Bystanders During The Holocaust

When the Nazis settled that the Jews were the primary cause of Germany’s problems in the Second World War, they launched a mission aimed at torturing and killing them (Rosenfield 28). In particular, they sought to wipe all the Jews out of the surface of the earth. To gain political mileage, Hitler faulted the Jews for Germany’s economic woes following the First World War. This further created a lot of negative feelings required for Hitler to come and rule Germany. He embarked on a mission geared towards imprisoning the Jewish people in concentration camps. In January 1937, 214,000 Jews by religious definition lived in Germany. The persecution of the Jews in 1940s took

The role of ordinary Germans in the Holocaust is that of bystanders. The people of Germany watched on, without protest, as the Jewish people were murdered. Small and large jobs such as engineering and railway work contributed to the operation of the Holocaust and the murdering of Jews. The manipulation of the German people, through racist and anti-Semitic propaganda, speeches and polices from Hitler, meant that millions of Germans backed the plans to rid the nation of Jews. The idea that the Jews were responsible for economic, social and political issues was endorsed and it led to the idea that their banishment would lead Germany into a brighter future. Many people did not intend on aiding the Holocaust, but minor jobs that they did

Throughout the extensive reign of Hitler, there were many types of people, almost separated as books are separated in genres. Some included of the vocally defiant Germans, the captive Jews, the individuals and families in hiding, and the silent ones who did not speak out for what they believed in, whether it was for or against the actions of the Nazis. These passive individuals were not immediately affected by the policies set in place for the Jews and such groups. This is shown in the poem “First They Came,” in the stanza “When they came for the Jews, I remained silent; I wasn't a Jew” (Holocaust Encyclopedia). This shows that certain people really perceived the instances that were transpiring as not affecting themselves or their family directly, yet it exemplifies the cowardice that some had experienced themselves

Over six million people died in the Holocaust. Family, friends, and other people with the same ethnicity that they didn't even know were killed left and right. From the crematory to getting hung. Was it best for them to help each other or was it to protect themselves and not care about anyone else? (Prompt 5)

The Holocaust was a time that left a big scar on the culture of our world as a whole and there are still people suffering from it still to this day. In my investigation I will be looking at to what extent did the Holocaust affect the survivors, both mentally and physically upon return home from the concentration camps. I will be looking at books, both present and from the time period that talk about how they felt and what happened when they got home. I will also surf the internet, find interviews with survivors, look for articles, and newspapers from the time in order to get a better idea of what was going on in their life. I will then compare and contrast the facts at hand and pull out and mix what is the same and

Perpetrators Victims Bystanders The Jewish Catastrophe 1933-1945 is written by Raul Hilberg. Hilberg earned a bachelor’s degree from Brooklyn College and his Ph.D. from Columbia University. Hilberg also was a professor at the University of Vermont in Burlington. He is well known for actually establishing Holocaust studies. Raul Hilberg was an Austrian born citizen who came to America in 1939. He did this when he wrote and published his book Destruction of the European Jews which was met with controversy. This however is just one of many accomplishments that he had in his life. When he came to America, he got drafted and fought in World War II which gave him a firsthand account of the horrific war. During his service, he was

When the invasion on Poland began, people were running, screaming, and try to find a place to stay safe from the Nazis. Later during the Holocaust war, most of the Jews that were not captured hid in barns, attics, basements, barns, churches and even in the forest. People would risk their life to go and steal food for themselves or their family’s when the Nazi soldiers were on patrol. Jews would spend years in safe houses and trying to steal food and sometimes when they went out to get food, they never came back. Risk takers and safe houses were the two difficult things to do in order to survive during the holocaust

The holocaust one of the darkest times in history, as there were people standing up for the Jews there were also people that stood there and watched the Jews being beaten or killed. Up standers affected the holocaust tremendously as Jews were being killed some people would stand up for them and sometimes even put their own life at risk for others. Also there were bystanders they did not affect the holocaust at all they stood and watched innocent lives taken for their religion.

I.The bystanders were those people alliance, agency stood by and watched as a results of the atrocities mounted throughout the globe.

complied with the laws and tried to avoid the terrorizing activities of the Nazi regime.

In the world during the time of the Holocaust, there was indifference towards the suffering of millions of Jews. When individuals reflect about the Holocaust, the majority of the time the responsibility of the terrible events is placed upon the perpetrators. However, bystanders and witnesses indirectly affected the victims of the Holocaust as well. The silence of these people played one of the largest roles in the Holocaust, they influenced it by avoiding any type of involvement and by becoming blinded towards the suffering of others. In his Academy Award acceptance speech, Elie Wiesel says, “the opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference”. This exert from his speech reveals the importance

Baron, L., & Eisman, H. (1996). Stress resilience, locus of control, and religion in children of Holocaust victims. Journal Of Psychology, 130 (5), 513. Retrieved from

It is a challenge to reconcile human beliefs in compassion and morality with the actions, or inactions, of bystanders in the Holocaust. How is it possible that hundreds of thousands of people stood by while millions faced pain and suffering? Before exonerating or condemning all of them, it is necessary to consider the differences in bystanders. For the context of the Holocaust, a bystander is someone who was neither a target of the Nazis or a Nazi themselves. Putting all of these people in the same group is an oversimplification, because it ignores the power system in place during the Holocaust and the various positions of bystanders in that system. The wealthy business owner is not the same as the working-class mother of four. In this situation, one has considerable power and ability, and the other does not. Applying a blanket statement, and calling the latter unjust when they are ordinary people in a time of horrific war is contrary to reason. It is also necessary to consider the extent of bystander’s actions. Have their actions merely helped to ensure their own survival, or do they directly hurt Holocaust victims? The magnitude of each situation is varied. In conclusion, to gauge the morality of a bystander’s actions, they need to be judged on an individual basis, with two qualities in mind: that person’s ability to act and the effect of their actions.

It is common knowledge about how badly the Jewish community was abused during the holocaust. It is true that they were treated horrifically, but there are many more victims of the holocaust that have been skipped over and forgotten. These victims also deserve recognition to what they experienced during the holocaust. There were so many other victims that when added up the number of deaths was over the numbers of jewish victims. These victims were most likely treated as horrifically as the jewish community was, if not worse.

It is challenging to reconcile our belief in compassion and morality with the actions, or inactions, of bystanders in the Holocaust. How is it possible that hundreds of thousands of people stood by while millions faced pain and suffering? For the context of the Holocaust, a bystander is someone who was neither a target of the Nazis or a Nazi themselves. Before exonerating or condemning all of them, it is necessary to consider the differences in bystanders. Putting all of the bystanders in the same group is an oversimplification, for the reason that it ignores the power system in place during the Holocaust and the various positions of bystanders in that system. The wealthy business owner is not the same as the working-class mother of four. In this situation, one has considerable power and ability, and the other is much more limited. It is contrary to reason to apply a blanket statement and call the latter unjust when they are ordinary people in a time of horrific war. It is also necessary to consider the extent of bystander’s actions. Have their actions merely helped to ensure their own survival, or do they directly hurt Holocaust victims? To gauge the morality of a bystander’s actions, they need to be judged on an individual basis, with two qualities in mind: that person’s ability to act and the effect of their actions.