed the Jews from this hatred. So far, the Jews of antiquity have not been allowed to bring about any modicum of their full acceptance amongst us, in a still very much an intolerant World toward a Jewish presence. Even with the Jewish annihilation, that is The Holocaust, there has not been any fully committed nor respectful confrontation with how gravely we have abandoned them.
#13Beiser-Thau, Andre b. April 19th. 1926 in Metz, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
13) “..flames could be seen from 15 or 20 kilometres ..people knew ..human beings were being burned there.” Adolf Bartelmes.
Let me remind you that even The Holocaust term too, which is being terribly diluted, aims to remove the Jewish presence from its title. Originally, as it was conceived of and deliberately delivered as The Final Solution of The Jewish Question, die Endlosung der Judenfrage delivers 6,000,000 Jews of Europe toward must be fully recognised as a uniquely and unpalatable term resonating with 6,000,000 Jewish voices that are lost to us, and it is The Holocaust. As there is a sought after imbalance of comparison, the unprecedented and unparalleled nature of the atrocty that is never to be allowed to be taken away from these Jews, we must protect the memory of the Jews so encapsulated within The Holocaust term itself.
#14Beiser-Thau, Samuel b. September 29th. 1924 in Metz, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
14) “.. A whole generation of Germans ..children and grandchildren of ..perpetrators of ..Nazi genocide ..have heard nothing from their parents and grandparents about what they saw ..and what they did ..in Auschwitz and ..other factories of death. It is time ..at long last ..to stop forgetting and suppressing.” Irene Weiss.
Such conformity to a term of reference has taken, both methodically delivered and mechanically imposed upon these Jews, and on such an industrial and industrious scale, has been clearly acknowledged in so many works dedicated todrawing any sense from the incomprehensible detail they describe. However, and by far too few of those who knew the depths of the terror inflicted upon the Jews and the horror that must confront humanity for an eternity, words today are seeking to revise and corrupt the factual truth of what History knows. Of course, what was presented to the Jewish People was many steps toward an annihilatory road, and it was driven by an ideology of a superiority which does not exist, but persists to this day.
#15Bienenstock, Germaine b. November 23rd. 1924 in Strasbourg, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
15) “..teachings ..about ..world ..people ..ethics ..faith ..I had to learn ..by myself in ..hell of concentration camps ..without my Mother who was put to death in ..Gas Chambers in Majdanek ..my Father ..put to death and burnt in ..crematorium in Treblinka ..my Brother ..my Sister in law ..so young ..but cared for me like my Mother ..tormented and burnt in Auschwitz. ” Halina Birenbaum.
That failed racist ideology still amazes me in that, over the very lack of human admission as to what was known and what has not therefore been transmitted, there is nothing to be proud of in what they managed. In the very concealment they sought, this all hides the fact of an abomination that has no moral equivalence nor an ethical probity that might be sourced from other than despotism. History too it seems, is now being distorted for the devaluating terms of race and theory and by the time the varying routes toward the decimation of Jewish Europe had been decided, Jewish existence had been consigned to the past. With Auschwitz, of which Birkenau was its Death Camp proponent, and while we had moved toward industrialised annihilation, the failed ideologue is submerged in a sea of blood.
#16Borland, Bernard b. March 31st. 1925 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
16) “..Our captors started hitting People as soon as we arrived ..to vent their hatred ..out of cruelty ..so that we’d lose our bearings and obey out of fear.” Shlomo Venezia.
Meanwhile, and some in history would continually seek to lay the blame away from Hitler for the failure by them, to convert the World to such a rancid idea as antisemitism was converted to, the destruction of the Jewish People. But, as some form of abrogation was sought and was carried out by the many who willingly followe this evil incarnate, cruelty was displayed in all of its ideological forms, none of which were benign. But, and by the time the Jews of Poland and the rest of Europe had walked through these x6 Death Camp gates, where work would set them free from life, they were already assigned to a death they could not escape.
#17Borland, Hirsch b. June 5th. 1927 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
17) “..we would suddenly be overcome by fatigue and dread ..6 hours passed ..6 more to go. Our heads drooped to ..table ..our bodies pleaded for rest ..when ..bell signalled ..end of ..break ..we dragged ourselves to our feet and staggered back to work.” Liana Millu.
For those who chose to ignore the Jewish plight, and we recognise their position just outside the Death Camp gates, mny in the World have avoided the truth as an ugly accusation emerges because all too many Jewish People were being Slaughtered. Those who chose inaction must now all share a responsibility in complying with such indifference as it surely led toward Hitler’s demand for Jewish destruction. Such then is the guilt, that can never expunge the inter relationships of complicity and perpetration, but must somehow resolve the issue of what History must now demand in the construction of any defence. What is now to be gained between what has emerged as competing evidences as truth is being stifled by personal bias, must not now fail the 6,000,000 Jews already failed by us.
#18Borower, Adeline b. October 6th. 1925 in Nancy, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
18) “..mass murder in Auschwitz ..characterized by its ..duration and ..considerable number of its victims. ..number of ..children ..babies killed there is in 100’s of 1,000’s.” Desire Haffner.
Nor can there be found, and all too often there is this absence of any admission, particularly from those in close proximity to what they observed, what they sensed, what they knew or even saw, a failure that becomes acceptable. This is tantamount to the facts being denied to all of history and as such, both distorts the truth and corrupts the evidecne available. While the local populace, who stood befors the gates of these Death Camps, Concentration camps, and even those who witnessed the Slaughter into the killing pits by der Einsatzgruppe, time will not expunge their guilt, nor their failure to acknowledge what they knew, know and witnessed. For all too many miles away, the World could clearly smell the extirpation of a vastly Jewish presence, so where indeed was non=Jewish humanity parked.
#19Borowka, Margot b. April 4th. 1927 in Berlin, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
19) “..whole complex had forty-six retorts ..each with ..capacity for three to five persons. ..burning in a retort lasted about half an hour. ..it was theoretically possible to cremate about 12,000 corpses in twenty four hours ..4,380,000 a year. ..well-constructed crematoria fell far behind at a number of camps ..especially at Auschwitz in 1944. In August ..total cremation reached a peak one day of 24,000 ..still a bottleneck occurred. Camp authorities needed an economic and fast method of corpse disposal ..dug six huge pits beside Krema V ..reopened old pits in ..wood. ..late 1944 ..pit burning became ..chief method of corpse disposal. ..pits had indentations at one end from which human fat drained off. To keep ..pits burning ..stokers poured oil ..alcohol ..large quantities of boiling human fat over ..bodies.” Filip Muller.
Little heard was the voice of condemnation, and even less present was the physical protest which would emanate from ethically moral human beings established in the humanity which sought to civilise us. Of course, part of that failure of acknowledgement of the very evidence outside their doors, or at least for the many who would be available to testify later on, much to much of this reluctance owes far too much to a predisposition toward the antisemitism which was clearly present in Poland, and other Country’s at the time.
#20Braun, Jacqueline b. July 11th. 1926 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
20) “..In Auschwitz I took leave of my skin ..it had a bad smell .that skin ..worn from all ..blows it had received.” Charlotte Delbo.
In Poland in particular, where the establishment of the Death Camps was clearly envisaged to assault and destroy the 3,650,000 of Polish Jewry, available to Hitler after invading Poland. It is also very much an intolerable indifference, which is abundantly clear, that all led to a particularly Jewish fate that we recognise. It is sadly true, that what was Not done to prevent all of what transpired here as The Holocaust spread its tentacles far and wide, shares with this history an intolerance and indifference we are clearly able to quantify.
#21Bretmel, Golda b. December 1st. 1926 in Zachelow, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
21) “..number tatooed on my left arm ..personal evidence from Auschwitz ..attracts ..attention of many people. ..an incomprehensible ..strange mark ….a painful souvenir of ..cruel times of Nazism ..for me ..a kind of certificate of maturity.” Halina Birenbaum.
