Crimes against humanity and genocide - Essay Example

Running Head: Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide of the of the institution] Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide The Holocaust is, without a doubt, one f the most horrific times in European and world history. Hitler was able to take advantage f certain insecurities f the German people and exploit them to coincide with his viewpoint f how the world should operate. Since the German people were already at a very low time after their defeat in World War I, they needed a scapegoat to blame all f their problems on. Hitler was able to provide them withone, the Jews. (Braham 1981, 41-46) The Holocaust does not begin with the first shots fired in 1939, or a charismatic leader whose speeches entranced the nation; it begins with a boy named Adolph Hitler. Hitler was born on April 20, 1889 in Vienna Austria to Alois Hitler and his third wife, Klara. Hitler had a very difficult childhood, as his father was demanding and critical f his every move. He expected Hitler to follow his example and work for the Austrian government as he had. The young Hitler had bigger things in mind. He first wanted to become an artist, then an architect. He failed at both. Hitler soon found himself drifting and alone in Vienna. He could barely keep a regular job and would occasionally stay at a homeless shelter. Hitler came to hate Vienna, for it was a place that represented poverty and failure. In one f his writing's he told f how foreign the city seemed and how repelled he became from the whole mixture f people: Czech's, Poles, Serb's, Jews and more Jews. In the spring f 1912 Hitler left Austria and moved to Munich, Germany. (Simpson 1993, 100-101) In 1914, war broke out through most f Europe and Hitler quickly enlisted in the German army. Though he never rose above the rank f corporal, he nevertheless found a place for himself. In civilian life he was a failed artist with few friends and virtually no social life. The war gave Hitler a place to outlet his fanatical German nationalism, for he believed in "Deutschland euber alles," or "Germany over all." (Lerner 1992, 21-30) In 1918 the unthinkable happened--Germany conceded defeat at the hands f the allies. Hitler's world literally fell apart, and he could not understand how the great German army could lose to supposedly "inferior" nations. Searching for someone to blame, Hitler settled on the Jews, the Communists, and the New Democratic Government. He concluded that these groups had "stabbed Germany in the back"(the holocaust pg 42) by handing information over to the allies which had lead to Germany's defeat. (Staub 1989, 31-36) By the mid 1920's, Hitler had joined and quickly rose to the top f a small political party called the German Workers Party. Hitler used his charismatic and persuasive personality to mold and shape the party to reflect certain views, especially German Nationalism and anti-Semitism. Hitler worked very hard to improve his party's image and in 1927 he changed the name to the National Socialist Party, also known as Nationalsozialistische, or the Nazi Party. Many people were beginning to realize that the Nazi's were a force to be reckoned with. (Porter 1982, 1-3) In 1932, Hitler ran for presidency but lost to Paul von Hindenburg, an aristocratic military commander. 1933 marked the great rise f Nazi Germany when Hindenburg appointed Hitler to the position f supreme German chancellor. (Hintin 2002, 1-7) The fire f the Reichstag, the German parliament, marked the day when all hope was lost. The Nazi's convinced most f Hindenburg that the cause f the fire was a communist uprising and Hindenburg agreed to sign an emergency decree to control the situation. This decree took away all individual freedoms and privileges and would grant Hitler the power to make his own laws without having to pass them through parliament. (Burleigh 1997, 25-27) The Jews were the ones who were beginning to feel the wrath f Hitler's oppression. Hitler began to pass many laws that forbade non-Jews to shop at Jewish owned businesses. Jew's were harassed in the streets, synagogues were burned, and young Jews were forced out f the public education program. This was only the beginning f Hitler's "master plan." Hitler and his fellow Nazi leaders formulated a plan to rid the world f all non-Aryan peoples. Hitler believed that all other races were inferior to the great Aryan¹ race and that once Germany conquered Europe they should have no place in it. Only the so-called Aryan "super-race" would exist. (Segev 1993, 25-30) In their efforts to produce a pure Aryan race, the Nazi's also persecuted others who were regarded as inferior. Between 1933 and 1935, laws were passed to reduce their number f these--mainly by compulsory sterilization programs. Children f African-German origin and the mentally handi-capped were surgically