The Story of the Kindertransport Essay Example for Free

The Story of the Kindertransport Essay Out of all the evil people in the world, it only takes a few good souls to stand up and do the right thing in order to make a difference. There are so many stories from wars about death and destruction of peoples homes, lives, and dignities. Wars have a unique ability to cloud the mind. They can make people do crazy things. They can make people do things that they would never think they were capable of doing. Wars can make you do the wrong thing, but they can also open your heart to doing the right thing. Despite the fact that there was so much destruction caused by the dictators who ruled much of Europe during the time of World War two there were people who stood up against those evils. According to the Talmud, whoever saves one life, saves an entire world. This Jewish saying, points out that if you can save one life you have saved an entire generation. This is because when you take away someones life, you take away their ability to fall in love, marry, and have children; therefore, destroying potential. There were six million lives taken away because of the horrific acts that Hitler carried out Six million humans, six million people capable of creating the next generation of the world. Instead, their lives were cut short. It is vital that we remember those who survived this horrific incident and remember their stories. It is important that we tell the story of the Kindertransport so that their story can be remembered for future generations. The word Kindertransport comes from two words in German. Kinder means the children, and transport means to move or relocate. This is exactly what happened to around 10,000 Jewish children living in Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Poland during the Holocaust. The decision for the parents of these children to essentially give up their children in hopes that they might have a better life, must have been very difficult. Normally children were unable to decide on emigration themselves, and it was often only at the station that they realized they had to leave their parents. Emigration for them took place at the stage when a familiar environment with known people is a necessary requirement for development. Moreover, children are always dependent on the help and support of others, particularly in unfamiliar surroundings. One of Britains tasks was how they were going to handle the influx of so many children entering their country. Living in Germany during the 1930s was already difficult enough, but being a Jew living in Germany was even more difficult. Jews were ostracized and persecuted because much of the propaganda that was being filtered throughout Germany blamed the Jews for the economic conditions of their country. Hitler persuaded the German people that their problems would go away if the country was free of Jews. This type of anti-Jewish message sent waves of hate throughout Germany. In November 1938, the events of Kristallnacht (night of broken glass) escalated the persecution of Jews. It is hard for an event like this to not become known throughout the world. Indeed, many countries did hear about this event. Kristallnacht was a massive, coordinated attack on Jews throughout the German Reich on the night of November 9, 1938. On November 9, mob violence broke out as the regular German police stood by and crowds of spectators watched. Nazi storm troopers along with members of the SS and Hitler Youth beat and murdered Jews, broke into and wrecked Jewish homes, and brutalized Jewish women and children. All over Germany, Austria and other Nazi controlled areas, Jewish shops and department stores had their windows smashed and contents destroyed. Synagogues were especially targeted for vandalism, including desecration of sacred Torah scrolls. Hundreds of synagogues were systematically burned while local fire departments stood by or simply prevented the fire from spreading to surrounding buildings In July of 1938, there was a conference held in France. The United States was in attendance. The goal of the conference was to discuss the problems of the Austrian and German Jews. Between 1933 and 1941, the Nazis aimed to make Germany judenrein (cleansed of Jews) by making life so difficult for them that they would be forced to leave the country. By 1938, about 150,000 German Jews, one in four, had already fled the country. After Germany annexed Austria in March 1938, however, an additional 185,000 Jews were brought under Nazi rule. Many Jews were unable to find countries willing to take them in. Many German and Austrian Jews tried to go to the United States but could not obtain the visas needed to enter. Even though news of the violent pogroms of November 1938 was widely reported, Americans remained reluctant to welcome Jewish refugees. In the midst of the Great Depression, many Americans believed that refugees would compete with them for jobs and overburden social programs set up to assist the needy. Other countries besides the United States also resisted the Jewish population. The Great Depression caused hard times everywhere and this created a mind set of resistance. One country, however, saw the need to invite Jewish civilians into their homeland, and that country was Britain. After the British government had been alerted by Jewish organizations to developments in Germany and particularly to the pogrom of November 9, 1938, there were several reasons for Great Britain to issue group visas for an unlimited number of children. First, Great Britain felt a particular responsibility for the