Introduction
The two World Wars resulted in heavy casualties. About 11 million died in the First
World War. During the Second World War, the death toll rose to about 60 million.
Among those who died in the war, over 60% were civilians. For example, 6 million
Jews were killed because of the Nazi persecution. Through a closer examination
of the Nazi persecution of the Jews, we will better understand racism from different
perspectives. We will also discuss what lessons the humankind can draw from
history and understand the importance of racial equality and respect to human
rights.
Useful Words
casualties
傷亡
civilians
平民
death toll
死亡人數
human rights
人權
Jews
猶太人
persecution
迫害
perspectives
角度
racial discrimination
種族歧視
racial equality
種族平等
racism
種族主義
respect
尊重
Activity 1:
Extracting Key Points
The following is excerpted from the diary of Anne Frank, a Jewish girl. She was
one of victims of the Nazi persecution of the Jews during the Second World War.
Read the excerpt and describe the problems Anne was facing at that time.
Source 1
13 March 1933
Today, elections were held in Frankfurt. Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party won.
Father was worried about the anti-Semitic movements in the city. He told
us that we might need to run away from the Nazi control.
February, 1934
We have arrived at Amsterdam (a city in Holland). I will go to a new school
later. I hope we can have a new beginning……
May 1940
Terrible news! Germany invaded Holland. The Nazis are enforcing a lot of
policies against us. I cannot study in my school anymore. As a Jew, I
cannot study with girls of other races. I can only study in a Jewish school.
April 1941
Father was sad. He was afraid that his company would be taken away by
the Nazis.
20 June 1942
I am sad!!! My grandmother has left us. I love her so much and I’ll miss her
forever.
I can hardly see a smiling face. The Nazi’s control is terrible. We are not
allowed to travel by public transport. I have heard that the Nazi would put
the Jews in work camps. I don’t want to leave my parents and my sister!
6 July 1942
They want to put my sister in the work camp! We must hide ourselves from
the Nazis. Father has found a secret hiding place in an old building.
4 August 1944
We were found by the Nazis! We were sent to a concentration camp.
3 September 1944
This is no place for humans! They have taken away my clothes, shaved
my head and tattooed a number on my arm. Every day, children and
women were sent to the gas chambers and killed by poison gas. Father
has been kept in another camp. I am afraid that he might have been killed
by the Nazis.
October 1944
We are treated like animals. We don’t have enough to eat. My skin is
badly infected! It hurts! Mother tries her best to protect us but she is so
weak!
March 1945
There are dying women and children everywhere in the camp. Disease
spreads so quickly. I don’t know how much longer I can live……*
* Anne Frank died before Germany was defeated in 1945
Source: Rewritten from The Diary of a Young Girl (1947), Anne Frank
Try to list the problems Anne faced using the following sentence
pattern.
family was forced to leave their home
First of all, Anne’s
_________________________________________________
town. town.
__________________________________________________________
was not allowed to study with girls of other races.
Secondly, she
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Thirdly, ____________________________________________________
she and her family was put into a concentration camp.
__________________________________________________________
she did not have enough food. Living conditions in the camp were poor.
Finally, ____________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Activity 2:
Think-Pair-Share
Source 2
The following extract shows the definition of racism.
1. The belief that … some races (have) an intrinsic superiority over others.
2. Abusive or aggressive behaviour towards members of another race on
the basis of such a belief.
– Collins English Dictionary
Were the problems of Anne brought about by racism?
Tips: To answer this question, you may discuss the following issues with
your partner:
- Was Anne persecuted by the Germans because of her race? (refer to
point 1 in Source 2)
Ans. Anne was persecuted because ______________________________.
she was a Jew.
- Was Anne a victim of abusive or aggressive behaviour? Give examples.
(refer to point 2 in Source 2)
Ans. Anne suffered greatly. For example,
any two examples cited from the source
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
- Thus, we can conclude that
Anne suffered abusive behaviour because of her race. Her suffering was
____________________________________________________________
brought by racism.
____________________________________________________________
Useful Words
abusive
辱罵性的
aggressive
侵略性的
anti-Semitic
反猶太的
concentration camps
集中營
dairy
日記
election
選舉
excerpt
節錄
gas chambers
毒氣室
infected
受感染
intrinsic superiority
固有的優越本質
invaded
入侵
Jewish
猶太裔
races
種族
tattooed
(在人體上)刺(花紋)
victims
受害者
Activity 3:
The following persons held different attitudes towards the Jews
during the Second World War. Listen to the following speeches.
