follow up to Further the dialogue by providing more information and clarification two paragraph with intext citation and reference.
The Nazi regime felt that the Jews were an unwanted ethnic group and they wanted to perform
ethnic cleansing so that there would be only one ethnic group. The Jews were the scapegoat for the Nazis and over 6 million Jews were murdered.
Hitler was a great public speaker and his hoarse, grating voice dominated audiences. The Germans also like his strong and decisive way of governing. They were caught up in Hitlers mass movement to restore dignity and pride to their country. The Germans were weary of political conflict and the economic and political instability. Perhaps this is why Hitler and his movement had gained support and even the enthusiasm of a large portion of the population; maybe that is why the Germans went along so willingly with the mass murders. Another reason could be from fear of retaliation. Around them, all of the mass murders were taking place; people who stood up for themselves were killed instantly and they probably thought I better just do what they say so I dont die right now. So tragic
The construction of the facilities where the genocide was to be committed took years to build. It was a complex of 3 main camps and 40 sub-camps. The first concentration camp was established in Auschwitz in the spring of 1940 and this camp complex became a universal symbol of the Holocaust (Tedeschi, n.d.). This was later followed by the building of Auschwitz II and Birkenau. Original construction was started by thousands of Soviet Union war prisoners but eventually were joined by Polish and Jewish prisoners. Conditions for the prisoners were terrible; death rates were especially high in the winter and huts that were originally supposed to hold 500 prisoners held 800-1000 instead. Four extermination buildings began operating in 1943. These buildings included gas chambers and crematoriums. Hundreds of thousands of Jews were deported to these camps and most were subsequently murdered (Tedeschi, n.d.).
Thank you,
Jennifer Desmond
References:
Tedeschi, G. (n.d.). Architecture of murder: The auschwitz-birkenau blueprints.
