Harrison
Monday, October 17, 2011
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Survivor Testimoy #1
Survivor Testimony 1
Coy Draheim
WWII changed many things for the Jewish people including the birth name of Joseph Morton. Born Joseph Markowitz in Lodz, Poland, Joseph wanted to leave behind any trace or reminder of the war. Joseph’s story like many other Jew’s was one of growing up in a smaller town in Europe and doing many ordinary things as a child. Joseph had five brothers and one sister, a father working as a tailor, and a stay at home mother. Joseph like many others had suffered small instances of anti-Semitism early on and even heard little bits of Hitler’s rise to power. He never knew how bad it would truly get. “One ear in, the other one out,” is a quote from Joseph when he describes hearing about Hitler’s rise. It was true that many Jews never knew how bad it would get and simply brushed off the news about the Nazis. Joseph’s town was one of the earliest towns in Poland to be occupied, with the war starting on a Wednesday and the Germans invading their town two days later on Friday. Things got bad quickly for Joseph and the Jews in Lodz. They were put to work early as kids cleaning floors and shortly after the occupation a ghetto was established. Life in the ghetto was miserable as one would imagine with starvation rampant. Jews were killed and hung in the market to give a warning to others that their invaders were serious. School was cancelled and wire walls were built to keep them in. This was paradise in fact for Joseph though; he had no idea of what his future would hold. Auschwitz did not exist in his world but it would soon become a reality. “We would kill ourselves before getting to the place,” is what Joseph had to say about his time right before Auschwitz if he would have known how bad it would become. Like many others after him Joseph was loaded onto a cattle car with around fifty other Jews and shipped to Auschwitz. He went through selection like many others and this would be the last time he would see his mother and most siblings. Joseph, his father, and one brother were chosen as acceptable to work and the rest of his family he would never see again as they were taken to their deaths by gas or furnace. Auschwitz was a short stay for Joseph as he was shipped to a German work camp Darkow. He was in good physical shape and could work which allowed him to stay alive. Near the end of his stay he fell ill with typhus and luckily for him the camp was liberated shortly after. Joseph said that if he would have had to go a few more days he would not be here today. Joseph’s experience not only shook his faith in people but his faith in God also. His faith has never gotten back to how it was before the war and probably never will. He moved to the U.S. where he works as a barber and enjoys his life with his wife and 3 kids.
Coy Draheim
WWII changed many things for the Jewish people including the birth name of Joseph Morton. Born Joseph Markowitz in Lodz, Poland, Joseph wanted to leave behind any trace or reminder of the war. Joseph’s story like many other Jew’s was one of growing up in a smaller town in Europe and doing many ordinary things as a child. Joseph had five brothers and one sister, a father working as a tailor, and a stay at home mother. Joseph like many others had suffered small instances of anti-Semitism early on and even heard little bits of Hitler’s rise to power. He never knew how bad it would truly get. “One ear in, the other one out,” is a quote from Joseph when he describes hearing about Hitler’s rise. It was true that many Jews never knew how bad it would get and simply brushed off the news about the Nazis. Joseph’s town was one of the earliest towns in Poland to be occupied, with the war starting on a Wednesday and the Germans invading their town two days later on Friday. Things got bad quickly for Joseph and the Jews in Lodz. They were put to work early as kids cleaning floors and shortly after the occupation a ghetto was established. Life in the ghetto was miserable as one would imagine with starvation rampant. Jews were killed and hung in the market to give a warning to others that their invaders were serious. School was cancelled and wire walls were built to keep them in. This was paradise in fact for Joseph though; he had no idea of what his future would hold. Auschwitz did not exist in his world but it would soon become a reality. “We would kill ourselves before getting to the place,” is what Joseph had to say about his time right before Auschwitz if he would have known how bad it would become. Like many others after him Joseph was loaded onto a cattle car with around fifty other Jews and shipped to Auschwitz. He went through selection like many others and this would be the last time he would see his mother and most siblings. Joseph, his father, and one brother were chosen as acceptable to work and the rest of his family he would never see again as they were taken to their deaths by gas or furnace. Auschwitz was a short stay for Joseph as he was shipped to a German work camp Darkow. He was in good physical shape and could work which allowed him to stay alive. Near the end of his stay he fell ill with typhus and luckily for him the camp was liberated shortly after. Joseph said that if he would have had to go a few more days he would not be here today. Joseph’s experience not only shook his faith in people but his faith in God also. His faith has never gotten back to how it was before the war and probably never will. He moved to the U.S. where he works as a barber and enjoys his life with his wife and 3 kids.
