Jewish Resistance Essay

The Holocaust was one of the most horrifying genocides in the 18th century. It was the greatest mass killing ever in History. The Holocaust had resistance but if you were a person that you were in a resistance there would be extreme retaliation if you were caught by the nazis and they will proceed more of the population to stop resistance against them. Even though they were getting smaller in numbers they wouldn’t stop fighting for their lives. Concentration camps and Jewish Ghettos were beginning to fight back and they were so prevailed even if they knew they had no chance against the nazis. Joseph Stalin heard about many resistances that were in Eastern Europe and he wanted to set an underground movement to occupy enemies but it did not work well at all. With the influx of the Jews that were in forests in hiding they would interfere with enemy communication by cutting off telephones, telegraphs and power stations. They did whatever they could stay alive as long as possible.

The author Elie Wiesel said, “There are victories of the soul and spirit. Sometimes, even if you lose, you win”. People often wonder how there was barely any resistance to the Nazis without realizing that the resistance was hidden just under the Germans nose’s. One such resistance group was called the Jewish Fighting Organization. The group was otherwise known as the ZOB. The Jewish Fighting Organization aimed to gain control of the Warsaw Ghetto because they could no longer stand by and watch their family and friends be deported to concentration camps.

The lack of resistance and ignorance of the ordinary German population cost many million Jewish lives. The Nazi party’s desire for popularity and support meant that if there was a protest, actions would be taken to keep the public happy, or quiet, with minimal loss of reputation and status. In other words, it meant that the people could win. One successful attempt of protest proved that this theory would have worked. The Rosenstrasse Protest that occurred on the 27th of February 1943 led to the release of several hundred Jewish men from a Gestapo headquarters. This symbolic protest highlighted the fact that if the public were to protest, the execution of Jews could have been slowed or even halted. Despite this, the Rosenstrasse Protest remained the only large protest against the Holocaust throughout its entire duration. This means that the German population continued to ignore and become passive bystanders of the genocide happening around

Throughout the Holocaust, Jews organized resistance movements in ghettos, concentration, and extermination camps. Although they had virtually no weapons and faced one of the largest arsenals in the world, the Jewish people fought for their honor and freedom. Without any hope victory and in the face of death, resistance fighters found the courage to take on evil in its purest form. Their efforts must not go in vein; to them we must accord our respect. This is a brief testimony of their fight against the Nazi regime.

Despite all of these internal and external factors contributing to a lack of Jewish resistance to the Holocaust, there was resistance in existence in many forms; the resistance that did occur must not be diminished or overlooked. When considering the definition of “resistance”, historians divide themselves on what this entails; some believe it to be only active, armed resistance attempts, while others define it more liberally. According to Yehuda Bauer, resistance entails “any group action consciously taken in opposition to known or surmised laws, actions, or intentions directed against the Jews by the Germans and their supporters.” Considering resistance with a broad definition such as this ensures that the efforts made at resistance

During this time the Jews were not expecting for what came, and was very unprepared for the step by step process that happened to make them disappear (Boag). “Up until the nationwide anti-Jewish violence of 1938, known as Kristallnacht, many Jews in Germany expected to be able to hold out against Nazi-sponsored persecution,” (“Holocaust Memorial Council”). The Jewish people of Germany looked at themselves to be German and did many things to prove it, like fight for their country in World War I (“Holocaust Memorial Council”). More than 10,000 Jewish people died fighting for their country in World War I, and many others that didn’t die were congratulated for the work they did by receiving a medal (“Holocaust Memorial Council”).

The Nazis changed life for Jews living in Europe politically, economically, and socially. Politically, the Nazis denaturalized the Jewish immigrants (document 11). Meaning, they took away the Jews citizenship rights and privileges. Not only were the Jews precluded from citizenship, but they were also denied the right to hold a public office or civil service position (document 11). Significantly speaking, no Jews had powerful roles in society. Economically the Nazis changed life for the Jews living in Europe because they

Therefore, the external and internal conditions of the ghettos and concentration camps made it extremely challenging for Jewish resistance. Despite these horrific conditions, the creation of a Jewish military organization, fighting in Partisans bands, the death camp revolts, and the ghetto uprisings negate the argument that the Jews of Europe of were passive before the darkest period in modern history, the Jewish genocide. As a whole, the Jews did not accept their death mutely, as sheep to the slaughter.

Examining any issue pertaining to the Holocaust is accompanied with complexity and the possibility of controversy. This is especially true in dealing with the topic of Jewish resistance to the Holocaust. Historians are often divided on this complex issue, debating issues such as how “resistance” is defined and, in accordance with that definition, how much resistance occurred. According to Michael Marrus, “the very term Jewish resistance suggests a point of view.” Many factors, both internal such as differences in opinion on when or what resistance was appropriate, as well as external, such as the lack of arms with which to revolt, contributed to making resistance, particularly armed resistance, extremely difficult. When considering acts

When it comes to rights and responsibilities, the Nazi soldiers abused their power and diminished Jewish rights. It was their belief (the Nazi soldiers) that it was their job to destroy and end a race, the Jewish race. They were led by the all famous Adolf Hitler. Many are surprised that Adolf Hitler was able to carry his evil plan so far, and others are not surprised at all.

     It is hard to grasp the number of lives lost during the Holocaust. How someone could have so much hatred towards one group of people. Or how so many people could set back and watch something like this take place without protest. To begin to understand how a tragedy like the Holocaust could have took place without intervention we need to understand antisemitism.

to turn this away and try for a second life. He is like you or I and

The Nazis scream on the death marches at the Jewy: “Faster, you tramps, you flea-ridden dogs!” which forces them to run faster to the next concentration camp (Wiesel 85). They don't have the ability to decide where they want to go or if they want to make a break, because the Nazi soldiers threaten them with death. In the graphic novel Maus by Spiegelman Vladek explains that “International laws protected us a little as Polish war prisoners. But a Jew of the Reich, anyone could kill in the streets” which is a very interesting because prisoners committed a crime or killed people, but Jews didn't do anything like that, they just wanted to live in peace, but the prisoners had more rights and more ways to decide about their life than Jews due to international laws. Basic rights were also taken away by the Germans - The Jews weren't even allowed “…to

their lives by celebrating holidays and educating themselves. Their daily lives were already quite difficult, from even the smallest things such as having small sleeping spaces and difficulty obtaining necessities, to more crucial aspects such as having to hide from the invading Nazis. Combined, all these aspects make it indisputable that the Jews of Europe had suffered more than anyone else during World War II.

Throughout the history of the world, the Jewish people have been persecuted and oppressed because of their religious beliefs and faith. Many groups of people have made Jews their scapegoat. Jews have suffered from years of intolerance because people have not understood what the religion really means. They do not understand where and why the religion began, nor the customs of it's people. For one to understand the great hardships, triumphs, and history of the Jewish people one must open-mindedly peruse a greater knowledge of the Jewish people and faith.