CHAPTER NINE

Jewish Victims of the Holocaust

One of the myths of the Holocaust was that the Judenrat collaborated in the killing of Jews. But what choices did they have? Often Holocaust scholars and students speak of “choiceless choices” – we can say that the various Jewish Councils faced these. Daily.

It has often been asked why the Jews didn't leave. According to David Faber, Holocaust survivor and author of Because of Romek, "My father was very religious. When my brother Romek would question him on this issue, Father would say 'Don't worry, my son -- God is with us, God is going to help us.'"

Historical Context: As the Nazis ascended to political control in the 1930’s, life for the Jews both in Germany and the lands of its allies and conspirators began to change swiftly and dramatically. Jews were systematically removed from society, first through socio-political measures, and then later through physical movement to the ghettos then camps. While other groups have certainly been persecuted as minorities, perhaps no ethnic group has undergone the massive movement and extermination in such a short period of time that the Jews underwent in the Holocaust.

Rationale to Teach: As it is perhaps necessary to avoid comparison of genocides, it is still nonetheless important to remark on the length of time during which the Jewish people have undergone international persecution culminating in their virtually systematic extinction during the Shoah. The vast movement of these people first across Europe, then within the eastern half of the continent required incredible logistics to say the least. Students often fail to comprehend (with good reason, thank God) the deprivation of the ghettos and camps. Most people alive today have no concept of what true hunger, or being truly cold, is all about. Here they will see…

Major Topics:

1. Germany’s Jews, pre-1933

2. Ghettos

a. Judenrat

b. Social organization

3. Camps

a. Reasons for survival

4. Resistance

Comment: This unit covers Jewish treatment in the ghettos and camps in great detail. Students will not only cover the formation and general characteristics of these literal hells on earth, but see Jewish responses as well: positives of the ghettos, reasons some were able to survive, and resistance -- the attempt to maintain some semblance of normalcy. Your students will express disbelief, anger, and sadness. Again, this material is just superb for stretching people from their comfort zones, getting them to care about something and formulate an opinion.

Perhaps the dominant response will be a lack of understanding; while it may look like a cop-out, be careful not to offer any explanation that puts a face of justification on the Nazis. Students would be better encouraged to seek out some philosophical or theological responses to the Shoah than to merely try to explain it away in the span of a class period or two.

Sachsenhausen dissection table: Bodies were placed on tables to be dissected or used for experimentation. Note the drain in the center of the table for fluid run-off.

Resources:

Classroom notes with lines of questioning/student interaction

Berenbaum, Michael. Witness To the Holocaust, New York: Harper Collins Publishers, Inc. 1997. For the Judenrat, see pp. 78-101.

-- For ghettos, including the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, see pp. 215-247.

http://cghs.dade.k12.fl.us/ib_holocaust2001/Ghettoes/. Wonderful site from Coral Gables Senior High School in Dade County, Florida, USA, about various aspects of ghettos. The site expands to encompass virtually all Holocaust study. A wonderful project…

Grobman, Gary. The Holocaust: A Guide For Teachers – The “Final Solution” © 1990 http://remember.org/guide/Facts.root.final.html. Grobman covers most of the topics I’ve included for this chapter, plus he provides student questions and activities.

Schindler's List. DVD (Widescreen). (c) Universal Studios, 1993. DVD released March 9, 2004. This film is in my estimation the ultimate Holocaust cinematic performance. Steven Spielberg's adaptation of the Thomas Keneally book by the same name is incredible in scope and substance. Prior, during, and after my students view the film, I have them complete this worksheet assignment (suggested responses are included here). Borrowed from a few different resources, this compilation helps them to ready themselves for viewing, and to express their feelings upon completion of the film. Note: as our class periods are 54 minutes in length, it takes four (4) days to view this film.

Hitler’s Holocaust: Ghetto

Mass Murder

Resistance

Videocassettes. © MPR Film und Fernsch Produktion GmtH for the History Channel, 2000. These tapes are excellent! They mix archival footage with survivor interviews; my students have always held their attention to the television when we have watched these programs. There are numerous places to stop the tape for discussion. I would highly recommend this series!!

Niewyk, Donald L., ed. The Holocaust, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1997. For the camps, see pp. 51-106 for four essays from survivors.

Uprising. Videocassette. © NBC Television, 2001. This four-hour miniseries is a dramatization of the events of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. While the characters in the show bear real names, some of the events have been fictionalized or embellished for television. Still, the video is powerful, aptly showing the odds the rebels faced as the Wehrmacht closed in on the ghetto. Students will at times cheer, and at other times your room will be silent as a tomb.

Back to The Holocaust: Teaching the Shoah to High School Students