Survivor Testimony #2
Survivor Testimony 2
Coy Draheim
Alfred Caro’s story starts like many other stories for Jews in the 1930’s. He was born in what started as Sampter, Poland but would soon be under German rule and considered part of Germany. Born to a tight knit family of 6 kids, Alfred’s father was a butcher and his mother was a stay at home mom. Unlike most Jews, Alfred led a really good life growing up and never experienced much anti-Semitism. He lived a typical teenage life going to dances playing sports, his favorite being boxing, and going to school. As far as religion went their family was conservative and believed but really only celebrated on the major Jewish holidays. The good life would quickly change however for Alfred in 1933 as the Reistacht was burned by the Nazis and Hitler’s rise to power would begin. Alfred and his family like many Jewish families had no idea of how bad things would truly get. Shortly after Alfred’s father would lose his business and the Nuremberg laws would be instated. Caro would hear of things getting worse for Jews like them being arrested and beaten around this time but not too much attention was paid to it. Shortly after however in his home town Alfred would be arrested and sent to the Zachzenhausen work camp. “So I was perplexed,” is how Alfred would describe being snatched up and taken here. Like many others he felt he had done nothing wrong and was wondering why the Germans were forcing him here. His time in the camp would go from bad to worse quickly. Like many other German work camps starvation was rampant and Alfred would describe the living conditions as horrible. Alfred said that you might get a piece of bread a day with some water, you would sleep on the floor, and the bathrooms or lack thereof were unsanitary. The fence surrounding the camp was used as a boundary and any Jew getting close to it was shot on spot. Alfred would describe the German guards as trained murderers. “Who was friend, who was enemy,” is how Caro would talk about the people inside the camp. With Germans and Jews fighting for survival one would have to watch their back in the camp. Alfred unlike many Jews was lucky though and only in the camp for six weeks. He was released and quickly went to Belgium. Unfortunately for Alfred he had to leave his family and this would be the last time he would see many of them again. He was forced to France shortly after on the run from the Germans and eventually would end up in Columbia, South America where he found a job working for a gold company. Unlike some Alfred kept his conservative faith throughout his life and would attend synagogue during major holidays. He moved to N.Y. City and was married with kids. Sadly for Alfred though he would never receive any news from his family.
Coy Draheim
Alfred Caro’s story starts like many other stories for Jews in the 1930’s. He was born in what started as Sampter, Poland but would soon be under German rule and considered part of Germany. Born to a tight knit family of 6 kids, Alfred’s father was a butcher and his mother was a stay at home mom. Unlike most Jews, Alfred led a really good life growing up and never experienced much anti-Semitism. He lived a typical teenage life going to dances playing sports, his favorite being boxing, and going to school. As far as religion went their family was conservative and believed but really only celebrated on the major Jewish holidays. The good life would quickly change however for Alfred in 1933 as the Reistacht was burned by the Nazis and Hitler’s rise to power would begin. Alfred and his family like many Jewish families had no idea of how bad things would truly get. Shortly after Alfred’s father would lose his business and the Nuremberg laws would be instated. Caro would hear of things getting worse for Jews like them being arrested and beaten around this time but not too much attention was paid to it. Shortly after however in his home town Alfred would be arrested and sent to the Zachzenhausen work camp. “So I was perplexed,” is how Alfred would describe being snatched up and taken here. Like many others he felt he had done nothing wrong and was wondering why the Germans were forcing him here. His time in the camp would go from bad to worse quickly. Like many other German work camps starvation was rampant and Alfred would describe the living conditions as horrible. Alfred said that you might get a piece of bread a day with some water, you would sleep on the floor, and the bathrooms or lack thereof were unsanitary. The fence surrounding the camp was used as a boundary and any Jew getting close to it was shot on spot. Alfred would describe the German guards as trained murderers. “Who was friend, who was enemy,” is how Caro would talk about the people inside the camp. With Germans and Jews fighting for survival one would have to watch their back in the camp. Alfred unlike many Jews was lucky though and only in the camp for six weeks. He was released and quickly went to Belgium. Unfortunately for Alfred he had to leave his family and this would be the last time he would see many of them again. He was forced to France shortly after on the run from the Germans and eventually would end up in Columbia, South America where he found a job working for a gold company. Unlike some Alfred kept his conservative faith throughout his life and would attend synagogue during major holidays. He moved to N.Y. City and was married with kids. Sadly for Alfred though he would never receive any news from his family.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