refugees from Europe in that Palestine was governed as a British protectorate, but in order not to endanger its diplomatic relations with Arab states Great Britain had announced strict immigration restrictions. Furthermore the government, seeing itself as a world power, hoped with this action to represent a role model which would encourage other countries to follow suit. Not least, the government was aware of its responsibilities to its own Jewish community and did not wish to evade them. The people who advocated for the immigration of the German and Austrian Jewish people was the Religious Society of Friends. The government responded to their cause and agreed to help. However, the fundamental attitude to the Jewish refugees from Europe tended to be reserved. The outcome of the conference at Evian-les-Bains in July 1938 corresponded roughly with the British position towards the refugee question. Under no circumstances did the government wish to give the impression that Britain had opened wide its doors to allow even more refugees to enter the country. It also wanted to avoid encouraging the German government to carry out further expulsions. The danger of provoking further persecution and expulsion of the Jewish population by adopting over-liberal refugee regulations was an argument which was constantly drawn upon both before the outbreak of war, and also during the war itself, to justify the British asylum policy. The decision to issue group visas for Jewish children reflected to a degree this attitude and was, moreover, relatively easy to carry out with the agreement of the British public. Children aroused sympathy in the majority of the population and they posed little danger, at least in the short term, to the labor market. Moreover the childrens stay in the country was at first only planned to be temporary, for at the time of their arrival it was confidently assumed that they would either return to their home countries or would migrate to the U. S. A. or Palestine. Furthermore, it may seem strange from todays perspective how casually children were separated from their parents through the visa regulations. However, for a large section of British society, who could look back on a long tradition of boarding schools, it was completely normal for children to grow up from an early age away from their parents. Understanding the precarious situation that these German-Jewish children faced is very hard to comprehend. It is important that actual survivors tell their stories. The children had to adjust to life in Britain and their experiences are valuable to understanding the difficulties that they encountered. No parent wanted to send their children away, but parents had some hindsight on the dangers that were beginning to surface upon them. Norbert describes the situation as follows: My parents faced a terrible dilemma, a dilemma no parent of small children should ever have to face. [My parents were] convinced that we could not leave Germany in the foreseeable future, so they decided to send me, at age eleven, to safety. The first boat left Berlin on December 1, 1938. The children boarded special trains, and then boarded a ship where they arrived in England, then took another train to London. Ruth described the night before she left: The night before my departure, both my parents gave me a blessing. That is, they laid their hands on me and said a prayer commending me to Gods care: The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord look kindly upon you and be gracious unto you; The Lord bestow favor upon you and give you peace. There was little else my mother and father could do. I can imagine their thoughts and emotions Saying goodbye to a parent with the uncertainty of what was to happen was troubling for many children. Another survivor Tom Berman of the Kindertransport, documented his feelings before he left in a poem. The end of the poem describes what it was like leaving his home country: Leather suitcase from a far-off country, Czechoslovakia, containing all the love parents could pack for a five year old off on a journey for life. Once they arrived in Britain, they Kinder had to adjust to their new lives. Many of the young children stayed with foster families. If they were unable to be cared for they were sent to hostels or boarding schools. Many organizations and individuals assisted in settling the Kinder in the United Kingdom, including the Refugee Children’s Movement, the B’nai B’rith, the Chief Rabbi’s Religious Emergency Council, various youth movements, the Y. M. C. A., the Society of Friends, and many other Jewish and non-Jewish organizations. Private gifts of money, bedding, and clothing were received as well as offers of foster homes and houses for possible group homes. Many of the Quakers who were involved in petitioning these childrens arrival sought after these children and became foster mothers and fathers to many of the children. Many families, Jewish and non-Jewish, opened their homes to take in these children. Many of the children were well-treated, developing close bonds with their British hosts; however, others were mistreated or abused. A number of the older children joined the British or Australian armed forces as soon as they reached eighteen years of age and joined the fight against the Nazis . While many children recount the fact that they were safe, being in Britain was still an adjustment. Neither of my foster parents spoke German, and adjustment was quite difficult I attended a two-room schoolhouse. All the children knew I came from Germany and they called me Nazi, a world I understood all too