About the Holocaust
Most people know the general story behind the Holocaust: the 'racial cleansing' that was preached as necessary by Adolf Hitler that resulted in the deaths of approximately 6 million Jews and nearly 11 million people in total. The Holocaust was a lot deeper than some people realize, however. This era began in 1933 with the planned slaughter of Jewish people to cleanse the country. When Hitler came into power, the plans began and it didn’t take long for them to flourish. The entire event lasted until 1945 when the Allied powers won World War II, ending the dictatorship in Germany and Hitler's reign.
This genocide wasn't just about Jewish people. Hitler's men (Nazis) also targeted disabled and ill persons, mentally unstable persons, homosexuals, gypsies, Jehovah's Witnesses, and anyone who resisted Nazi authority. In addition to all of these people who were targeted, many were children. Unless they were old enough to be forced into labor or of a 'pure race', children were seen as useless, extra mouths to feed. There were about 1.1 children murdered during the Holocaust, and more who died from starvation, exposure, disease, and other circumstances.
The Holocaust started simply. In April 1933, Jewish businesses were boycotted. By 1935, Hitler had created the Nuremburg Laws, which banned Jews from most areas of public life, stripped them of citizenship and created a prohibition of relations between them and German citizens. Over the coming years, there were more laws created to exclude and eradicate Jews from German culture and society. Finally, in 1938, violence broke out that resulted in pillaging, burning, and destruction of Jewish businesses and places of worship. This led to physical assault and murder of Jewish people in the process, if they were in the way. About 30,000 Jews were sent to concentration camps at this time.
By 1939, World War II had officially begun and Jews were being forced to wear yellow Stars of David on their clothing to be identified. They were required to live in ghettos, forced out of their homes, and kept against their will. These ghettos were in cities like Warsaw, Kovno, Minsk and Riga. There were various types of camps set up that people were sent to under Hitler's rule, including work camps, concentration camps, death camps, and more. Those who were sent to a camp rarely made it out alive. Prisoners underwent medical experimentation, physical labor, starvation, torture, gas exposure, shootings, and also experienced high death rates due to disease, exposure, and starvation.