the Netherlands

  • It is very easy to judge in retrospect. It is true that the Dutch could have and should have done more for their Jewish neighbours. However when even speaking out about the Nazi regime could get you arrested and even killed, it is understandable that people were reluctant to act, To be honest I would…

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  • One thing I only thought of today. On September 26 1940 there was a ban imposed on all Jewish newspapers in the Netherlands, with the exception of ” Het Joodsche Weekblad” the Jewish weekly. I always found that strange, why didn’t they ban all newspapers? Then today I cam across the story of Edmund Plesser…

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  • Education is often seen as a human right and it really should be, but so often it is a privilege taken away from many. Moshe Flinker was a teenager born in the Hague, in the Netherlands on October 9, 1926. He had a particular talent for language,he studied eight languages including Hebrew. The language he…

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  • “Reached the age of 9 years” may seem like a very matter of fact and brutal title , but the brutal honesty is many of the 1.5 million children murdered during the Holocaust did not even reach that age. Reached the age of 9 years should never be said of any child as the age…

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  • My interview with Eddy Boas survivor of Bergen Belsen and author of I am not a victim, I am a survivor.

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  • It is strange how things can come full circle. My first real blog was about an event during WWII in my hometown of which I was blissfully ignorant about, until I stumbled upon it by accident.. I came across the story of Frieda Goldschmidt-Jakob which actually ties into that story. On October 5,1942 the RAF…

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  • May 10, 2020 is Mother’s Day in most countries, with only a few exceptions like the UK and Ireland who had it on March 22. May 10 1943 is the date when one Jewish Mother and Grandmother was killed at Westerbork, aged 83. Her name was  Jeanette Meyer-Cahn, wife and  widow of Daniel Meyer. Daniel…

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  • There is a lot of rightful criticism about how the Dutch dealt with the Jews during WWII. A lot more could have been done, there is no question about that. But, it is easy to say these things in retrospect. If you are faced getting killed for a simple act of defiance , you might…

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  • In any war or crisis, there are companies that make a profit. To some people, this may sound disgusting—but unfortunately, it is a fact. Abraham Puls owned a removal company in Amsterdam. He had been a member of the NSB, the Dutch Nazis, since 1934. His company was responsible for the ransacking of the homes…

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  • NEVER AGAIN!

    Never Again, 2 simple words often spoken. But are they ever thought about. There is a contradiction in the words. Never as in not ever. Indicating that something will not happen anymore. Again, as in a re-occurring act. Going for a walk again, or having something to eat again. I am only mentioning these 2…

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