well. None of the children wanted to make friends with me. World War two lasted from 1939 to 1945 and was a long and devastating conflict that involved many countries. More than fifty-five million people lost their lives. The world had never seen such a big or deadly war. After the war ended, no one had expected that the Kinder would need to stay in Britain forever. By this time, there were not very many young children, and some had even become adults. Re-uniting with their families seemed virtually impossible. Many people believed that these children were never going to find their family members again. A recent survey by the Association of Jewish Refugees, however, reveals a more positive outcome. The study found that even though approximately two-thirds of the Kinder did not see their parents again, one-third of the children came to Britain with a sibling and about two-thirds of the Kinder found other relatives after the war. Many of those who were unable to re-unite became British citizens. Many people in Britain should be considered heroes. Even though this story seems tragic, it is important to note that many lives were saved because of the brave acts of the citizens of Britain. Without them supporting these children, they may not have had a change to grow up and recount their story. Many of the accounts that are told to help them cope with everything. One survivor has written a poem to help him retell and comfort others who went through the same thing. He ends his poem with these words: And that’s basically my story and that’s basically there I mean there are other things that happened in England and so on but that is really the story of the Kindertransport the story of German Jews And I’m very glad to tell you this because let’s be true if my parents hadn’t been very brave to part with their only child and send it away cause I’m sure they knew that they might never see me again you all wouldn’t be here [ 2 ]. Hodge, Deborah. Rescuing the children: the story of the Kindertransport. Toronto: Tundra Books, 2012 5. [ 3 ]. Hodge, 8 [ 4 ]. The Evian Conference. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. http://www. ushmm. org/outreach/en/article. php? ModuleId=10007698 (accessed April 17, 2013). [ 5 ]. Harris, Mark Jonathan, and Deborah Oppenheimer. Into the arms of strangers: stories of the Kindertransport. New York: Bloomsbury Pub. :, 2000. 21 [ 6 ]. Hodge,16 [ 7 ]. Harris, 22 [ 8 ]. Norton, Jennifer A. , Mona L. Siegel, and Sacramento University. The Kindertransport: history and memory. London: Nick Hern Books, 2010. 35 [ 9 ]. Hodge 18. [ 10 ]. Norton 39 [ 11 ]. Hodge, 22 [ 12 ]. http://www. kindertransport. org/voices/berman_poem_suitcase. htm [ 13 ]. http://www. kindertransport. org/history04_Britain. htm [ 14 ]. Hodge 38 [ 15 ]. AJR: Kindertransport. AJR: Welcome to The Association of Jewish Refugees. http://www. ajr. org. uk/kindertransport (accessed April 17, 2013). [ 16 ]. David I. Hanauer, Living the Kindertransport: A Poetic Representation.

If I Cant Have Her, No One Can :: essays research papers

Most people, when forced to give up the one thing they truly love, would rather see it be destroyed than in the hands of another person. In “Old Woman Magoun,'; by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman, the old woman is in that position. She is burdened with relinquishing custody of her granddaughter, Lily, to the child’s father. Throughout the story, the old woman faces an inner struggle over caring for and, ultimately, losing her granddaughter. She deals with her struggle in a very realistic, human response.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Old Woman Magoun is a woman who refuses to be disobeyed or disagreed with. She has a peculiar command over all those in her company. “No one had dared openly gainsay the old woman'; (Freeman, 362). The only person she cannot make “visibly cower'; (361) is Nelson Barry, Lily’s father. He is the only one that shows any disregard towards the old woman. Old Woman Magoun and Nelson Barry never agree with each other in any way. The old woman has been especially cautious of Barry ever since her daughter died and she had to take care of Lily. After an undesired and unforeseen encounter between the girl and Barry, the old woman is informed that she must hand over the girl. Feeling helpless and having no control over the situation, she feels forced to make a major decision to prevent the young girl from, what she feels, would be a grave predicament.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Old Woman Magoun most likely feels responsible for Lily’s situation and her own daughter’s demise and has learned to fear men as a result of it. She fears the girl’s father because he represents the part of herself that she cannot control, Lily. She has no choice but to give up her granddaughter and she cannot bear to lose her to the man she despises, Nelson Barry. Facing the reality of losing Lily is more than the old woman is readily prepared for. In many of her stories, Freeman “invests the women with power and yet simultaneously limits their power'; (http://www.georgetown.edu/libraries/ 2). Old Woman Magoun has a mysterious command over people, but it doesn’t help her when it comes to keeping Lily. She still has to relinquish her control over the child and she has no power to change the circumstances. Freeman makes the old woman suffer the “realities of nineteenth-century New England'; (2). These realities are that a woman must abide by her socially defined and accepted role and if she does not abide, she will suffer the consequences that result.

