CHAPTER
TEN
Non-Jewish Victims of the Holocaust
Remember the Nazis’ point of view during the invasion: they would be fighting a war of
annihilation; the Soviets could not imagine the ferocity not only of the attack,
but of the Einsatzgruppen actions that followed…
Historical Context: As the Nazi program began to be implemented in the 1930’s, their
ideas of racial purity were pushed at the peoples of Eastern Europe, soon to
fall under the Nazi umbrella. Nazi race
scientists, or anthropologists, were sent into the field to study the Roma and
Sinti peoples. Offices were created to
deal with specific target groups. Some
underwent the same steps of persecution as the Jews; others had rules all their
own. But the bottom line was that from
the non-Jewish targets, an equal death toll would be exacted.
Rationale to Teach: When approaching the Holocaust there is a tendency to forget or push to the side the “other” 6 million lives the Nazis claimed. But when looking at the total Nazi agenda and their obsession with “racial purity”, the effective teacher must approach the non-Jewish target groups of Gypsies (Roma and Sinti), homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Slavs, and slave laborers. Students should see that there were sometimes different reasons for the persecution of various groups, but the goal was always the same: pushing the Nazi agenda of racial and cultural purity in such a way as to reshape the world in their image…
Major Topics:
1. Gypsies (Sinti and Roma)
a. Believed origins
b. Stages of persecution
2. Homosexuals
a. Rationale for persecution
b. Treatment in German-held lands
3. Jehovah’s Witnesses
4. Slavs: Poles and Russian POW’s
a. Brutality
b. Stalin’s perspective
5. Slave labor
Comment: There will inevitably be comparisons between the persecutions of various target groups; as stated before, while these events are all part of the bigger picture known as the Holocaust, the teacher should make certain not to diminish the importance of any group’s genocide. Lumping them all together might serve to decrease the impact the loss had on these specific groups, pains of which are still felt today. However, it is necessary to attempt to single out reasons for the Nazi attempts at extermination, and here some comparisons and contrasts will be natural. Your students may especially be interested in the persecution of homosexuals, as that seems to be an area of interest for teenagers (whether homophobic or just curious). Take caution, as you would with any topic of a sensitive or controversial nature. Be prepared for their questions by consulting some references first.
Photo copyright 2005 Lauren Croix
An example of the "bedding" that was in the barracks of Auschwitz
Resources:
Classroom notes with lines of questioning/student interaction
Author unknown. Pamphlets from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, D.C.
Berenbaum, Michael. Witness To the Holocaust, New York: Harper Collins Publishers, Inc. 1997. For the victims, see pp. 102-111.
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.
http://www.ushmm.org/museum/exhibit/focus/homosexuals_02/. Outstanding, comprehensive site covering all aspects of the persecution of homosexuals both in Germany and in German-held lands (students may be surprised to know that there was substantially less persecution outside Germany proper, and to find out why.).
www.alst.org. Arnold-Liebster Foundation - Nazi Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses. This is a private educational organization based in Karben, Germany. The Foundation was established by Holocaust-era survivors Max Liebster and Simone Arnold Liebster.
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