sterilized, often brutally, so that they could not have children. It is estimated between "300,000 and 400,000 were subjected to the sterilization procedures" (the Holocaust pg 21). Since coming to power, Hitler had built up Germany's fighting strength. He began to extend the boundaries f Germany as part f his policy f creating lebensraum or "living room" as he called it. His plan meant breaking the Treaty f Versailles, which was established to keep Germany from becoming too powerful after WWI. Step-by-step, Hitler began absorbing nations into his empire. At each stage there was no opposition from the allies because they didn't believe Hitler intended total European occupation. On September 1, 1939 Hitler launched a massive attack on Poland, which marked the start f World-War-II. (Markusen 1995, 27-30) War offered the opportunity for the Nazis to extend their horrific plan to rid the world f Jews and other people they regarded as inferior. The Nazi's adopted a plan known as Judenfrei. As the Nazis occupied Eastern countries, they rounded up all the Jews into sealed off ghettos where the Jews were shut out from the rest f the world. Living conditions in the ghettos were horrific. "The ghettos were unbearably overcrowded. For example, the Warsaw ghetto in Poland held 400,000 people and was no more then a few city blocks in size" (Hitler's Rise to power and the Holocaust p 152). The ghettos had no clean water or sanitation, and food was hard to come by for long periods f time. There was no virtually no form f heating to help the Jews get through the harsh winters. It is not surprising that many jews died from disease and starvation in these conditions. On January 20, 1942, Hitler met with senior Nazi officials at Wannsee on the outskirts f Berlin to discuss how they were going to deal with the cleansing f the Aryan race. They called this "Jewish Question". It was here that they adopted, as official policy, Hitler's plan to exterminate all eleven million f Europe's Jews. They called this the "Final Solution". Immediately after the meeting, preparations were made to install gas chambers in what came to be known as extermination or death camps. (Landau 1994, 51-56) The Nazi's established six death camps throughout Poland. These death camps were usually coupled with a concentration camp to handle the manual labour to assist in the war effort and the maintenance f the camps. The Nazi's also established many individual concentrations camps throughout Nazi-controlled Europe. All f these camps were all located in semi-rural locations but close to railway lines so that large amounts f people could be transported quickly and efficiently. (Insdorf 2003, 1-11) The inmates f the concentration camps, although saved from the gas chambers, were not given an easy way out. They were forced to work long hours with little to no food and harsh living condition in which disease ran rampant. Many did not survive to see the end f the war. In June 1944, the forces f Britain, the United States, and Canada, landed on the beaches f Normandy. The liberation f Europe had begun. As the allied Forces pushed the German army towards the east, the Soviet forces pushed them towards the west. In spite f fierce resistance, it was clear the days f Nazi Germany were numbered. This threw the Nazis into panic, and they hurriedly tried to hide the evil acts that had been committed. The dead and their belongings were burned and the remaining prisoners were forced to move to other locations, often by foot. (Hayes 1991, 1-10) In April f 1945, Allied forces entered the camps. Their reactions were f shock and horror. For many, the rumours and stories were now a harsh reality. At Auschwitz, the retreating Germans had blown up the gas chambers and crematoria, but there was still plenty f evidence to convict many Nazis f war crimes that had been committed there. For example, there were "personal belongings, shoes, glasses, suitcases from countries all over Europe, as well as clothing from adults and children. Most sinister were the millions f Zyklon B Gas canisters that had been used to murder at least one and half million Jews and gypsies"(Adolph Hitler and the Holocaust, p 152.) Those responsible for the atrocities f the war had to answer for their actions. By the time the Soviet forces reached Berlin, Hitler had committed suicide. Some f the more notorious Nazis had escaped out f the country. Those that remained were brought to trial at Nuremberg. Most f the Nazis on trial showed no regret for what they had done. Others seem to have been able to convince themselves or they were brainwashed into believing that they were not dealing with human beings when they drove thousands into the gas chambers with whips and dogs. (Fischel 1998, 1-15) Judges from Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union heard evidence and passed judgment. "In the end, twelve