Analyse Reverend Parris Essay

Analyse Reverend Parris and his motivations in supporting the witch trials.  The crucible play is set in 17th century Puritan Massachusetts in America. This would have meant the area would be fairly newly inhabited by immigrants and there still might be problems from Native Americans. The society probably would have been quite close-knit and any accusations of witchcraft would easily have resulted in hysteria in a way that was only possible in modern days because of the media. Reverend Parris would have had many reasons for supporting the witch trials. Most of these were selfish and for protection of his own image, which he needed to do because in the setting of the Salem Witch Trials peoples image were their most important aspect, we know this because the first three people to be accused of witchcraft were all social misfits such as Osborn who, â€Å"was old, quarrelsome, and had not attended church for over a year.† Other reasons included jealousy, especially of Proctor who in his presence â€Å"a fool felt his foolishness instantly†. As well as this there was his duty as a Reverend First we know Parris was very greedy because he wanted things like â€Å"golden candle sticks† on his preaching altar, even though his church is Puritan and therefore meant to be very simple â€Å"their creed forbade anything resembling a theatre or ‘vain enjoyment'†. This may also have been a motivation for supporting the witch trials because the land of people like John Proctor would have been seized after he was hung. Reverend Parris was also very paranoid about his position in the town and about conspiracies to ‘drive him from his pulpit’. Another piece of evidence from the play that portrays his paranoia is that he ‘felt insulted if someone rose to shut the door without first asking his permission’. This shows paranoia because he thinks the slightest mistake in his presence is made as a serious insult. All of this is backed up by how Miller describes him with â€Å"he believed he was being persecuted wherever he went†. This is the second motivation for supporting the trials because if he destroys all his opposition by having them hung or sent to prison for witchcraft his own public standing will be safe. This theory is also basically what the whole Salem witch trials play is about, because all the way through we see a repetition of people blaming others to save their skins. A perfect example of this is on ‘HTTP://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Crucible’ where it describes a very desperate Mary â€Å"Mary becomes completely desperate and turns on John Proctor, saying that he is in league with the Devil.† We know already Parris is very selfish and also very keen to protect and even increase his self image. So when witch craft is first mentioned he becomes very nervous and tries to stop any talk of the subject, ‘put out all thoughts of unnatural forces’. This could be for several reasons. First he wants to protect Abigail, although from what we have seen of the Parris character so far he probably is not that bothered about this. The main reason for Parris wanting people not to talk about the witchcraft is because if Abigail, who is his own Niece, is linked to witchcraft then he may be driven from his pulpit by the conspiracy group he thinks is already fighting him. There is even the possibility that Abigail could be seen as a Harlot after Proctor accuses it and it becomes clear that the reason for Abigail’s grudge against the Proctors is because she was put â€Å"out for a harlot†. We know that he thinks there is a conspiracy group because of the quote, â€Å"there is a faction†. When he finally does realise that the talk of witchcraft is inevitable he starts to support the trials to try and take the blame from Abigail and on to her so called bewitchers. He also knows if the trial fails and Abigail is labelled a liar then the entire family may be known as liars, this in turn would be devastating to his already troubled career. The final motivation for Reverend Parris supporting the witch trials is jealousy. Jealousy is obviously one of Parris’ characteristics and he is jealous of John Proctor. Reverend Parris would have several reasons for being jealous of Proctor; firstly he is well respected in the Salem community, ‘Proctor, respected and feared’, this cannot be said for Parris, Proctor is also quite wealthy with a lot of land and for a greedy Parris the prospect of seizing this would be very appealing! The final reason for Parris being jealous of Proctor and maybe even hating him is that Proctor is simply a good and honest man. Then there is Parris who ‘there is very little good to be said of him’. Reverend Parris is meant to be a respectful member of Puritan society. However, before he moved to Salem he was a sugar plantation owner, owned slaves (such as Tituba) and was thought to have been a credit agent for other plantation owners. This quite shrewd and probably selfish personality shows in the crucible for instance when Abigail runs away he doesn’t care for her but says â€Å"thirty one pound is gone† then says â€Å"I am penniless†. This evaluation provides a good background to why Parris supported the witch trials.  So overall Parris supports the Salem Witch trails because of a mixture of jealousy of Proctor, protecting his and his families image, a hatred of heathens and therefore witches, paranoia about the danger of his position as local Reverend and possibly the most important reason of all†¦ is his greed. He wanted more pay and even gold candlesticks for his altar.

How to Write and Format an MBA Essay