Is The Holocaust Unique - Essay Example

Street Address ST ZIP e-mail phone fax Is The Holocaust Unique This paper will examine the question: Is the Holocaust Unique There have been many occasions in our history where one group of people decides (and tries) to eliminate another group. The question here: Is the Holocaust Unique can best be answered by examining genocide. Genocide shares many of the same features of a holocaust. It is the impression of this author that a holocaust is one step beyond genocide. To answer this question the book by Alan S. Rosenbaum (Is The Holocaust Unique) was used as a primary source and other sources were used to support the argument. The term "holocaust" is used referencing both its definitions. When capitalized it refers to The Holocaust - the genocide of European Jews and others by the Nazis during World War II. When not capitalized it refers to a "great destruction resulting in the extensive loss of life, especially by fire" or "a massive slaughter" (American Heritage Dictionary). As both definitions are used when discussing the uniqueness of the Holocaust, both terms are used in this paper. 1. Holocaust Vs. Genocide Holocaust is the term used to describe the Nazi genocide of the Jewish people during World War II (Oxford Reference). The term "holocaust" has been used by many to describe other mass violations against humanity. The word "holocaust" is derived from holokaustos in the Greek translation of the bible and means a "completely consumed burnt offering". The Gypsies (Romanis), the Armenians, and the Chinese under Mao all experienced one form or another of genocide. To some extent the terms genocide and holocaust have been used interchangeably to describe a mass killing of a people. So, what's the difference Mass killings can be called genocide but not necessarily a holocaust. The Jewish Holocaust was an attempt to kill off a specific race of people regardless of where they lived. Hitler's version of holocaust was to kill off every Jew everywhere in the world with the intent of controlling the world with his allies. This was all inclusive, no exceptions! Genocide has been defined as being an eight stage process (Genocide Watch, Originally written in 1996 at the U.S. Department of State): Classification, Symbolization, Dehumanization, Organization, Polarization, Preparation, Extermination, and Denial. It's when the eight stage process gets to "extermination" that their actions have earned the title "genocide". The difference between genocide and a holocaust is that any one of the above listed eight stages is genocide. Holocaust is all the stages, one thru eight, with the intent to totally exterminate a people. The Holocaust's victims were considered to be so inferior, so threatening that their existence had to be completely eliminated (Rosenbaum, 22-23). The Nazi's called this plan "die Endlosung", the final solution to the Jewish question (Rosenbaum, 22). 2. A survivor's account. Alexander Kimel, a holocaust survivor, explains that the difference between Genocides and the Holocaust are the rates of survival (Kimel, p1.). Keep in mind that this is not an argument of numbers killed but an argument of recovery. China's Mao killed 10 million out of 800 million (1.23%), Stalin's numbers were 10 million out of 230 million (4.3%), and in the early phases of World War II out of 10,000 Jews 9900 were killed (99%). And, that trend continued through out World War Two. Recovery can and did take place in China and Russia. In Europe the Jewish community remains but a fragment of what it was and does not continue in the same ways as prior to World War Two. Many Jewish communities that had existed in Europe prior to World War Two are gone. All that remains of many communities are their vandalized cemeteries. 3. What is the purpose of the discussions about the Holocaust and genocide The Jewish community as a whole has kept alive their memories of the Holocaust. The Armenian and Romani communities have done the same. Yehuda Berger writes: "events happen because they are possible, if possible once then they are possible again. The Holocaust is a warning for the future" (Rosenbaum, 23). Comparative discussions about the Holocaust, and other genocides, lesson the chances that the killings and human abuses will happen again. Most important is to keep reminding all that the Holocaust did happen and have evidence and an argument available to support a rebuttal against those who argue the Holocaust never occurred. Also important is that society as a whole should take the opportunity to learn from this devastating portion of history and not repeat it. Unfortunately genocides still are happening and denial of the Holocaust ever occurring is popular debate in Western Asia (Iran for example) and Europe. 