Bahr's Testimonies

The “Testimonies of SS Men” provides further examples that the Nazi regime shaped the perpetration of the Holocaust, not simply willing individuals. For example, observe Bahr’s testimony. Bahr was an SS officer responsible for gassing victims in a concentration camp. The counsel asks Bahr how long the victims took to die, how long it took to gas them, and why he killed. Bahr simply responds that he does not know; he just obeyed orders (Testimonies, 2). When pressed further about why he gassed people, Bahr responded that he “only had orders to pour the gas in” and did not know anything else about it (Testimonies, 2). Bahr’s testimony implies that he distanced himself from the victims. This ordinary man does not appear to have such animosity