the Netherlands
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According to the Joods Monument-Jewish Monument, seven Dutch Jews were tragically murdered at Bergen-Belsen on this day, 81 years ago. Today, I am remembering one of them: Naatje Morpurgo-van Wijnbergen. Naatje was born in The Hague on March 11, 1874, and was murdered in Bergen-Belsen on January 30, 1945, at the age of 70. She…
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The number 12 is significant in religious, mythological and magical symbolism, generally representing perfection, entirety, or cosmic order in traditions since antiquity. It is also the number of full lunations in a solar year, thus the number of months in a solar calendar, as well as the number of signs in the Western and the…
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We all know the story of Anne Frank but unfortunately Anne wasn’t the only teenage who died in the camps. Helga Deen another teenage girl who lived in the Netherlands also died as result of the Nazi ideology and she also wrote a diary. Helga Deen (6 April 1925 – 16 July 1943) was the…
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As long as a name is mentioned, no one will be forgotten. is a quote I saw on the Joods Monument website(Jewish Monument) and it is so true. Sometimes I find it hard to find the inspiration and right words to remember those millions who were murdered, but just mentioning their names is sometimes enough…
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Nowadays we take it for granted that we can conduct in peaceful protest, as a means to highlight our grievances. However in Nazi occupied Amsterdam during World War 2 any form of protest could be and would be considered an act of resistance which could lead to being jailed and even death. On August 5,1940…
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On this day in 1945, Soviet troops liberated Auschwitz. January 27 is now observed by the United Nations as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Rather than trying to comprehend the millions who were murdered by the Nazis’ hateful ideology and regime, I want to focus on just one of them. Ralph Ronald Belinfante would have turned…
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Westerbork may not have been an extermination camp, but that didn’t mean it was less evil. In a way, it may have been eviler because it created an illusion that life wasn’t that bad and gave the people a false hope that their endurance of camp life would be temporary. The 261 couples married at…
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(Repost from March 12 2023) I recently interviewed Eddy Boas and his son Phil. Here are some of the subjects we touched on. Eddy Boas is a Holocaust survivor and author of the book I’m Not a Victim— I Am a Survivor. He was born in The Hague, the Netherlands, in 1940. Eddy was just…
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Hanna Isidora van PraagHanna Isidora van Praag was born in Amsterdam on 7 June 1928 and murdered at Auschwitz on 9 November 1943. She reached the age of 15 years. For Hanna Isidora van Praag Born beneath Amsterdam skies so fair,A whisper of wind, a dark hair,The streets she knew, the canals bright,Her laughter lit…
History of Sorts 