4. The Romani Holocaust Ian Hancock fights a tough opposition when he writes in support of the Romani Holocaust. He writes in response to an essay from Oxford University Press that is was a "growing body of literature devoted to diminishing the place of the Romani people ("Gypsies") in the Holocaust". Hancock argues that the Romanis were singled out, just as the Jews were, for total annihilation (Patrin Web Journal). Hancock further writes that the Romanis were identified as a group by the Nazi's for extermination because the "Romanies were classified as possessing "alien" (i.e. non-Aryan) blood" (Hancock)." The German government's handbook on Holocaust education states that "The Nazi regime applied a consistent and inclusive policy of extermination-based on heredity-only against three groups of human beings: the handicapped, Jews, and Sinti and Roma ("Gypsies")" (Hancock). Different criteria applied only to the murder of the handicapped, Jews, and "Gypsies." "Members of these groups could not escape their fate by changing their behavior or belief. They were selected because they existed (Milton, 2000:14). Hancock has a pretty good argument for the Romanis. Current prejudice against the Romanis is used to deny recognition of genocide or of a Romani holocaust (Waringo). The atrocities toward Romanis was not exclusive to German Romanis, but was applied to all Romanis from Slovakia, Hungary and Romania. 5. Genocide and the Armenians. During World War One many Armenians were killed in what Prof. Vahakn N. Dadrian of the Zoryan Institute terms the Armenian Genocide. The mass killings have also been called "ethnic cleansing". This mass killing took place in Turkey by the Ottomans and was designed to eliminate anyone of Armenian decent. The Armenian killings follow some of the eight stages of genocide. Their property, homes, livestock and land were confiscated and the ethnic Armenians were moved to labor battalions. Troops who were to escort the Armenians to these camps allowed the detainees to be robbed, raped, and killed. Legislation was passed (Techir Law) by the Ottomans that legalized the confiscating of property of the Armenians as well as their removal to camps. Propaganda was published that declared "The Armenians are in league with the enemy" (Dadrian, P220) thus inciting violence towards ethnic Armenians. Many Armenians were sent to camps in the Iraqi and Syrian frontier. Many were exterminated (killed) at these camps. Witnesses of that time (mostly Turkish prisoners) recall women and children being burned to death. People were gathered en mass, shut in churches, and burned. Many Turkish prisoners were claimed to have gone mad after observing the killings (Ye'or, p95). Does this history constitute a genocide or holocaust These mass killings and removal by force of ethnic Armenians share many characteristics of the Holocaust and genocide. This certainly qualifies as genocide. 6. The religious perspective It is not uncommon for Jews or Christians to look upon the Holocaust as a religious event with far reaching implications. Many see the Holocaust as God's justice or providence (Rubenstein, 34) and define the event according to their religious traditions. Christians may interpret the Holocaust as God's will and interpret the Holocaust as punishment for a sinful Israel that crucified Christ. Jewish communities and congregations actively remember the Holocaust and its victims through religious services in remembrance and displays of the horrors of the Holocaust (photos, etc) for all to see. 7. The legal prospective If anything good could result from the Holocaust is that it changed the way law views humanity. Prior to the Holocaust no international laws existed to protect human rights. The International Human Rights movement is a direct result of the Holocaust. The Holocaust brought to the forefront the need of society to protect individuals, their dignity, and their individual rights. The laws of war were expanded to include violations against humanity. No one event in history has changed so much the way we look at the laws and customs of war as the Holocaust. "On December 10, 1948 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights" (United Nations) that the recognizes human fundamental dignities and human rights of all people. The U.N. charter protects people from barbarous acts against humanity and declares their human rights are protected by international law. 8. Conclusion. During the research for this paper I noticed many similarities between three of the ethnic groups studied (Jews, Armenians, and Romanis). Most notable was the pictures of the starving prisoners, especially the children. Starving children of Romani, Jewish, or Armenian descent look no different from each other. Living Jewish, Romani, and