Essay On Ghetto In Germany

In 1933, one of the worst dictators known to man rose to become the chancellor of Germany. Behind his charming and likeable façade was a man who had a deep hatred for the Jewish community, claiming they were the reason for Germany’s economic decline. In 1934, after the death of President Hindenburg, Hitler assumed office and only then his true colors began to show. Under his control, Jewish ‘ghettos’ were established. Ghettos were a small area used for housing Jews after they were forced out of their homes. Several families were crammed into a tiny apartment that might’ve even been too small for just one family on their own. But this was just the beginning of Hitler’s destructive journey. As if the ghettos weren’t terrible enough, labor camps were created, and then the extermination camps. Jews and other minorities were forced legally into these camps, and millions were being slaughtered and dying every day. Despite the millions of people who looked forward to Hitler and his promise to make Germany flourish again, there were also people who despised him for murdering thousands of innocent
people a day. Nazi resistance groups seemed to restore faith in humanity as they used many tactics to try to wake up those people who were brainwashed by Hitler’s potential, and expose them to the harsh truth of their reality.
In the early summer of 1942, Willi Graf, Christopher Probst, Sophie Schol, and Hans Schol formed a non-violent resistance group in Germany. The group also included students from the University of Munich and their philosophy teacher. The group called themselves the “White Rose Society”, and became famous for distributing leaflets that brought awareness to the terrible treatment the Jews faced due to Hitler’s power. The group co-authorized six leaflets, all encouraging Germans to non-violently resist the Nazis. Hundreds of these leaflets were created using a hand operated duplicating machine, put into envelopes and then stamped to be shipped off to major cities in southern Germany. The group of friends had to be very careful and cautious when distributing these leaflets, facing the chance of death if they were ever to be caught. The leaflets were also left in telephone booths, and sent to people who were often scholars and medics to confuse the Gestapo investigators. On three nights in February 1943, Hans, Alex, and Willi used tar paint to write incriminating slogans on the sides of houses in Ludwigstrasse, a major city in Munich. On February 18, 1943, their display of bravery didn’t go unnoticed when a janitor saw Sophie throw extra leaflets from the top floor of the school. The janitor, Jakob Schmid, called the police and Hans and Sophie were immediately found and taken into Gestapo custody. Other members of the group were captured and charged with treason as well. On February 22, 1943, Judge Roland Freisler found Hans, Sophie, and Christopher guilty and sentenced them to death. They were all beheaded by an executioner in Munich’s Stadelheim prison. Sophie’s last recorded words were said as she walked to her execution; “The sun still shines.”

Another well- known Nazi resistance group were called the Partisans. They were Jewish armed forces who operated in France, Russia, Poland, Belgium, the Ukraine, Lithuania, and Belorussia. These Jews fought the Germans in city ghettos and behind the front lines in the forest. They damaged German infrastructure by destroying supply trains, power plants, and communication lines. Resisters smuggled children to safety, freed some of the prisoners, and acted as messengers to bring news to the people trapped in the ghettos. Although they succeeded in saving many Jews, the Partisans faced a major disadvantage when they were compared to the Germans. The Germans were skilled in both arms and manpower, but the Jews familiarity with the forest helped to balance that out. Family camps were formed in which Jewish civilians repaired weapons, made clothes, and cooked for the fighters. It was a lot easier for Partisans to form in Western Europe then it was in Eastern Europe due to the anti-Semitism and lack of support the Partisans faced in Eastern Europe. Many of the Jewish Partisan groups in western Europe joined forces with anti-Nazi paramilitary groups that also resisted Gestapo and Hitler’s power. The people in Eastern Europe were heavily influenced by Hitler and brainwashed by his promises which led to the lack of support the Partisans faced by their own communities. The Partisans undoubtedly were of big help, saving over ten-thousand Jews that would’ve died if they weren’t strong enough to last through starvation, strenuous labor, and the other extreme activities that were forced upon them.
Jehovah Witnesses also resisted the Nazi’s in a nonviolent way. They refused to participate in anything that Hitler was involved in. Many of their actions were antagonizing to the Nazi officers as the witnesses often refused to give Nazi salute, join party organizations, embellish their homes with Nazi flags, and participate in elections or plebiscites. Special units of Gestapo compiled a list of all people who were suspected to be Jehovah witnesses. The secret state police agents invaded bible study meetings, prohibiting them from conversing about their beliefs and religion furthermore. When Germany brought back heavy military service in March of 1935, conflict with the witnesses spiraled out of control. Jehovah witnesses refused to be drafted or participate in any military related services. They also continued to meet illegally at underground bible studies, which only angered the Nazi’s even more. Thus, active witnesses were arrested and incarcerated in prisons and concentration camps, and by 1939, six-thousand witnesses were detained in camps. Some were tortured until they signed declarations renouncing their faith, but only few gave in. Witnesses in the camps and prisons were dependent on each other to support and sustain one another, and heavily believed that their suffering was part of the work that god gave them. An estimated number of Jehovah witnesses that died in camps is roughly around 1,600. Even though they didn’t have a huge impact on stopping Hitler and the holocaust itself, Jehovah witnesses resisted to support their changing nation.
It’s very unfortunate and sad that Hitler was able to convince people what he was doing was in the best interest for them, but he did.
He used his charm and intellect to brainwash people into believing murdering innocent human beings was going to change Germany’s economic downfall, and bring a great new beginning. Many people went through the days knowing what was going on just outside their homes and down the street, but did nothing either because they condoned it, or because they were too fearful for their own life. But there were some who were brave and selfless, people who had the courage to risk their life to stand up against Hitler and the Nazi’s. They believed that the Jews and other minorities in those camps were humans just like themselves, and didn’t deserve the treatment they received. Because these people put their lives on the line daily, they will forever be
heroes.