Holocaust
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On 2 August 1942, 245 Jewish Catholics in the Netherlands were arrested. To the Nazis it didn’t matter if they had converted to Catholicism, in their eyes and according to their laws these people were still considered Jewish. Else, Michaelis was among them. Else Michaelis was born in Berlin on March 30, 1889. Her father…
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Last week, I had the privilege of interviewing Dr. Mehak Burza. Although I was suffering from a bad cold at the time, I went ahead with the interview because the message was too important, and I wanted to honor Dr. Burza’s generosity in making time for me. We spoke about her studies and how the…
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In the summer of 1943, Suze Arts, a young unmarried mother, got a job as an SS Aufseherin (female guard) at Camp Vught. She followed a six-week ‘training course’ at the notorious Ravensbrück women’s camp and became one of the most notorious female guards of Camp Vught. Susanne (Suze) Arts was born as the middle…
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Viktor Ullmann’s “Der Kaiser von Atlantis” (The Emperor of Atlantis) is a unique and poignant opera composed during World War II. During this time, Ullmann was imprisoned in the Theresienstadt Concentration Camp. Viktor Ullmann was born on January 1, 1898, in Teschen, Austrian Silesia (now Český Těšín in the Czech Republic). Both his parents were…
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y When I write about Holocaust victims, I always try to write it from their point of view. I put myself in their shoes, so to speak, But I find it increasingly difficult to do; it physically affects me. In the case of the Polak family, I decided to just stick with the raw data…
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In 1993, the Dutch band “De Jazz Politie” wrote a song titled “Ze Zijn Terug,” which translates into English as They Are Back. The song was a protest against the rise of right-wing radicalism and neo-Nazism. The song is described from the perspective of a Holocaust survivor who relives her experiences through the right-wing radical…
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This grave is of 1 Lt Alvin X Zeidenfeld on Plot O Row 22 Grave 17. Netherlands American Cemetery.Margraten, Netherlands. He was one of the 8301 soldiers buried there. A few years ago, we were allowed to scatter our Father’s ashes on this hallowed soil. Lt Alvin X Zeidenfeld was a First Lieutenant with the…
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We are in the middle of the UEFA European Championship, and I thought it would be a good idea to look at some European footballers who were murdered during the Holocaust. György Szeder, born György Silberstein, this left winger used a different name to disguise his Jewish identity. He was just 19 when he joined…
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Delphine Anja Jennifer Drielsma Delphine was born in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, on 19 June 1939. and murdered in Auschwitz, Poland, on 24 September 1942. She reached the age of three. A 3-year-old enemy of the state. Which state, though? In a world where shadows linger, cold and gray,A tender soul was taken far away,Innocence wrapped…
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Rywka Lipszyc was a young Jewish girl who wrote a poignant diary during her time in the Lodz Ghetto in Poland during World War II. Her diary provides a personal and intimate glimpse into the life and thoughts of a teenager living under the extreme conditions of Nazi persecution. In I945, Rywka’s diary was found…
History of Sorts 