Armenians do not want the horror in their histories to be forgotten or to be repeated. The best way to have history not repeat itself is to keep the story alive and in the minds of all. Unfortunately genocide has happened since (Rwanda, Darfur) and probably will continue to happen. Still we have the question of "is the Holocaust unique" Yes! The Holocaust and the other genocides examined have a lot in common. The rapes, killings, removal from their homes, confiscation of homes and property, and loss of rights as citizens and as individuals all are the same. What is so dramatically different between the Jewish Holocaust and the above mentioned genocides is the scale of what happened and the fact that, according to Steven Katz, "never before has a state set out to annihilate physically every man, woman, and child belonging to a specific people. You don't need laws to control a people that no longer exist. During the holocaust Jews from every part of Europe were in danger of loss of property, loss of status, loss of human rights, and loss of life itself due to laws enacted to eliminate them as a people. They were always in imminent danger of death and deportation. If allowed to live they were subject to starvation diets, sterilization, inhumane jobs (burning corpses), no health care and deplorable living conditions. It is really important to point out that the Holocaust during World War Two was not just a "Jewish" holocaust but a holocaust that affected many different peoples. It would be better to refer to it as "The Holocaust". The Holocaust affected more than the Jewish population in Europe. It affected anyone who was identified by the Nazi party as undesirable. That included Jews, Romanis (Gypsy), the mentally retarded, and the physically disabled. The Holocaust was unique because it used genocidal tools to eliminate undesirables from society to attempt to achieve the perfect (Aryan) society/race. The Holocaust was used as a tool to ethnically cleanse Germany, Europe and the world. As stated earlier in this paper, holocaust is one step further than genocide. The Holocaust was most certainly genocide but not all genocides qualify as a holocaust. Certainly, the Human Rights Movement is a positive result of the Holocaust. The size, spectrum, and influence of the Holocaust has caused a closer look at violations of human rights and has given legal standing to crimes against humanity that can be prosecuted anywhere (wide legal jurisdiction). There are many things in human history that have resulted in mass loss of life. Epidemics, natural disasters, disease, wars, accidents etc This list could be very long. But, the Holocaust is unique in the realm of world history. A government instituted a policy of annihilation of a specific group of people just because of who they were. The Holocaust was a result of a regime who devalued the basic humanity of these people. The Jewish people are often referred to as "The Chosen" and the German Reicht chose these people for "die Endlosung", The Final Solution. Works Cited Milton, Sybil, 2000. "Holocaust education in The United States and Germany," in Heye, 14-20. Rosenbaum, Alan S., ed., 1996. Is the Holocaust Unique Boulder & Oxford: The Westview Press. Heye, Uwe-Karsten, Joachim Sartorius & Ulrich Bopp, eds., 2000. Learning from History: The Nazi Era and the Holocaust in German Education. Berlin: Press and Information Office of the Federal Government. Kimel, Alexander. 2006. Holocaust Uniqueness. John A. Drobnicki. March 30 2006. Retrieved Jan 2007-01-28 www.york.cuny.edu/drobnick/differ.html, http://www.kimel.net/unique.html Hancock, Ian, 1996. "Responses to the Porrajmos: The Romani Holocaust," in Rosenbaum, 1996, 39-64. B. Ye'or, "The Dhimmi. The Jews and Christians under Islam" Translated from French by Maisel P. Fenton and D. Liftman, Cranbury, N.J.: Frairleigh Dickinson University, (1985. p. 95) Warengo, Karin. And Valeriu Nicolae "Footnotes in a holocaust". Index on Censorship. 34.2 (2005): 63-67 Oxford Reference MAS Ultra - School Edition 2007-01-28 Stanton, Gregory H. Genocide Watch. Eight Stages of Genocide. Retrieved 2007-01-28 from: www.genocidewatch.org/8stages.htm Vahakn, Dadrian. The Armenian Genocide within a Framework of Compelling Evidence. Retrieved 01/28/2007 from The Zoryan Institute. http://www.zoryaninstitute.org/ Patrin Web Journal. Romana Culture and History. Retrieved 01/28/07 http://www.geocities.com/patrin/pariah-contents.htm "holocaust." The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. 2003. Houghton Mifflin Company 30 Jan. 2007 http://www.thefreedictionary.com/holocaust Katz, Steven.The Uniqueness of the Holocaust: the Historical Dimension. Rosenbaum, Alan S., ed., 1996. Is the Holocaust Unique Boulder & Oxford: The Westview Press.P49 Read More