leading Nazis were sentenced to death; others received prison sentences" (The Atrocities f the Holocaust, p 192). Further war crimes trials were held all over Europe. These mostly consisted f camp guards, local police officers who collabourated with the Nazis, members f the mobile killing squads, as well as doctors who took part in experiments on the prisoners. (Dafni 1991, 1-11; Fernekes 2002, 11-20) The story f the Holocaust is one f pain and suffering on a massive scale. Some people say that the past should be left there and that we should be allowed to move on without reliving its agony. This cannot be true, however. It is only by facing up to what happened, that one can look at what went wrong so that these atrocities can never be committed again. The Holocaust exemplifies how destructive racism and prejudice can be. The world needs to be reminded because as much as some people try, racism still exist and genocide still continues to present day. (Ringelheim 1992, 13-17) Connection between Holocaust and Jewish-Christian relations From the conflicts over Pope Pius XII, whether portrayed as a pitiless anti-Semite or a saver f many Jewish lives during World War II, to the confusion over how to take the 1998 Vatican document on the Holocaust, the Catholic Church is in great dispute over its history f relations with the Jews. "Who killed Christ" has always been the justification f the Church over the issue f the persecution f the Jews. As well as every other massacre f Jews in Christendom, it was also heard at the time f Hitler's Holocaust. The fact that the Catholic Church has a history f anti-Semitism and it is a prevalent belief in Christendom that the Jews, as the murderers f Christ, deserve all possible sufferings is the reason that Hitler's massacre f the Jews was met with silent acceptance from the vast majority f his subjects. The continued anti-Semitic feelings f the Church stem from Christian teachings based on interpretations f the New Testament that have also contributed to the Holocaust and the persecution f Jews in Europe over the centuries. In 1814, Jews in the Papal States were locked into cramped ghettos at night, were forbidden to practice law or medicine, to hold public office or to hire Christian servants. Meanwhile elsewhere in Europe, Jews were increasingly free to live as they wanted. These practices were the inspiration for the racial laws enacted by the Nazis and the Italian Fascists in the 1930's. After the fall f the Papal States in 1870, the Church's hostility towards the Jews began to take an even more disturbing form. No longer simply loathed as unbelievers, the Jews became hated symbols f secular modernity. (Feingold 1995, 85-86) With varying degrees f enthusiasm the German Catholic Church sympathized with, if not actually supported the Nazis. Their views on communism, socialism, liberalism and freemasonry were similar to those f the Nazis. Though these Church leaders were concerned with some aspects f the National Socialist regime, they did virtually nothing to stem the growing tide f anti-Semitism. Some f them even agreed with the Nazi ideals to "endeavour to maintain the purity f the German blood and German race" and to fight the Jews' "hegemony in finance, the destructive influence f the Jews in religion, morality, literature and art, and political and social life." (The Catholic Church and the Holocaust, pg 23). Hitler was inaugurated as Chancellor f Germany on January 30 1933 with 52% f the votes. To make constitutional changes, the National Socialists needed two thirds f the votes. Therefore Hitler felt compelled to appease the Catholics and made a series f promises and concessions to German Catholicism. On March 23 he released a statement assuring the Christian churches f his resolve to work for peaceful relations between the church and the state. After Hitler gained power the German Catholic leaders adjusted to the Nazi regime and most church leaders enthusiastically supported the domestic and foreign policies f the Fhrer during most f the Nationalist Socialist era. Some thought that the anti-Jewish laws were in fact beneficial as they eliminated Jewish influences considered harmful to Christian society. On the 20th f July 1933 the Concordat between the Vatican and the Third Reich was signed. It was a major step towards legitimizing the Hitler regime and sealed the subordination f German Catholics to the Nazi program. Therefore on June 1 all German Catholic bishops issued a letter withdrawing earlier prohibitions against membership f the Nazi party and encouraged the faithful to be loyal and obedient to the new program. They looked upon the National Socialist regime as another anti-communist authoritarian system, not recognizing Hitler's totalitarian ambitions. On March 24, Hitler acquired the support f the Catholic Centre Party for passage f the Enabling Act, under which