But, and throughout the fuller range of what was inflicted upon 6,000,000 Jews of Europe, cruelty indeed became a hell on Earth, a tattooed mark en-route toward the extinction of a People for being Jews. Recognition of this fact was available to all local people who could see, hear or smell for themselves as transport after transport passed their front door and its human cargo emptied into oblivion. If even a Polish rail worker like Adolf Bartelmes, a direct witness to what was happeneing in Auschwitz and Birkenau, if he could see the evidence for himself some 10 miles and even 15 miles away, how many more non-Jewish Poles are we speaking of who must have seen all this evidence across the road from their own front doors.
#22Bronzstein, Anna b. November 11th. 1925, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
22) “..Everything is Auschwitz. Auschwitz is everywhere. People eat meat. Life feeds off life. After ..optimism of liberation all ..optimisms fail. ..impossibility of communicating what happened so it could make difference. ..anger. Who can you get angry at 40 years later. ..protest ..but to who.” Paul Pavel.
How is it possible then that Poland cannot fully admit to what was known, and from directly outside of all the x6 Death Camps established within its borders. I have stood at the gates of these former Death Camps, some no longer evidenced as an entry point to hell itself, but they persist in delivering their testimony to us. I have witnessed a World go driving by, transported elsewhere, as neighbours whittle away their time, much as they did during the colossal transports of destruction as they arrived in front of them.
#23Bronzstein, Fanny b. March 22nd. 1927, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
23) “..This is where they load freight for Birkenau ..supplies for ..construction of ..camp ..and People for ..gas chambers.” Tadeusz Borowski.
So I am literally shocked too that within such close proximity to the Slaughter as it was conducted, and in all x6 of these Death Camps, it still managed to evade the testimony so many witnesses. Remember, whatever restrictions Poland wishes to place befoire us today, the evidence of smoke, smell and other evidences cannot have escaped anyone willling to know. Witnesses to it stood beside Auschwitz and Birkenau, they lingered outside Belzec, were near enough to Chelmno to watch the progress from killing centre to burial ground. A city like Lublin, surrounding the outside perimeter of Majdanek cannot have failed to evade recognising Hitler’s plan. Alongside Sobibor and adjacent to Treblinka the truth was evident to even the casual visitor to the area.
#24Bruck, Helene b. October 2nd. 1926 in Coblence, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
24) “..Along with my old skin went ..visible traces of Auschwitz ..leaden stare out of sunken eyes ..tottering gait ..frightened gestures.” Charlotte Delbo.
It is no secret that the Death Camps were Not a secret and I have seen for myself that evidence as I looked from within the boundaries of all of them. It is not that I have found evidences that were not available to all of Poland, but newer words to inform you all of what those like Charlotte Delbo knew, are words so instinctively borne by her very presence in the atrocity against her. Surely that alone compels us that we must listen intently and judge the evidence without bias or even a prejudice which finally confined so many of these Jewish People. So I will continually gather the words I feel sure remain a resonant force for the Jewish loss and I offer them forward in a newer light of remembrance and condemnation of those who stood aside.
#25Bulka, Esther b. February 8th. 1926 in Nancy, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
25) “..Jewish population ..living under ..impact of news from London. ..world has been stirred by ..reports of ..slaughter in Poland ..aroused ..deepest emotions in all of us. For many ..many months ..endured ..most terrible sufferings ..asking ourselves ..Does ..world know about our sufferings ..if it knows ..why is it silent. Why was ..world not outraged 10’s of 1,000’s of Jews ..shot ..at Ponary. ..10’s of 1,000’s of Jews poisoned in Chelmno. 100’s of 1,000’s of Jews ..slaughtered in Galicia ..Auschwitz. ..slaughter in Vilna ..180,000 ..in Rostov ..Jews ..murdered ..in Kiev ..BabiYar…blood is flowing in rivers. Is ..blood of ..Jews more precious. ..Only now have we come to understand ..cause of this silence. ..Polish government ..its own radio station ..knew nothing about it. ..if London knew ..next day 100 people ..shot ..Pawiak prison ..why ..did it take many months before they learned of ..100’s of 1,000’s murdered Jews…a question which cannot be turned away by excuses!” Emanuel Ringelblum.
With that illumination, which depicts the full horror of that very Jewish experience, all of this is being gained by me without ever knowing what it must have been to be a Jew. For me, as an historian, I struggle to commend enough those Jews for having managed and Survived a catastrophe of such magnititude they were never meant to Survive. Within me, my words must remain incomprehensible though they must never remain mute to the terrible wrongs witnessed and endured by these Jews. What was and has been ignored, by those who could have done so much more to assist one more Jew accuses ever more of us for our acceptance of a wrong that will never be corrected. Words of course are issued with intention, but they are nearing their redundancy when they cannot compete with the known terms of The Holocaust atrocity.
#26Bursztynski, Suzanne b. June 3rd. 1925 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
26) “..Since ..campaigns of murder were conducted with ..strictest secrecy ..there was considerable temptation to delude one’s conscience into believing that ..deeds committed outside any social control never happened. Who was ..to ask at home ..what was done to ..unknown Jew in ..forest near Minsk or behind ..barbed wire of Auschwitz.” Hans Buckheim.
Can we possibly ever mirror the image of what Emanuel Ringelblum described, and which is readily added to by those Jews who are detained within the atrocity itself. For the far fewer Jews who emerged from within the terms of The Holocaust, we must lend a more appreciating ear to what they wish to say to us. From them will come the future of our own humanity, a lessone we must learn so as to aavoid the pitfalls of such hatreds. Hans Buckheim begs the question as to what might the perpetrator relay on trips home, as community’s recognised the disappearances of their Jewish neighbours from Czechoslovakia to Poland, or the remainder of Europe, can we be less exhaustive in our search for that truth.
#27Buschbaum, Charlotte b. February 5th. 1925 in Stelingen, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
27) “..During ..tenure of office of defendant Wilhelm Frick as Reich Protector of Bohemia and Moravia ..from August ..1943 ..until ..liberation of Czechoslovakia in 1945 ..many thousands of Czechoslovak Jews were transported from ..Terezin Ghetto ..Czechoslovakia to ..Camp at Oswiecziem ..Auschwitz ..in Poland and were there killed in ..gas chambers.” Dr. Robert Max Wasilii Kempner.
Truth, its factual integrity cannot give way to the ownership of an agenda which seeks to distance itself from what it allowed or even participated in. So I do not simply wish to relate to you the dates of the crimes, the facts nor even the figures as they relate to the terrible detail of the atrocity. What I do wish for is to continually emerge from each page of this unfolding and horrifying era with a newer impetus to relate more the struggles that each and everyone of the 6,000,000 Slaughtered Jews met. With a Jewish concern for each other, unmatched by a non-Jewish willingness to deliver them to Hitler’s demands, we stumble to understand both capacity’s, for Jews to have live being dependent upon those who did not resist the will to take their lives.
#28Cahn, Raymond b. October 12th. 1924 in Lanegienu, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
28) “..Flora ..our ss ..was to accompany us to Birkenau. Just ..name Birkenau filled us with trepidation. What reassured us was ..sight of a cart waiting for us. We would never have climbed into a truck. ..Trucks took people straight to ..gas chambers.” Charlotte Delbo.
Though as one can see, Emanuel Ringelblum does exactly that delivery of honesty with his presentation of truth and from the near centre of the storm. Emanuel’s very words captivate us as Charlotte Delbo’s iterations fills the void with trepidation. So how does an historian compete, when all he can deliver are the words so factually engrained, they become an almost sterile truth. With little, or even a failed sense of enough compassion, it is impossible to relay any sense of the horror that was visited on so many Jewish People. I have stood in the shadow of those Survivor’s who have relayed their truth and I cannot possibly come to terms with what they relay in order to present my own words with a meaning so gravely meaningful.
#29Caron, Louise b. December 3rd. 1926 in Mertzweillen, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
29) “..when I think about our arrival ..cars of our train appear to me as so many coffins. ..a funeral train. ss ..gestapo ..our undertakers ..officers ..evaluated our riches were our greedy ..impatient heirs.” Olga Lengyel.
