Holocaust

Holocaust

World War 2

Anti-Semitism

Anti-Semitism refers to views or actions that harm or discriminate against Jews. During the Middle Ages, many Europeans persecuted, or punished, Jews for religious reasons. They thought Jews should be punished for not accepting Christianity. This persecution often took the form of violent attacks. Anti-Semitism also forced Jews to live in segregated neighborhoods called ghettos.

Open Ended

The text mentions the word "ghetto". Write a description of what a ghetto is to you. Use words to help us visualize what it looks like.

The Nuremburg Laws: Where it all Began

• Nazis gained control of Germany in 1933

• Policies against Jews were set.

• The laws against Jews started in 1935

Read this carefully to answer the upcoming questions

These laws defined Jews as a race rather than a religious group. What mattered was whether a person’s ancestors were Jewish. Whatever that person’s religion was now, he or she was declared to be a Jew. Anyone who had more than two Jewish grandparents lost their German citizenship. They could not marry non-Jews. They lost many political and civil rights....Hitler ordered German citizens to boycott Jewish-owned businesses. He also banned Jewish citizens from certain opportunities. They could no longer hold jobs in civil service, banking, or medicine.

Multiple Choice

How did the Nazis define Jews?

• skin color

• race and religion of ancestors

• age

• males only

Open Ended

What are your thoughts on the video "Knight of Broken Glass"? (What surprised you? What seemed wrong? Were the Nazis right to retaliate after a Jewish person murdered a German leader?)

Poll

What do you think that the Jews should have done after their stores and communities were destroyed?

• Stay in Germany and rebuild their community

• Fight back and protest

• Try to leave the country.

Jewish Refugees and the United States’ Response

As a result of Nazi persecution, thousands of Jews left Germany in the 1930s. Many more tried to leave but had nowhere to go. Many countries set limits on immigration. These countries refused to accept large numbers of Jews. In the United States, the Immigration Act of 1924 set an annual quota of immigrants from each country. For example, once Germany had met its quota of immigrants for the year, the United States would not allow any more German immigrants until the next year. This quota system was popular during the Great Depression when jobs were scarce. However, it prevented thousands of Jews from immigrating to the United States.

Multiple Choice

The United States set a quota on the number of immigrants. What is the best definition of the word "quota"?

• It is a government-imposed restriction that limits the number or money value of goods that a country can import or export during a particular period.

• It is a word that shows hatred towards others.

Poll

Were the United States right for having a quota for the amount of immigrants during the Great Depression?

• Yes

• No

What was the Holocaust?

Nazi Germany’s system of persecuting and murdering European Jews is known as the Holocaust. The Holocaust was an act of genocide. Genocide is an attempt to kill all members of a particular group of people.

Watch this video of a drone flying over a concentration camp. Just imagine being there during the Holocaust.

Open Ended

What stood out to you about the Drone view over a concentration camp?

Who was targeted by the Nazis?

The Nazis also persecuted and murdered millions of people other than the Jews. They believed that these other groups also were not fit to live. These groups included Roma (or gypsies) and people with mental and physical disabilities. The SS also murdered Slavs (an ethnic group in Eastern Europe) and a religious group called Jehovah’s Witnesses. Nazis also considered gay people and communists to be their enemies, and they murdered them. During the war, the Nazis also killed three million Soviet prisoners of war.

Multiple Choice

Were Jews the only target of the Nazis during the Holocaust?

• Yes

• No

Open Ended

What surprised you about who the Nazis targeted? Explain

Jewish Ghetto

Watch the Video. Questions will follow the video.

Multiple Choice

What location was focused on in the video?

• Warsaw, Poland

• Moscow, Soviet Union

• New York, New York

Multiple Choice

Where did people in the ghetto eventually get sent to?

• A country

• Concentration camp or death camp

• Day care camp

The Final Solution

Hitler's Plan

The Nazis have a problem???

 The SS killing units were not working quickly enough to satisfy German officials. By spring 1942, the Nazi leadership set up the “Final Solution.” This was a policy to operate death camps for efficiently murdering Jews and others. These Nazi death camps were located in territory Germany had conquered from Poland. The two largest camps were near the towns of Auschwitz and Treblinka. At these camps, SS soldiers separated physically fit prisoners from the others. The physically fit were forced to do hard labor under harsh conditions. Many of these workers died.

Open Ended

Recently, in America, some have suggested to remove certain statues, and other things that are part of America's past. The narrator at the end of the video says that this place holds memories that one should never forget.

Do you think that a place as terrible as a concentration camp be destroyed or do you think that is should stay? Explain.