Hitler could enact ordinary legislation by decree. This right was extended a year after his inauguration when he was granted the authority to decree constitutional changes. (Cargas 1981, 1-20) German Catholic leaders became oblivious to the violations f civil rights and liberties and ignored the Nazi's drive against the Jews. Hitler himself noted the links between the views f the Church and the Nazis. On April 26 1933 at a face-to-face meeting with German Catholic bishops, Hitler talked about the fundamental similarities between the National Socialists and Catholicism. He claimed that he was only continuing the purge on the Jews that the Church had endorsed for 1500 years. Generally the Catholics approved f the imprisonment f communists, socialists and other leftist opponents f the regime and like the rest f the German population, failed to take a stand against the Nuremberg Laws f 1935. Serving the interests f the regime, many German clergymen identified Jews with Bolshevism as one f many tactics employed to increase anti-Semitic feeling in the state. Through the Nazi era the Jews were called "harmful to the German people" and Christ-killers who, "in their boundless hatred f Christianity are still in the forefront f those seeking to destroy the Church". One National Socialist priest called Hitler "the tool f God called upon to overcome Judaism." (The Vatican and the Holocaust, pg 25-26). However there were some lower ranking Church figures who dared to reveal their anxiety over the anti-Jewish drives, if only in private conversation amongst themselves. Only a few found the courage to publicly pronounce criticism for the treatment f "foreign races", but only without mentioning the Jews by name. These acts f courage were very few and it was predominately the issue f Hitler trying to "purify" some elements f Christianity that angered the German Church leaders more than the exterminations f the Jews. The German Church leaders did fight successfully against Hitler's euthanasia program. The noted authority on the German Catholic Church, Guenter Lewy stated on the subject f the silence over the persecution f the Jews that "Unlike the case f the extermination f Germans in the euthanasia program, where the episcopate did not mince words and succeeded in putting a stop to the killings, the bishops here played it safe. The effect f their public protests on the Final Solution consequently were nil...And so Catholics went on participating conscientiously, along with other Germans." (The Vatican and the Holocaust, pg 42). Pope Pius XII, who served as pope during the critical years from 1938 to 1945, is generally regarded as a Germanophile. The Vatican's position on the National Socialists both before and after their acquisition f power largely paralleled with that f the German Catholic hierarchy. Some have condemned Pope Pius XII for cowardice for not speaking out and others praise him for prudence for keeping silent so as not to endanger any more Jewish lives. Nevertheless the Pope is seen as the cause behind the Catholic silence, fairly or unfairly. Catholics in modern times had grown used to the leadership f their Pope. During the Holocaust, instead f leading, Pius XII declared that the German Catholic bishops spoke for him when the Nazis came for the Jews. But the bishops, not used to acting independently, said nothing or very little. The Pope and his top officials at the Vatican were fully and accurately informed about the details f the Final Solution Program in Europe. Pope Pius had received reports both through diplomatic and private channels concerning the mass killing f Jews, so pleading ignorance to the problem would be ludicrous. Even still, the Pope consistently refused to take a stand against the Nazi's war against the Jews, on the justification f maintaining the strict neutrality f the Vatican. The Pope failed to speak out, not only because f his warmth for the German people, but because he was primarily concerned with the interests f the Vatican. He feared Bolshevism in the Soviet Union and was much less fearful f Nazism and Fascism than f communism with which Jews were linked through anti-Semitic propaganda. (Bauer 2001, 21-29; Edelheit 1991, 1-7) The way Christianity viewed the Jews throughout the ages Humans have always disliked the unlike, or fear f the unknown. In ancient times the several Israeli tribes feared the outsiders. Later Greeks were feared because they believed in polytheism, while Jews and Christians believed in monotheism, so there ideas clashed. They had a fear f the unknown. During World War II, Jews were put in concentration camps because they were viewed as different. The Nazi's disliked the unlike. Even today we fear the unknown. Today, we partly fear the Middle East because their ideas and way f doing things are different from ours. (Bartov 15-20; Niewk 2000, 1-10) A major aspect f