“..one Woman ..overcome with ..emotion stirred ..by memories ..burst into tears. Wailing with grief ..she named all ..names of those who would not see ..sacred candles lit next year ..nor ..year after ..nor ever again ..for any holiday on Earth. One after another ..Women took up her cries ..and soon nearly everyone was sobbing in desolation.” Liana Millu.
For that reason we have adopted the meaningless words of an accounting of the Slaughter of 6,000,000 of these Jewish People, which cannot console their loss to us all. To even suggest, and for whom I have to guess to the Survivor that this is my route toward comprehending what no one, other than you the Survivor can ever appreciate. What the passage of time has delivered thus far, both in the magnitude of the crime against you as Jews, and it is being measured by the weight of the atrocity, in 6,000,000 converging Jewish names lost to us all, words alone cannot ever compare to the depth of the tragedy we are short in comprehending.
#30Caron, Lucien b. December 8th. 1924 in Mertzweillen, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
30) “..Auschwitz obliges us to keep ..memory alive. We must remember ..crimes that were committed here and name them clearly. ..I feel deep shame given ..barbaric crimes that were committed here by Germans.” Angela Merkel.
Of course, the sheer myth of secrecy lies, and it obliges us to nothing and it has thus exposed us before the consensus of time to continually search and research for what we are left with, which must be under no illusion other than what the truth presents to us. We have then to wade through what is being often times presented from that space in time and it unfolds before us as a conspiracy of silence. These effecting deceits, that construct an absurdly corrupted historical barrier to the truthful documentation we have, must not corrupt what we know. That Oswiecim is a place in Poland, that has delivered Auschwitz and even Birkenau to our recollection, must not be sounded out as the killing centre above and beyond all other Death Camps in Poland. One Death Camp, cannot ever disguise this fact that all x6 Death Camps delivered to Hitler all that he set in motion.
#31Cola, Gerszon b. December 31st. 1926 in Pabjanice, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
31) “..I walk in Auschwitz ..in ..tracks of ..abandoned shoes ..of ..extracted teeth ..of ..cut off hair ..of ..misplaced baggage in order to find ..last moments of my family ..The Schneider Family.” Yossi Sarid.
Also, there are the deluded ones who still seek to deny their truth, which has been laid bare against the cold calculated facts that the actions of all too many, acted with barbarism. Indeed, what Charlotte Delbo clearly recognises and Olga Lengyel further evaluates in the meaning of what transports meant, and we have those last moments Yossi Sarid is searching for. Of course, the difference between a cart and a truck, those that took Jews within Birkenau either toward trepidation or the gas is recognising what was evident to all too many. But we simply cannot pierce the searing fear, terror and horror that is presented, even when the words portray a mosaic of such murderous precision, we cannot but understand what is evident.
#32Cukierman, Charles b. April 1st. 1926 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
32) “..By ..time we reach ..75th anniversary ..liberation of Auschwitz ..there may be almost no survivors left. But they are coming now ..because they want to bear witness ..to stand there and say ..we outlasted Hitler. We made it.” Ronald Lauder.
Even though as detailed an account as this has been, more column miles have been attributed to The Holocaust search, that we recognise for Birkenau, and those taken away from Auschwitz to feed Birkenau’s capacity for destruction, that nothing can bring us close enough to the tragedy so as to completely understand its searing hostility or the vexed hatred we have come to recognise. The World has since experienced many similar catastrophies and the progresses in killing continues relentlessly, even with greater expedience and alarm. But, the World must recognise the entirety of The Holocaust for what it is, a Jewish resting place unequalled in all of history for a Jewish People who had no wish to be consigned within its terms.
#33Dzyalszynska, Masza b. August 20th. 1925 in Lowisc, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
33) “..I have returned from a world beyond knowledge and ..must unlearn for otherwise I clearly see I can no longer live.” Charlotte Delbo. It is also true that so many others, non-Jews who could not withstand the sheer hatred and physical rebuke of Hitler, nor his cronies, and who entered their captive space in any of the Camps, suffered similar consequences. But it for the Jewish People that we recognise the very systematic and sought after nature of the resolve by Hitler to solove his own Jewish Question. Though many others are no less dead, killed or murdered, and it is no less reprehensible due to the fact that Hitler could and did demand their deaths, the betrayal of the terms of reference still confines the Jews of Europe to a more exclusive resolution of Hitler’s hatred for them. Therefore, and in these 75 years since Auschwitz was liberated, the World beyond such knowledge, which seeks to omit Birkenau from its pages, in favour of an Auschwitz not responsible for all the destruction, must learn from those who sought to unlearn.
#34Eilstein, Theodore b. September 22nd. 1926 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
34) “..Anne Frank wrote at ..end of her Diary ..she still believed people were good at heart ..I wonder what she would have thought if she had Survived ..Auschwitz and ..Belsen. ..people have a unique capacity for cruelty ..brutality ..indiffernce to human suffering. ..I have seen ..unedifying evidence of that at close hand ..it has led me to a lifetime of wondering about ..human soul.” Eva Schloss.
As we can now testify to, much has failed to be learned from the destructive forces of such a hatred that emantes from all the Death Camps established in Poland, and not just Auschwitz. For the fullest remit of guilt, in what transformed our humanity into an abyss of visual hatred’s, these must be confronted, and continuously in mentioning all that emerged by way of the destructive processes aimed at the Jews. For me, to live with each other, in some form of harmony, has been a long sought after effort which would supposedly lift Humanity above the existing primevil malaise. For that which has subjected so many People’s to such cruelties, and the hateful vagaries of mankind, we have been delivered as witnesses to what Anne Frank assumed was the goodness in People that can be so missing from all too many human beings.
#35Ellert, Henri b. May 24th. 1926 in Metz, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
35) “..Our family was sent to Auschwitz. ..My sister and I ..sent to one side ..my mother ..my little brother to ..other. ..it all happened so fast ..I looked around ..they were already gone. To Birkenau. ..where gas chambers where. My little brother was 15.” Fela Drybus.
In many places other than here at Auschwitz and Birkenau, but names which resonate with the history of such an enormous catastrophe, BabiYar, Belzec, Chelmno, Derechin, Majdanek, Mogilev-Podolski, Ponary, Rumbuli, Sobibor, Treblinka and Tuchinka, the resolve of Hitler’s end solution is graphically met. I could spend the days in searching for some form of comprehension that could be understood, and for those like me still seeking to understand how humanity stooped so low, but I doubt I will ever find those words. In delivering names of sites and facility’s which dealt in the destruction of the Jews of The Holocaust, we have a never ending catalogue of human grief informed by Auschwitz, Belzec, Birkenau and a multitude of places where the Jews of Europe were wholly consumed on the grates of a hatred inflamed by the demands of a man like Hitler.
#36Felzenstajn, Mina b. August 20th. 1926 in Metz, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
36) “..Here is ..silence of ..grave. ..Rumbuli ..Riga ..Bikernieki ..Salaspils ..Klooga ..Ponary ..Babi Yar ..Majdanek ..Treblinka ..Auschwitz. Thousands and thousands of cities and towns stained with blood. I rise from among you ..my silent martyrs ..old men ..babies ..fathers ..mothers ..husbands ..wives ..brothers ..sisters ..brides ..grooms ..children ..youths. ..slaughtered by ..millions ..you ordered me to tell ..living of what happened. I hear your cries ..screams ..thousands strong thunder of your feet running to ..grave ..your last word ..’Remember’. I swear by ..memory of you ..by your blood which slaked cruel spaces ..by your ashes scattered over ..world ..by ..smoke of your bodies rising from ..crematoriums ..I swear to you ..I will tell them ..living ..everything that I saw ..who killed you ..who betrayed you. I will not permit anyone to slander you or say it was someone else. I was with you at ..executioner’s block till ..last minute. Your blood flows in my veins ..your ashes throb in my heart. I swear to tell ..Truth ..nothing but ..Truth.” Frida Michelson.
For that very reason, to recognise where hatred leads so that we continue to guard against the hatred which releases its mockery of human civilisation, we choose Always to Remember, Never to Forget. While my own vocal response, as much as my written reply, adds newer volumes to provoking a meaningful response, 6,000,000 words will never satiate the desire to honour these 6,000,000 Jews with other than fading words and memory bolstered by testimony. My work, which is of course an accusing articulation of my raised voice, and while both are detailing of the very directed nature of this hatred against the Jewish People, their resonance echoes 6,000,000 times further, faster and longer than mere endeavour alone will allow.
