The Euthanasia Program In Nazi Terms: a clandestine murder program which targeted for the systematic killing of mentally and physically disabled persons living in institutional settings in Germany. Euthanasia means “Good Death” National Socialist Germany’s first mass killing Began the program 2 years prior to the beginning of the Holocaust. Parents and Physicians were told NOT to report newborns who showed signs of being mentally or physically disabled. People were rounded up on busses/trucks, were taken to specific facilities and gassed. Took about 200,000 lives in all it’s phases.

Persecution & Murder of Jews Approx. 6 Million Jews killed during Holocaust. Holocaust => Sacrifice by Fire Gas Chambers, disease, starvation, neglect and forced labor. By 1945, Germans and contributors had killed about 2 out of every 3 Jews in Europe. Jews were forced into Ghettos and then shipped to Concentration Camps. After the Holocaust some Jews immigrated all over the world.

Ghettos 3 Types –Closed –Open –Destruction Ghettos were a central step in the Nazi process of control, dehumanization and mass murder of Jews. Final Step - in late 1941 murder of all European Jews began.

Einsatzgruppen Mobile Killing Units Squads made of German Security Police - service to kill perceived racial and political enemies. Viewed as first step in the “Final Solution” Began by targeting all Jewish men, then Jews regardless of ag or sex. –Were either marched or transported to site, then forced to dig their own graves, lined up, then killed so bodies would fall directly into the mass grave site late summer - mobile gas chambers appeared Four Battalion sized groups that traveled throughout German occupied Europe. By they had killed over 1 million Soviet Jews.

Expansion of Concentration Camps –First camp est. in 1933 –1938 S.S. exploited labor of prisoners for economic benefit – est. more camps in the vicinity of forced labor factories Brickworks and extraction of raw materials –After beginning of war, camps became sites for simple mass murders of proposed threats. –German Authorities constructed gas chambers at numerous camps.

Killing Centers December Chelmno - first killing center - killed 2,700,000 Jews ,526,500 Jews killed –Gas chambers Auschwitz-Birkenau - largets killing center/Concentration Camp Overall, about 6,000 Jews killed per day Considered TOP SECRET Hid the evidence by cremating the bodies and relandscaping the land.

Additional Victims Gypsies Communists Trade Leaders Socialists 200,000 Gypsies deported to Auschwitz Concentration Camp solely for Political Leaders - Dachau million deported to Germany for Forced Labor

Resistance Jewish ZOB –Organized a forceful armed resistance –Majority had been taken to killing centers before an actualization of what was going on –Jewish prisoners tried to rise against the guard, but were overworked and starved, very weak. 5 women supplied explosives to blow up a crematorium Communists, Socialists and trade union leaders both violently and non-violently resisted Nazism July failed attempt to kill Hitler

Rescue Many that did not agree with Hitler, worked to support and protect Jews - hiding them On Oct.1-2, non Jewish people worked to rescue Jews from Denmark, in small fishing boats. Underground network run by Catholics.

U.S. in WWII U.S. policy made it difficult for Jewish Refugees - why? received info on Nazi plans to exterminate Jews, but did not announce it. Failed to act decisively to rescue victims April 19, 1943, U.S. and Brit. Meet in Bermuda for solution to wartime refugees – solution inacted Spring Allies knew of operations in gassing facilities Wanted to bomb chambers

Death Marches Summer Concentration Camps on the outskirts began being evacuated to the “interior” of the reich. Evacuations had 3 purposes –Authorities did not want prisoners to fall into enemy hands alive and tell their stories to allied forces. –SS felt they needed to “keep” prisoners to keep up with production of armaments. –Some believed they could keep prisoners as hostages to negotiate

Liberation

Post 1945