Amsterdam
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This is probably my most personal blog. I will not mention the names of the people involved, but I don’t think knowing the names is actually relevant. On June 13, 1991 the partially covered body of 18 year old Jessica R was found near a dump in Bergen op Zoom, in the province of Noord
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It is easy to blame the Germans for the Holocaust and of course for the most part they are to blame for it. However there were many in the occupied countries who were very happy to lend a helping hand. There were even more who did something worse then helping out. There were those who
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On 5 July 1942, Margot Frank received a summons to report for forced labor in Germany. She was among the first Jews in the Netherlands to be called up. Her parents, Otto and Edith, did not want her to go—but refusal often led to arrest. Anticipating such an event, the Franks had already prepared a
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Anne Frank and Peter van Pels’s first kiss is one of the most touching and human moments in Anne’s diary, The Diary of a Young Girl. This event unfolds during one of the most challenging periods of Anne’s life, and it provides a poignant glimpse into the emotional complexity of adolescence in the face of
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A baby with the eyes of an angel. Edith Poppelsdorf was born in Amsterdam on 28 December 1941. She was murdered at Auschwitz on 16 August 1942. She reached the age of 7 months. Someone looked into those eyes and decided to send her to the gas chambers. That’s all I really can say about Edith.
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When reflecting on the persecution of Jews and others during the Holocaust, it’s tempting to judge those who stood by and did nothing, condemning their inaction and confidently asserting, “I would have acted differently.” However, the truth is, none of us can truly know how we would respond unless faced with the same horrifying circumstances.
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In a secret annex, hidden from sight,A girl named Anne penned dreams in the night.Amidst the shadows, where fears took flight,Her words found wings, a beacon of light. A diary’s pages, inked with her pain,Chronicles of hope amidst the rain.Whispers of laughter, echoes of tears,A testament to youth’s fleeting years. Behind the curtains, the world
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Below is a translation of a diary excerpt by an unknown author, dated May 26. 1943.While the author does not specifically mention the deportation of Jews, he describes the forced conscription of young men for labor in Germany. Commercial Representative, 47 years old – AmsterdamMay 26, 1943 The conscription of the 1921–22–23 birth years has
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A few years ago, I was asked to give a speech at my eldest son’s high school graduation as a representative of the Parents’ Council. I ended the speech with a quote from Margot Frank. “Times change, people change, thoughts about good and evil change, about true and false. But what always remains fast and
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Catharina Brücker was the eldest child of Romanian tailor Mozes Brücker (1892–1944) and the Dutch Rossetta Eijl (1896–1944). Her father made women’s clothing for major fashion houses in Rotterdam and owned several shops in the city. From age six until she was twenty, Catharina attended a dance school where she learned ballet, tap dance, and
History of Sorts 