#37Feuer, Arthur b. June 28th. 1926 in Vienna, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
37) “..I’ve come back from another world to this world I had not left and I know not which one is real. ..As far as I’m concerned I’m still there dying there a little more each day dying over again ..death of those who died.” Charlotte Delbo.
As it stands though, and before the rostrum of history, I restate each and every word and seek to accuse all that still might, and should litigate more heavily, those who are still alive to be indicted for their crimes against the Jews of Humanity. If I could, I would hurry the process along as the very ones who must see that Justice will prevail, those who did Survive and did not die, they are dying the death of those who perished through annihilation. I would strongly word more accutely our human failure to act more positively as the truth emerged. I will forever stand more resolutely for the forced losses of 6,000,000 Jews we abandoned as a World. It is simply not enough that I am always against the enforcers and while they are my focus in my major concern, it has always been the atrocity I search through.
#38Fischer, Jacques b. May 19th. 1925 in Saint-Michel, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
38) “..Auschwitz ..world’s largest cemetery ..without a single grave. I held tight to 3 dreams. ..first living through ..nightmare ..surviving ..camp. ..second was to tell ..even though it ..cannot be explained. There was no reason whatsoever for what was done. ..I knew I had to tell ..to as many people as possible. ..third was that ..if I managed to accomplish ..first two ..I would do anything and everything to bring about ..establishment of State of Israel. ..I realized all three dreams.” Noah Klieger.
I research how it must dive into the hearts of those who read these words and for those readers, be they the Survivor who knows more than I what these words spell out, or simply the truth seeker, I enter words that are the grimmest eloquence of the destruction I can resurrect. While they could Never come close to what was experienced or inform you more than a Survivor can, I am aligned to much that the Survivor tells us, to add a newer depth to their need to tell. Also, for the Children of Survivor’s who have had an interruped life due to the effects our abandonment has had upon their Jewish People, it must weigh as heavily upon them to have to continually confront our abandonment of all of those we all have lost.
#39Fischer, Pierre b. March 26th. 1928 in Saint-Michel, Murdered in Birkenau at 14 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
39) “..Night was falling. ..shadows softly settling on ..Earth promised rest and oblivion. We had gotten through another day. ..what would ..next one bring.” Liana Millu.
It is evident in all my work, whtether that is in my Books or the platforms I use to spread these words, that all or any accusation, which must lay, outside, even beyond the very pertinent Jewish one, but alongisde the very intention to remember them all. As the atrocity is directed from within Auschwitz, and particularly Birkenau, as it is condensed and from within Majdanek, as it scorches our reason in Treblinka or indeed approaches us as an example from any of these Death Camps established in Poland, we have to learn respect for all and tolerance of each of us. Many of the Jews of Europe also, who were sent to hell before ever leaving Polish soil, as transport upon transport of Jewish Community’s descended upon Poland, and were laid to waste there, they raise their very obviouis accusation.
#40Fiszbin, Lolec b. April 20th. 1926 in Varsovie, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
40) “..I revisited Auschwitz. ..Our transport was among ..last ones ..from Hungary July 8th. 1944 ..and due to ..unusual number of arrivals ..SS were forced to change their customary procedures. ..gas chambers ..crematoria could not accommodate everyone judged unfit for work ..so 100’s were piled along ..railroad tracks to be immolated. ..due to ..heartless haste ..clothed in rags ..marked with ..painted red cross ..hardly any food or water ..also due to this haste ..escaped tattooing.” Judith Magyar Isaacson.
For me too, with this systematic approach Hitler that had established, which has ensured that the most enormous Jewish graveyard remains Poland, we build memory to add a monument that is more lasting than Country’s, border’s or the perceptions of belonging. Even while we recognise the Jewish presence that remains in the multitude of killing sites around Eastern Europe, Babi Yar, Bikernieki, Klooga, Ponary, Riga, Rumbuli and Salaspils, Poland’s saturation with the blood of Polish Jews, and other’s of European Jewry is heaviest, and it is the most intolerable fact that Poland must bear a larger responsibility for the death and destruction detained there.
#41Flajszakier, Rosetta b. January 25th. 1925 in Szydlow, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
41) “..If we consider ..entire Auschwitz universe ..as a youth I did not feel ..acute ..murderous ..destructive discord ..torment felt by every adult ..uprooted ..wrenched from ..cultural world ..its norms ..hurled into ..confrontation with norms of cruelty ..of death.” Otto ‘Dov’ Kulka.
For all of Jewish Polish blood, spilled in the backyard of a former Jewish Homeland, whose existence was assured for 100’s of years, that all changed the moment Hitler gave the World the idea, he could act with genocidal intent. The very nature and essence of Polish Jewry, which has all but perished, has not attributed the form of reverential response a nation with such losses must command. Denmark, amongst other European Jews, has formed a more proven, exacting and liberating detail of what should be a redeeming factor in all other nation’s. For half the struggle of the Jews in The Holocaust, the sheer weight of Polish Jewish struggle was a forlorn hopelessness. For all the 3,650,000 Jews of Poland what emanted as they were engulfed in the conflagration was purely because they were physically trapped on their own Polish soil.
#42Frankfurt, Nelly b. September 19th. 1925 in Varsovie, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
42) “..When 4,000,000 have died in Auschwitz ..I shall know how to die as well.” Hermann Langbein.
Of course the contest to explore the very detail of the atrocity, and not just here within Auschwitz or Birkenau confronts us with the reality of what hatred can now accomplish. Yet, much that has been reserched does not now take account of the first hand evidences of those who witnessed 4,000,000 die in Auschwitz alone, if we accept the eye witness account of one who knows. So we accept a very condenced version of that detail and while we are forever dwelling on this past, we look for more answers than have ever been or will be resolved. From the evidence gained of places like Auschwitz, and gathered from the debris of Birkenau and all the other x5 Death Camps, we are not to be enveloped by competing terms and details of accounts which can never be fully accurate.
#43Freymann, Heinrich b. February 20th. 1927 in Esch-Sur-A, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
43) “..When we emerged from ..camps ..run down to ..point of stupor ..not even ..strength to feel joy. Just to rest ..to ..sleep our fill. Never ..it seemed ..would our tiredness go away. Nor our sadness. Upon us lay ..weight of all those who were notreturning. A few 1,000 survivor’s ..against 1,000,000’s of dead ..a sum of suffering that will never be reckoned ..by anyone.” Charlotte Delbo.
Therefore, we simply cannot evolve away from the Catastrophe for the Jewish People until we alter the course this History has gained, in relation to these 6,000,000 unspeakable crimes. Their Jewish number alone, carry’s with it a detail so heinous, the World had need of an invented name for genocide to evolve into The Holocaust term. For its enactment, and what is still being permitted in the World to this day, all has a direct correlation as to what Hitler managed to achieve in Slaughtering 6,000,000 Jews of Europe. We reach a remembrance now which has to recall other grave injustices perpetrated against other Peoples, and simply because history has taught them what Hitler accomplished through the hate he was infected with.
#44Freymann, Minna b. July 16th. 1925 in Esch-Sur-A, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
44) “..children were taken. ..All ..women ..not just ..mothers ..sensed in ..welling rebellion in their guts that something had been violently torn from ..maternal instinct that lay at ..very core of their being.” Giuliana Tedeschi.
Tragically, for all of those annihilated Jews, torn from all maternal security, its instinct of protection trampled upon and where paternal care and human compassion was not allowed to Jews in the midst of the cauldron of hate. Those erstwhile Hitler advocates, whose mere mention of such inhumanity, as it was displayed against the Jewish People, are today becoming the adopting voice of those who see in Hitler’s target their own hatred’s. Their latter day call for some form of justification for the Slaughter is matched in denial of the truthful facts which is the integrity of what we speak and relate to, in regards to 6,000,000 Slaughtered Jews. History cannot ever ignore the element of hatred which The Holocaust truth informs us of and continually delivers to posterity its stinging rebuke.