the Shoah and genocide is supersessionism. This word comes from the Latin word to sit upon or to rule over, is the belief that because the Jews didn't accept Jesus Christ, God cancelled the covenant He had made with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and therefore the Jews. Throughout history the church has believed in supersessionism, often quoting from the Gospel f Matthew in the bible, which says that a vineyard will be taken away from the wicked tenants and given to other people (Garber 1994, 8). English reformer Hugh Latimer believes the Jews "were cursed in the sight f God.... Though Jerusalem be builded again, yet the Jews shall have it no more." Martin Luther attempted to show that God had replaced the Jews with the Church by stating, "Listen Jew, are you aware that Jerusalem and your sovereignty, together with your temple and priesthood, have been destroyed for 1,460 years" Ruler Augustine said "the church admits and avows the Jewish people to be cursed." However after seeing what happened to the Jews in the Second World War (Shoah), many Christians have stopped believing in supersessionism (Garber 1994, 9). In 1965, the Second Vatican Council issued to the Roman Catholic Church that "the Jews should not be presented as rejected or accursed" by God, this was later emphasized by Pope John Paul II. (Garber 1994 52-56). Conclusion Between 1941 and 1945, more than 6 million Jews were brutally murdered. This catastrophic event, known as the Holocaust, is unrivalled by any other in history. It wasn't the first time that a nation had attempted to rid itself f a specific ethnic group. However, it was the first time that such a mass genocide had occurred without the immediate interference f other countries. This means that there were a number f factors that led to the success f the Holocaust. The Holocaust was able to happen because f the specific historical context, the ruling government, and the high level f secrecy and organization involved in creating and carrying out plans. In the mid 1900's there was a strong anti-Semitic tradition throughout all f Europe that had been around for hundreds f years. In Middle Ages, the Jews were blamed for the death f Christ, killing Christian children, and causing the Black Plague. By late 1800's, a racist-biological anti-Semitism was developed. During this time, the Jews were perceived as a specific problem to society that needed solving if the nation were to survive. These racist-biological ideas were seen as a legitimate point f view, and can be seen in the writings f Martin Luther, who wrote that "...the Jewish synagogues should be burned, their houses destroyed and the Jews be driven out f Germany forever." Also, European's possessed a xenophobic attitude. They tended to blame all f their economic and social problems on foreigners. After World War One, Germany was forced to sign the Treaty f Versailles. The Treaty forced Germany to admit its guilt for instigating the war, to recede from occupied areas, to accept substantial restrictions on the size f its armed forces, and to make a large compensation payment to France. A number f German's considered the Treaty f Versailles a national humiliation that had to be reversed. The result f the treaty was an economic depression. German currency, referred to as a mark, plunged to one ten-thousandth f its original value; later that same year, it plummeted to one-trillionth f its original value. A large percentage f the German population suddenly became poor and homeless, and unemployment rates skyrocketed. When the Nazi's came up with the explanation that Jews were in a worldwide conspiracy to cause the downfall f the Aryan race, the German public believed it to be true. In this explanation, the Jewish capitalists had joined forces with the Judeo-Bolshevist socialism. They were blamed for Germany's defeat in World War One, the Treaty f Versailles, and the economic depression. This explanation allowed the Nazi's to make Jews one f the German middle classes greatest fears. Eventually, the Nazi regime gained even more support from the middle class when they moved Jews into ghettos and rehoused Aryan German's in these areas. References Avisar, Ilan. Screening the Holocaust: Cinema's Images f the Unimaginable. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1988. Bartov, Omer, ed. The Holocaust: Origins, Implementation, Aftermath. London: Routledge, 2000. Bauer, Yehuda. Rethinking the Holocaust. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001. Braham, Randolph, L. The Politics f Genocide: The Holocaust in Hungary. New York: Columbia University Press, 1981. Burleigh, Michael, Ethics and extermination : reflections on Nazi genocide. New York : Cambridge University Press, 1997. Cargas, Harry James. When God and Man Failed: Non-Jewish Views f the Holocaust. 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