A Film Unfinished
Response to “A Film Unfinished”
The movie “A Film Unfinished,” raises many questions about intentions. Why would the Germans care so much about making life in the Warsaw ghetto look good to the outside world when in fact the 1.5 million Jewish people there were living in terrible conditions. The raw footage that was never meant to be seen by the outside world would shock and disgust all that viewed it. Another question raised by this is why did the Germans not get rid of the film that showed truly how miserable life in the ghetto was for the Jews. Did they think that it would never be seen by outside eyes? This movie was intended to show that life in the ghetto was not that bad for the Jews and that even though they were being held against their will they could lead lives of luxury within the ghetto. In fact the film did show scenes of a good life in the ghetto. But for every scene showing an actor living it up there was real video of people starving, dying on the streets, and leading lives in unsanitary conditions. The Jewish people in the ghetto become so accustomed to death in the ghetto that the raw footage in the film shows them walking past dead on the street without paying any notice, they were just used to it. Did the camera men shooting this film really not realize what the Germans were doing here and that this was truly a sign of things to come? The Jewish people starving and overall filth of the ghetto had to make a impact on the camera men. When people are being carted out of the ghetto dead and being buried by their fellows Jews in the masses the camera men had to realize that something was wrong. That this was just a step in the Germans master plan to eliminate the Jewish people. Many questions can be asked by this film and most of them cannot be answered now. If they camera men knew what was happening why didn’t they get it out to the world? Was it that they felt they would endanger themselves or that the world would not believe? The film shows all the truth anyone would need and more. Watching “A Film Unfinished,” makes one feel and question many things, and at this point many questions must remain unanswered.
The movie “A Film Unfinished,” raises many questions about intentions. Why would the Germans care so much about making life in the Warsaw ghetto look good to the outside world when in fact the 1.5 million Jewish people there were living in terrible conditions. The raw footage that was never meant to be seen by the outside world would shock and disgust all that viewed it. Another question raised by this is why did the Germans not get rid of the film that showed truly how miserable life in the ghetto was for the Jews. Did they think that it would never be seen by outside eyes? This movie was intended to show that life in the ghetto was not that bad for the Jews and that even though they were being held against their will they could lead lives of luxury within the ghetto. In fact the film did show scenes of a good life in the ghetto. But for every scene showing an actor living it up there was real video of people starving, dying on the streets, and leading lives in unsanitary conditions. The Jewish people in the ghetto become so accustomed to death in the ghetto that the raw footage in the film shows them walking past dead on the street without paying any notice, they were just used to it. Did the camera men shooting this film really not realize what the Germans were doing here and that this was truly a sign of things to come? The Jewish people starving and overall filth of the ghetto had to make a impact on the camera men. When people are being carted out of the ghetto dead and being buried by their fellows Jews in the masses the camera men had to realize that something was wrong. That this was just a step in the Germans master plan to eliminate the Jewish people. Many questions can be asked by this film and most of them cannot be answered now. If they camera men knew what was happening why didn’t they get it out to the world? Was it that they felt they would endanger themselves or that the world would not believe? The film shows all the truth anyone would need and more. Watching “A Film Unfinished,” makes one feel and question many things, and at this point many questions must remain unanswered.
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