#45Frydmann, Salomon b. February 25th. 1927 in Radom, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
45) “..One could not indulge in too many illusions. ..Germans undoubtedly planned to exterminate our Parents.” Olga Lengyel.
Here in Birkenau, with Giuliana Tedeschi, the formerly 76847, but previously Giuliana Tedeschi, a Human Being way before Hitler considered the concept, and certainly before he sought to destroy her’s and all of the Jewish People’s very existence, Survived. Thankfully, Giuliana walked amongst us again and delivered an eloquence of such dark despair, it tore the force of maternal instinct away from Mother’s. Humanity though is resurrected here, and it is converted into a human spirit which she, Olga Lengyel and many others recognised as they share of their presence in midst of the very inhuman atrocity which is The Holocaust.
#46Gerszonowiez, Joseph b. May 28th. 1927 in Szerzercow, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
46) “..As one who survived ..infernos of Auschwitz Birkenau ..Buchenwald ..my eyes are still burning from ..vision of that nightmare ..my ears ..still ringing with ..agonizing sounds of Men ..Women ..little children ..lured ..driven into ..gas chambers ..solely ..exclusively because they were Jewish.” Mel Mermelstein.
Clearly, and what has not been destroyed in the Survivor as such, is the spirit to endure, to live, to Survive so as to add testimony of what they know to the evidence of what we have gained. What they Survivor now delivers to us, of what the World has sought to detain in the pages of works being purged of their relevance, is a ressurection of a humanity that was all but lost amongst the perpetrators but remains a signature of the Survivor. However, what is now being sought out from so many pages identifying with the tragedy, is not always about those who suffered most from the tragic consequences of inhuman deeds. The veritable truth, the reality of what was imposed upon the Jewish People would appear as a distraction sought by those seeking to submit these Destroyed Jews to the crimes against them as somehow self perpetuating. This is a revisionism borne of hatred and a sought after redemption of the illicit charcter that is Adolf Hitler..
#47Gerszonowiez, Junna b. November 3rd. 1924 in Szerzercow, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
47) “..same old routine ..one foot in front ..other. Everything is forever ..same in ..lager ..pitilessly ..hopelessly ..same ..each hour brings ..same acts ..same commands ..same everything ..until soon even your thoughts take ..same predictable track ..making ..same fixed stops ..war ..home ..getting back ..a chronic sameness that becomes a torture.” Liana Millu.
While The Holocaust, in its graduated evolution, is even to be denied the very Jewish presence, The Holocaust must remain the tem of focus that has been driven directly from the oratory of The Final Solution of The Jewish Question and into the Killing Sites and Death camps designed to extract all of any Jewish presence. It is at the very twisted yet constructed route which finally delivers on Hitler’s wish for die Endlosung der Judenfrage that The Holocaust is born. Clearly, we cannot meet with such conformity to a hatred for the Jewish People that they are then not to be allowed a term which is exclusively theirs, after all that was denied them.
#48Goldenberg, Andre b. April 26th. 1925 in Bucarest, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
48) “..I do not ..cannot know what I would be today if I had not been in ..Camp. No man knows his future. ..a man sets out ..almost never are our choices between ..two alternatives. ..every choice is followed by others. ..if I had not lived ..Auschwitz experience ..I probably would never have written. ..years have passed ..interposed ..artificial memory ..a defensive barrier ..between my ..normal present and ..dramatic past. ..I survived ..due ..to good luck. ..to survive with ..precise purpose of recounting. ..helped by ..determination ..to recognize always ..my companions ..myself ..men ..not things. ..to avoid ..total humiliation and demoralization which led so many to spiritual shipwreck.” Primo Levi.
I would suggest, that as The Holocaust was borne by the tenets of Hitler’s final resolve, the term stems from what die Endlosung der Judenfrage engages us with, an annihilation process designed to destroy all Jews. Make no mistake, in this resolve to fix the Jews of Europe into oblivion, it is clearly that many other’s, the Gypsy Lalleri, Medvashi, Roma and Sinti, the Jehovah Witnesses and any one else who stood against Hitler’s culling of Humanity, would meet a similar fate along the route toward Auschwitz and Birkenau. No Death Camp in Poland is exclusively detaining of Jews, as all too many other’s were sucked up into the transportations East. But, the very transient nature of what Hitler intended for European Jewry is so wound into the terms of reference that is The Holocaust, all Jewish persistence is uniquely delivered toward extinction.
#49Gumbacher, Sedz b. April 20th. 1925 in Rust, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
49) “..deprived of ..relaxation that night should bring ..stars seemed to belong to a different world ..where our infinite misery was unknown. ..in ..abandon of ..sleeping camp you saw that misery more clearly and sharply than during ..gigantic struggle for existence that went on in ..light of day.” Giuliana Tedeschi.
History has clearly abridged the religious divide and the historical narrative to expand the massive catastrophe into a single term recognised from within the midst of the atrocity itself. Here too though, while we are troubled by what reverence the position of 6,000,000 Slaughtered Jews are to be warranted, or are even to be allowed to posthumously own, History stalls before the bench of a critical shame of their abandonment. That many still question the uniqueness of what was inflicted upon the Jewish People is a sickening indictment of what has passed into our history. While episodes, within the early stages of the assault itself, as was unleashed upon the integrity of the Jewish People, we can barely surmise their impact.
#50Grunfogel, Berthe b. February 8th. 1926 in Nancy, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
50) “..In Stutthof ..became ..96211 ..unlike ..Auschwitz ..our numbers were not tatooed.” Max Michelson.
What we clearly afford in our need for understanding anything in an escalating term, is to be seen through the vista of a World community which simply stood aside. What will more than savage, an already brutalised Jewish People of differing nations, is to further allow for Hitler to continually reinvent the measures applied to this Jewish solution. For us to this day, to either portray the Jewish Catastrophe with less than with the integrity it demands or with any dishonesty seeking to exonerate any of those who forced this upon 6,000,000 Jews of Europe. The ramifications of our inability to act with any form of compassion, which then proved that the inaction would prove catastrophic for the Jews, is a glaring example of our own inhumanity to mankind.
#51Gurwitch, Jacques b. September 19th. 1926 in Metz, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
51) “..What Auschwitz was is known only to its inmates and ..no one else.” Martin Walser.
What was to turn indifference outward and toward the intolerances which go way beyond what history has ever experienced, decimated Jewish Community’s throughout all of Europe. Perhaps then, as we survey the devastation of Jewish antecedence, literally as we sit here, we will forever be deprived of such comprehension as Giuliana Tedeschi testifies to. Our physical absense from the immediacy of what the Jewish People were forced to endure, will not arm us enough to narrate fully the loss we wish to comprehend. I fully acknowledge clearly, that I cannot know what those like Giuliana, Martin Walser, Elie Wiesel, Max Michelson and Primo Levi illustrate for us.
#52Hanen, Frida b. February 6th. 1925 in Salonique, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
52) ” ..How is one to explain ..Hitler nor Himmler was ever excommunicated. ..Pius XII never thought ..to condemn Auschwitz ..Treblinka. ..among the SS a large portion ..remained faithful to their Christian ties. ..killers who went to confession.” Elie Wiesel.
As Survivor’s, who convey to us a barely temperate idea of what atrocity truly is, they do so from what they experienced within an Auschwitz, a Birkenau, a Death Camp where their own experiences can merely hint at the overall cost to the 6,000,000 Jews of Europe. I recognise precisely that all of these Murdered Jews are contained within The Holocaust, the living too as the Survivor’s and the destroyed alike as they shared the same intention to destroy them. I am all too clearly aware as to why many Jews, scholar’s included, would rather remove the 6,000,000 perished Jews from a term with such deeply religious connotations.
#53Heinik, Georges b. January 9th. 1926 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
53) “..I always felt like asking why God would help us in particular and allow last year’s unfortunate souls to freeze to death.” Liana Millu.
