The thing that sticks out most from this chapter is the death toll numbers. It is very disturbing to think of those numbers as people, and not just as numbers. The way people were transported to camps such as Auschwitz is also disturbing. It was also depressing to learn that all of the Blumenthal's possessions that were being stored were burned when the Nazi's bombed Holland. It is a sickening feeling to think of everything you own, even an escape to the US, has been taken from you. I was surprised by the optimism that Marion still had after living through these horrible times. For example she talked about how a Dutch Jewish couple had to move in with them after the refugee camp had been renamed a transit camp, but she knew they were still better off than the people in the bunkers.
My thought that the Blumenthal's life in the refugee camp in Holland seemed quite normal with small 'homes', jobs, and school was backed up by the text when Marion explained it seemed normal to her as well because she had known anything else. Their life in this refugee camp seemed better than the ones they were in before where they had to sleep in separate quarters and do very hard work. That reminded me more of the concentration camp described at the beginning of the book than of a refugee camp. The text in this chapter also answered a question I had from chapter 3, that why had other countries not stepped in. This chapter describes that the start of WWII began when other countries did step in.
I thought of a few activities for students while reading this chapter. I think making a timeline would help the students understand the spectrum of events, and help show how long the Blumenthals lived the refugee camp, transit camp, and how long they waited for their Visas. Marion explained some games she would play and the students could reenact the games. There are also a lot of countries named in this chapter, and it would be a good activity for students to find the countries on the map, and show how much of Europe Hitler was trying to take over.
Some words or phrases that I think the students would need help understanding are:
exiles, refugee center, WWII, moor, Nieuw Amsterdam, saccharin tablets, lupines, barren heath, latrines, impoverish, isolate, confiscated, decrees, ominous, Auschwitz, refugee camp vs. transit camp, deportation center, and exchange Jew
Highly insightful commentary on the chapters thus far and excellent suggestions for capitalizing on teachable moments to help students understand some important and difficult concepts.
ReplyDeleteAs to why other countries had not stepped in -- this still puzzles me. It took the U.S. quite a while before entering the war and there were instances where the U.S. turned away ships carrying refugees from Europe. There are however, a number of theories about this.
There is a place in Oswego where a group of refugees were able to be admitted into the country after being turned away. It was the advocacy work of a woman named Ruth Gruber who managed to persuade Roosevelt to allow the passengers to disembark in Oswego at a place that was subsequently named Safe Haven. It is now a museum. You might want to find out more about it on the web.