The Conditions of Ghettos During the Holocaust

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Ghettos During the Holocaust In the Holocaust, the Nazis persecuted and murdered over 6 million Jews during a four and a half year period. By the 1930s the Nazis rose in power and all the Jews became victims. One of the ways the Nazis persecuted the Jews, was putting them into tight confined places called ghettos were they suffered for many years. The Nazis established over four hundred ghettos over the course of World War II. The ghettos were used the ghettos to control and segregate the Jews. Nazis viewed the Jews as an inferior race, and wanted to keep them from mixing with their race and degrading the superior race. The ghettos also made it more convenient for the Nazis to round up the Jews and kill them later. Since there were so many polish Jews, it was impractical for the Nazis to kick so many out of the country. Instead, the Nazis chose to oppress them, making them wear yellow badges, forcing them into hard labor, stealing their property and putting them into ghettos. Ghettos were cramped and had no sanitation, so diseases swept through. If a person could not work, he would not be given food tickets and would starve. The Jundenrat, the Jewish councils, were responsible for carrying out the Nazi's orders. 3 Despite the ghetto's conditions, some people wanted to give meaning to life. Many risked their lives for things such as their children's education, religion, and cultural activities. Books, music, and theater help distract the Jews and remind them of life before the ghettos. There were underground libraries, archive, youth movements, and a symphony orchestra. Doing these activities helped the Jews feel better about their harsh conditions. Many still wanted to help the weak among them and many got in trouble to sav... ... middle of paper ... ...located in central Poland. The building of the ghetto started on February 8, 1940, but took weeks to establish. The Jews lived there until January 6, 1942, when the Jews were beginning to be deported. By August 1944 only a few remained. The ghetto was liberated by the Soviets on January 19, 1945 but only 877 Jews survived. Another ghetto was in Krakow, an important city located in the south of Poland. A ghetto was established by 1941 containing 15,000 to 20,000 Jews behind barbed wire and stone walls. Throughout the ghetto's life there were resistance groups first supporting underground education then advancing to preparing to fight Germans. Another ghetto was in the city of Lvov in southeastern Poland containing 200,000 Jews. A ghetto was established in 1941, and many Jews stayed there until deportation began in March 1942. In June 1943, the ghetto was destroyed.

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