But history itself has recognised the genocide of these Jews and it is to be the very expression of The Holocaust and for which these 6,000,000 Jews have been detained. The suggestion gradually emerging today, and though these Jews have been silenced forever, as Olga narrates, there are far too many of us who will never allow for these 6,000,000 Jews ever to be ignored. It is a simple truth that must ensure these Jews are remembered and just as certain it cannot be the Jews alone who seek to be sure they are mostly unforgotten. While other’s might seek to dilute their memory, or forget their past, history charges us with preserving the truth of who they are, where they came from and why they never came back from where they were detained.
#54Herschlikowtz, Julienne b. July 30th. 1926 in Charleville, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
54) “..Arrived ..Auschwitz ..July 2nd. or 3rd. 1944. ..about 200 men. ..women 70 or 80 seventy or eighty. ..rest I saw ..getting into ..a number of trucks. ..also a closed vehicle with ..sign of ..Red Cross. I saw them all go off. ..to ..gas chambers.” Georges Wellers.
Here too, as the sphere of grave atrocity, which we must consider as the entire universe that is not simply Auschwitz, nor even Birkenau, we must consider the position of all of the Death Camps in Poland, all of the Concentration Camps and Killing Sites throughout Europe that are now designated as Jewish Cemetery’s. What is now presented and offered up on the altar of a revisionist hatred, and by these latent threats to truth and honesty, so as to ignore memory and stifle remembrance, cannot be allowed to hold sway over what matters in the truthful discourse that must be history. Here, with these massive graveyards, fashioned from within the heart of Europe, all earmarked for the Jews from all over Europe, Jewish memory is firmly fixed.
#55Isakow, Paulette b. November 26th. 1925 in Chaumont, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
55) “..we cannot empathise with ..situation of ..prisoners ..because their suffering exceeded any previous measure and we cannot ..form a human impression of ..immediate perpetrators ..we call Auschwitz a hell and ..evildoers devils. This might be an explanation for ..fact that when we talk about Auschwitz ..we use words that point ..way beyond our World.” Martin Walser.
More especially, as with Polish Jewry within Poland itself, the Jewish interred are being eulogised by a growing awareness in this World that we have left so much of our own humanity in these irredeemable spaces. Also, and for so many who could not even hope to escape the clutches of such hatred, my effort is centred on these 6,000,000 Jews we owe more to than we can ever repay. While recognising, of course, that there are more other millions dead than I can detail, in a World of War where my search began, the Jews have always been my personal search. My very confrontation with the fuller detail of those 6,000,000 Jews who are deprived of all existence, does not look favourably on those who stood rigid as the body of Jewish existence was catapulted into oblivion.
#56Kahn, Marylise b. April 28th. 1925 in Lingolsheim, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
56 ) “..I was in ..camp Birkenau ..part of ..Oswiecim Camp. ..a woman in ..last month of pregnancy. ..had to walk ten kilometres to ..place of work ..toiled ..whole day ..digging trenches. ..already ill and ..asked ..German ..for permission to rest. ..refused ..laughed at her and ..together with another SS man ..started beating her. ..situation of all ..women who ..were pregnant ..only during ..very last minutes were they permitted to stay away from work. ..newly-born children ..if Jewish ..were immediately put to death.” Seweryna Szmaglewska.
What must be always honoured though, and by honourable people who must be certain in ensuring honourable deeds are done in recalling their past presence, is the worth of ensuring their memory. That which has been extracted from the dishonour and dishonourable, that was enacted and witnessed where ever a Jew had lived and was fully met with hatred, must be added to our need to know the gravest wrong done to the Jewish People is contained within The Holocaust. Can it be then that we readily accept the denial that comes from the hatred spewed forth from those whose hatred is fixed once again.
#57Kaplan, Jean b. July 24th. 1925 in Metz, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
57) “..I will never cease to rebel against those who committed or permitted Auschwitz ..including God. ..questions I once asked myself about God’s silence remain open. If they have an answer ..I do not know it. More than that ..I refuse to know it. ..I maintain that ..death of 6,000,000 human beings poses a question to which no answer will ever be forthcoming.” Elie Wiesel.
Do we simply pass up the opportunity to learn from what will save all humanity as we concentrate on what those like Elie Wiesel or Primo Levi and 6,000,000 other Jews experienced. It is deeply affecting to me, as I constantly read through the trauma of Jewish Survival, and then concern myself with ensuring I do not trivialise their concerns, how then can I not show the full horror and terror to all without further wounding the already distraught and impacted senses of those Jews who know more than I could ever suggest. The truth I wish to narrate has so many words that are already riven with the excess of hatred delivered to the Jews, that it is almost impossible to avoid inflicting ever more pain upon an already raw Jewish wound.
#58Kempinski, Jacob b. August 13th. 1924 in Nancy, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
58) “..how can I help not looking back to remember.” Kitty Hart.
For many people, for whom the hatred of the Jewish People could be harnessed and delivered toward an innocent Jewry, the Jewish blood cries as their Jewish voice is sought out to be ignored. Also, and in what we as human beings failed to achieve to prevent much more of this than we did, history screams its relentless accusation. How can we help but look back and in seeing the devastation and brutality not see the inability of all too many to act more favourably toward the Jewish People and at least afford some form of assistance to more than those we held our hand out to. The simple act of compassion, so removed from within each and every contextual enactment of the hatred cannot fail to show how low we descended.
#59Kirzbaum, Celine b. April 23rd. 1926 in Longwy, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
59) “..first shipment ..inmates arrived ..June 14th. 1940. 12 months later ..Hitler decided on ..Final Solution of ..Jewish Problem. Auschwitz ..chosen centre of ..planned mass extermination.” Bernd Naumann.
The ommision of so much concern, and it is so evident that today, those 6,000,000 Slaughtered Jews have become a focus of newer hatred’s enacted against their memory. Jews today, and not simply those Jews who Survied as witnesses to the human lack of compassion, they all bear the scars of what was enacted and what was not fully acted against. What Hitler espoused, and brought to bear upon 6,000,000 innocent Jewish Men, Women and Their Children, was the unprecedented Slaughter to be our legacy. What we have come to recognise in the atrocity itself, and the unbridled contempt humanity showed for all human life, labels our unconcern.
#60Kormann, Esther b. October 3rd. 1925 in Sedan, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
60) “..No bird ever flies low over Birkenau ..prisoners strain their eyes to search ..skies for them. ..Guided by smell or instinct ..birds avoid ..place. Birkenau does not exist officially ..its name never appears in an address. It is Oswiecim II. ..it was not ..intended to hold people for any length of time. It is a ..precrematorium waiting room ..for 20,000 to 30,000 people.” Seweryna Szmaglewska.
In these x6 Death Camps established by Hitler and his regime in Poland, that impossibility became an ever more refined certainty, delivered with capacity to murder on a massive scale. Now, after 75 years have passed since the liberation of Auschwitz and Birkenau, we must continually consider those Jews specifically, who did not emerge as we specifically recognise the Jews, as they were the chosen People of Hitler’s feverish attempt for a Final Solution of The Jewish Question. For the very people, non-Jewish Poles and Ukrainians, who lived in such close proximity to the atrocity, their consciences have conspicuously failed to acknowledge this detailed atrocity.
#61Kormoner, Helena b. August 30th. 1925 in Vienna, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
61) “..whole complex had forty-six retorts ..each with ..capacity for three to five persons. ..burning in a retort lasted about half an hour. ..it was theoretically possible to cremate about 12,000 corpses in twenty four hours ..4,380,000 a year. ..well-constructed crematoria fell far behind at a number of camps ..especially at Auschwitz in 1944. In August ..total cremation reached a peak one day of 24,000 ..still a bottleneck occurred. Camp authorities needed an economic and fast method of corpse disposal ..dug six huge pits beside Krema V ..reopened old pits in ..wood. ..late 1944 ..pit burning became ..chief method of corpse disposal. ..pits had indentations at one end from which human fat drained off. To keep ..pits burning ..stokers poured oil ..alcohol ..large quantities of boiling human fat over ..bodies.” Filip Muller.
Purely, and from the sheer scale of the cremation of these Jewish human beings across the road from where the non-Jewish Poles lived, these very people who lived in such close proximity to the atrocity failed to acknowledge this detailed atrocity in any coherent nor affirmative way. Whether that is the continuance of antisemitsm toward the Jews in Polqand or the collective response of Europe, that lack of judicious resolve, which now emanates forward, has emboldened newer atrocity. As we look to those who breached the impossible and then Survived, so as to testify for us to know what we have learned and we gain a further insight into what is hell. But, and for all of these 6,000,000 annihilated Jews, they must be recalled and added to by the efforts of historians ensuring memory returns them to us.
#62Kravetz, Simon b. March 16th. 1926 in Nantes, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
62) “..when we get back ..we shall be different ..people who haven’t been through this hell won’t understand us. Something had changed deep inside us. Sensitivity ..numbed ..capacity to be moved ..gone ..habit of reducing life to a few bare essentials and there arose ..need to hate. ..if ever we returned ..transformation would condemn us to solitude ..incomprehension. ” Giuliana Tedeschi.
For a wholly innocent Jewish People, for being Jews, such was the constant reminder of their rather limited options within Hitler’s sphere of influence. After Auschwitz and Birkenau, and especially after the emerging evidence of all the x6 Death Camps Hitler had placed in Poland, the testified truth has since harboured a denial prelocated by all too many nations not standing against this. For Hitler, so as to supplement the industrial capacity for mass murder, starvation, pestilence and all manner of bestial treatment that was raged against the Jews of Europe, this is all recognised in the very fact of the barbarous enactment of the atrocity against the 6,000,000 Jewish People who are the Holocaust.
#63Laub, Anatole b. April 5th. 1926 in Anvers, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
63) “..The Holocaust still horrifies us not because some Jews were Murdered ..that happens almost every week in New York City ..but because ..incredibile total of 6,000,000 murders represents ..attempt to kill ALL Jews ..genocide. And Auschwitz represents The Holocaust ..because more People died here than anywhere else.” Otto Friedrich.
I can be as selective as I wish in attributing to those Jews who Survived and even those who saved them, a mocking of the humanity which should have saved all 6,000,000 of them. In that, have we not learned a single thing that those Survivor’s of Auschwitz and Birkenau, and the other Death Camps, have sought to teach us. Do we still think that 6,000,000 Jews were Slaughtered so that we can ignore the lessons that this spell out in their destruction. It is to our loss of humanity that we recognise our failure to act more resolutely once Hitler’s attention had turned from words against the Jews to the annihilation process he so often spoke of.
#64Laufbaum, Lazare b. May 31st. 1925 in Metz, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
64) “..I looked at that sweet ..likeable young face ..which ..appeared to be almost not of this Earth. Auschwitz predisposed you to mystical comparisons. ..she was an angel who ..snatched me from a terrible death. I ..stood there speechless. ..She had been brought to Auschwitz in 1942 ..from Radom. 16 years at ..time. Her Parents ..sent to ..gas immediately.” Sara Nomberg-Przytyk.
But mixed in here is the very expression of Death Camp system itself, and here too, as we recall those who did Survive, we seek further to pay tribute to those who remained behind. I cannot paint this any other way but as a picture of the hatred vehemently shown by us as human beings toward Jewish Humanity. I simply ignore the fact that we other humans, who took a more superior air sought to deny all life to those that humanity cannot consider other than equal to the lives we share. From the words I use, I recognise clearly the depth of pain added to those dying over and over as those words used, and for those Jews who died how they must have died. But for those interred, in the ash from the embers of the murderous extinction of more than 6,000,000 Jews, not only is Poland a graveyard for Polish Jewry, but for the Jews of Europe also.
#65Lehrer, Jacques b. June 12th. 1925 in Wielka, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
65) “..Written by ..Sonderkommando ..Crematorium II August 5th. 1944 ..Zalman Lewental ..Ciechanow ..Poland. No one can imagine exactly how things happened ..for it is unimaginable that a precise account of our experiences can be given. ..We ..a small group of grey people ..will give historians a ..hard time ..also ..psychologists who want to know ..investigate ..mental condition of ..people who tackled this dismal ..dirty work. ..who knows whether these investigators will fathom ..truth ..wheter anyone will be able to thoroughly.” Zalman Lewental.
Europe itself holds on to many of these Jewish dead, in City’s and Towns all across Europe and these very Jews are never to be revivied from the deeds of so many. I have met this hatred along my own route back to the x6 Death Camps, many hating the fact that recognises the grave wrong done against the Jewish People. In the processions of hatred’s gripped by the World though, none can compare to the Jewish unique detail within The Holocaust’s systematic nature. All of this certain inaction has remained in history so as to chastise the inaction of a so called chritian society for its rather un=Christian responses along the way. Also, with the constant pain that emerges in human life, and ever since Hitler taught the World that pain can be inflicted, it it recognised now that it can be achieved with impunity
#66Levinski, Paulette b. October 22nd. 1924 in Paris, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
66) “..This wretched piece of land ..Polish town Oswiecime ..was under ..sway of ..ss whose members regarded themselves as ..elite of ..German nation.” Filip Muller.
What we have sought to and must have learned is what could be done with hatred to guide it, to control and release it along a desolate heath to where there is only death as Giuliana Tedeschi recognised it. Of course, these nation’s, whose own Jews make up the salutory lesson of terror and horror, must pledge to do more to add to memory and stem the surge which seeks to expel that remembrance. Here in Europe, where atrocity was so emboldened in figures of such losses, we have not as yet gained a comprehension worthy of coming to terms with them.
#67Levy, Andre b. March 14th. 1926 in Metz, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
67) “..This report tells ..story of ..victims of Auschwitz ..not with ..purpose of opening old wounds ..but of passing it on as a legacy for us Jews and for all mankind. It will fulfill its purpose only if it helps teach us ..to become better human beings ..to truly love our neighbours ..and to work toward ..eradication of brutality from ..face of ..Earth.” Lucie Adelsberger.
For the all too many Jewish lives extinguished withn these structures of annihilation, our placation of the intolerances we were listening to, added fuel to the flames which consumed these Jewish People. What continually confronts us, and what humanity requires, is a response which has judiciously laboured to deliver to those Jews who Survived against the backdrop of what 6,000,000 other Jews could not in justice. Also, and of the many Country’s of Europe at the time, that had previously housed their own Jewish Community’s, each has a price to pay that will never now be met as they survey the little they did to allay the fear or stem the flow of this Jewish blood.
#68Levy, Jacques b. April 2nd. 1925 in Saarburg, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
68) “..Auschwitz kommandant Hoess testified ..Nuremberg April 15th. 1946 ..number was 2,500,000 ..not based on his personal knowledge but was one mentioned by Eichmann. ..estimates of historians ranger from 1,000,000 to 4,000,000.” Bernd Naumann.
So instead of confronting rigorously this brutal hatred, as it was clearly recognised at the time, all too many Country’s would now seek to further alter the narrative so as to expunge even their own guilt. Whether this is through an historical acquiesence to ignoring the truth, or of a total indifference to the Jewish struggle as it emerged, nothing should alter the words of those like Gerald Reitlinger. While Reitlinger, who placed the Death Camps geographically within Poland, would be confronted by newer Polish legislation, words written cannot be undone by newer meaniongs. For anyone else seeking to avoid History recognising what emerged in Poland in particular, 3,000,000 Polish Jews must retain their place in our History.
#69Meier, Ernst b. October 12th. 1924 in Rust, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
69) “..Birkenau existed to suffocate hope ..annihilate logic ..provoke madness and death.” Giuliana Tedeschi.
Given that proposition of the very real threat to what the integrity of all History must contain, we must be resolute in confrontation the altering, the doctoring and the down right lies being imposed upon the truth. For us, our own consciences have been permanently stained with an inaction toward an intolerable indifference that has been marked so clearly in all of this. Within Poland, such massive betrayals of moral and ethical codes, the efficacies which abandoned all humanity, even after we were made fully aware of the exacting details of The Holocaust, is a dereliction of human compassion. What is left standing trial over a judicious system devoid of Justice for 6,000,000 Slaughtered Jews, 3,000,000 of whom were Polish Jews, murdered in their own lands, is an indictment against civilisation which Gideon Hausner points to.
#70Meier, Janette b. January 24th. 1927 in Tiengen, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
70) “..Dear finder of these notes ..I have one request of you ..which is ..in fact ..practical objective for my writing ..that my days of Hell ..that my hopeless tomorrow will find a purpose in ..future. I am transmitting only a part of what happened in ..Birkenau ..Auschwitz Hell. You will realize what reality looked like. ..From all this you will have a picture of how our people perished.” Zalman Gradowski.
But, both as abhorrent as it was for the Jewish People to have to realise it, it has to be recognised also that it was systematically selective of the Jewish People in the first instance. Every single one of these 6,000,000 Slaughtered Jews of Europe, these Jewish Men, Women and Their Children then, so abandoned and then brutally slain, what we now face in history on their behalf is an awesome indictment of such intolerances and our indifference. Indeed, of the still very prevalent evil that has antisemitism borne along with it, the World is being submerged in a similar if not the very same hatred.
#71Meyer-Udewalt, Nora b. May 8th. 1925 in Hamburg, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
71) “..Up to January 18th. 1945 ..a total of about 5,000,000 were burned in ..crematories of Oswiecim and Birkenau. ..more than 3,000,000 were Jews poisoned by gas or ..victims of epidemics.” Seweryna Szmaglewska.”
Also, and at the core of the immense indusitrial Slaughter centre that is Birkenau, we place Oswiecim in close proximity to Auschwitz, and all three are in Poland. That geographical fact cannot be altered by want of a revision of that truth, given the truthful fact that Hitler invaded Poland and carved it up for himself. Here, though, and it is to Birkenau that we should look at a time of such reflection, and ahead of these two other places, to identify and recognise that Birkenau is where the vast majority of 1,100,000 Jews of Europe were obliterated. Here, 75 years years after, where there was only hate, pain and ultimately death for the Jewish People, we cannot superimpose Auschwitz over Birkenau for that fact and simply mention Birkenau, or Belzec, or Chemno, Majdanek, Sobibor or Treblinka as an aside.
#72Minc, David b. October 20th. 1924 in Lodz, Murdered in Birkenau at 17 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
72) “..Sometimes I am asked if I know ..response to Auschwitz ..I answer that not only do I not know it ..but that I don’t even know if a tragedy of this magnitude HAS a response. What I do know is that there is response in responsibility. When we speak of this era of evil and darkness ..so close and yet so distant ..responsibility is ..key word. ..witness has forced himself to testify. For ..youth of today ..for ..children who will be born tomorrow. He does not want his past to become their future.” Elie Wiesel.
I have re-read and re-read, in a monumental tome, which deliver’s some 11,000 French Children of The Holocaust to Memory, a work by Serge Klarsfeld, A Memorial to French Children of The Holocaust. This fully adds to the dimensions of the atrocity, an atrocity still without comprehension but with growing awareness of what we need to know. For the Jewish People, taken from life within this place called Birkenau, who arrived from Auschwitz, a place a mere stones throw from the town of Oswiecim, Poland, the Jews of Poland and Europe have been recalled in the plumes of smoke which inhabited the entire area. So while we recall today and secure in that memory exactly why we celebrate the miracle of Jewish Survival at all, their Memory bst serves our need to know. Also, and for the duration of the Slaughter Auschwitz is renowned for, Birkenau must Not be forgotten, for here the vast majority of these 1,100,000 Murdered Jews still reside.
#73Minc, Salomon b. October 7th. 1926 in Tomaszow, Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
73) “..testimony at ..trial will tell of unfathonable suffering at Auschwitz ..although any attempt to depict that site of mass murder mjust inevitably remain pale and inadequate.” Bernd Naumann.
What Bernd Naumann wishes to inform us, as the trial of some of those who ran the most mechanised and industrial scale Human Slaughter house in all of history is conducted, the exercise must pale into insignifcance as we fail abjectly to construct any form of a judicious response that would be credible. What amounts to an immense calamity of a recognisable inhumanity, serves clearly to point future history toward Hitler’s actions and not away from them. Here, at least, of the more than 8,500 personel who operated this Factory of Jewish Destruction that was Auschwitz and particualrly Birkenau, not even the remotest sense of justice can be figured out for those many guilty who have never been indicted, let alone prosecuted or dealt with.
#74Moskowicz, Margot b. July 9th. 1926 in Turek Lodz, Murdered in Birkenau at 16 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
74) “..During 20 months of this trial ..court had to relive ..suffering and tortures ..people were subjected to ..forever coupled with ..name of Auschwitz. There will be some among us who ..will not be able to look into ..happy ..trusting eyes of a child without seeing ..hollow ..questioning uncomprehending ..fear filled eyes of ..chilkdren who went their last way there in Auschwitz.” Judge Hans Hofmeyer.
That said, and as the presiding Judge at the Auschwitz trial, of this token few taken from those 8,500 and more who operated the Death Camp at Auschwitz, the pretense of justice is laid bare. Between December 20th. 1963 and August 20th. 1965, the trial was conducted into those who ran this facility, which was wholly erected and equipped at Birkenau for the purpose of the mass destruction of between 1,000,000 and 4,000,000 Jews. As history clearly informs us, 22 mass murderer’s stood trial here, at this particular Auschwitz Trial and secured nothing more than a cursory or stiff rebuke. Though Giuliana Tedeschi envisages a period at liberty, for the years following the liberation of Auschwitz itself on January 27th. 1945, history clearly informs the Jews, who have been forced to add to their evidence a rebuttal of every cynical assault upon their very integrity, a knowledge than in their abandonment, Justice will not prevail for them.
#75Naman, Marjem b. September 20th. 1926 Murdered in Birkenau at 15 years of age.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
75) “..It was then that something broke inside us. ..emotion ..at first anesthetized ..then held back ..put off ..mixed with fear ..erupted in tears ..moans of joy. We all embraced ..at last convinced of our liberty.” Giuliana Tedeschi.
By January 27th. 1947 Poland has decreed that Jewish Restitution claims for Property, Homes and Possessions must be made by end of 1947. At the end of this period, a year’s extension is granted. By January 27th. 1949 Polish Measures are brought to bear to ensure Jews cannot reclaim what Jews have been deprived of. On January 27th. 1951, what have we learned from The Holocaust is how to kill more efficiently as Nuclear tests in Nevada commence. January 27th. 1996 Germany first observes the International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
January 27th. 2017 “..January 27th. ..day when 72 years ago ..Auschwitz-Birkenau death camps were liberated ..became one of ..saddest reminders in ..history of humanity. It also represents ..beginning of hope for those who .. on January 27th. 1945 were still alive. We are very fortunate to still have some of them among us. These survivors remind us all about ..need to never forget ..mistakes of ..past. It is a day which carries along a double meaning and responsibility.” Klaus Iohannis. President of Romania.
There is the factual truth of what 11,293,300 Jews of Europe, according to a composed minuting of the Wannsee Protocol proposed and which all of these Jews might be forced to face. This consensus arrived at by statisiticans of Hitler’s demands, for which 6,000,000 Jews paid an interminable penalty, speaks all too well of German efficiency in mass murder. Also, we have come little distance from the exacting of such intolerance, for as much as indifference suggests, while we continually deal with antisemitism in the modern World. What we note here too, and for what Primo Levi identifies as a man, was the detail of the horror as it was experienced by a man who was Primo Levi.
“..If This Is a Man
You who live safe
In your warm houses,
You who find on returning in the evening,
Hot food and friendly faces:
Consider if this is a man
Who works in the mud
Who does not know peace
Who fights for a scrap of bread
Who dies because of a yes or a no.
Consider if this is a woman,
Without hair and without name
With no more strength to remember,
Her eyes empty and her womb cold
Like a frog in winter.
Meditate that this came about:
I commend these words to you.
Carve them in your hearts
At home, in the street,
Going to bed, rising;
Repeat them to your children,
Or may your house fall apart,
May illness impede you,
May your children turn their faces from you.” Primo Levi.