Try to identify and explain their attitudes towards the Jews.
Source 3
In my childhood and in my school days, the term “Jew”
did not mean anything special to me. Just by looking at
their face, a German was no different than a Jew. I only
knew that the Jews followed a different religion.
Then I came to Vienna. I now saw Jews, and the more I
saw, the more sharply they were different from other
men in my eyes. Even with your eyes closed, you can
tell they were dirty.
The Jewish influence in the newspapers and art spread
like disease. They just pollute the world.
Worse still, the Jews were the leaders of the Social
Democrats (the major political party in the Weimar
Republic). They were “devils”. They even encouraged
the workers to go against their employers.
The Jews are an “alien” race. They are no Germans.
They spread Marxist ideas through their newspapers.
Marxism is dangerous to human culture, nationality and
race. It will only lead us to chaos, and finally, to death.
The only solution is war. When I go against the Jews, I
am fighting for God.
Adolf Hitler, German Chancellor since 1933
Source: Rewritten from Mein Kamp,/ Adolf Hitler, 1932.
Source 3
Yes, some of my close friends are Jews. I do believe
that some Jews are all right, but as a race they stink.
They spoil everything they touch.
I have heard of the cruel acts against German Jews. It
did worry me because it would produce bad effects on
the image of Nazi Germany. It would be harmful to the
relation between Germany and the West. War with
Germany is not a wise choice now.
Joseph P. Kennedy, US ambassador
to Britain from 1938-40
Our major problem is communism. The spread of
Jewish influence in our country is growing into another
problem. Hitler’s anti-communist and anti-Jewish
policies may be answers to these problems.
Source: Joseph P Kennedy and Anti-Semitism, from Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_P._Kennedy,_Sr.
Austria was annexed by Germany in 1938. The 185,000
Jews there are now threatened by death. They need
entry visas to another country if they want to escape
from the Nazi persecution.
In Vienna, diplomats of England, France, and
Switzerland refused to give visas to Austrian Jews. My
senior, the Chinese Ambassador in Berlin, also advised
me not to do that. They were afraid of the Nazi
Germany.
But the Jews are also human beings! Many have been
thrown into concentration camps. What I can do is to
give them visas to Shanghai. These are “Visas for Life”!
Ho Feng Shen,* Chinese diplomat in
Vienna from 1938-39
* Ho was awarded the title “Righteous Among the Nations” by the Israel government in 2000 as he had saved the
lives of as many as 4,000 Jews during the Second World War.
Source: Rewritten from “ Honour for envoy who saved Jews “ by Mark O’Neill, SCMP, 30 December 2000
Worksheet A
What are the major concerns of these three men? Cite evidence
from the source to explain your answer.
Any two the following:
1. He was worried about the spreading influence of
Hitler
the Jews.
2. He was worried about the spread of Marxist
ideas by the Jews.
3. He believed that he should defend the Germans
against the Jewish devils.
Joseph Kennedy
1. He tried to keep good relations with Germany./He
want to avoid war with Germany.
2. He was worried about the spread of communism
(Marxism).
Ho Feng Shen
1. He was worried about the sufferings of the Jews
because of the Nazi persecution.
2. He was concerned about the conditions/safety of
the Jews in the concentration camps.
Worksheet B
Identify the attitudes of the three historical figures towards the
Jews in the 1930s. Cite evidence from the source to explain your
answer.
Hitler was hostile/
apathetic/ sympathetic*
to the Jews.
Any one of the following:
1. He believed that the Jews were dirty, and
that they polluted the world.
2. He used words such as “alien” and
“devil” to describe the Jews.
3. He wanted to destroy the Jews in name of
God.
Kennedy was
apathetic
___________________
to the Jews.
Any one of the following:
1. He was only concerned about USGermany relations.
2. He believed that Hitler might help the
US to go against communism
sympathetic
Ho was ____________
to the Jews.
__________________.
Any one of the following:
1. He was concerned about the safety of
the Jews.
2. He tried to help the Jews even when his
seniors advised him not to do so.
3. He gave visas to the Jews so that they
could leave Germany.
* Circle the best answer.
Food for thought:
Which one of them would you support? Why?
Speaking Tips:
I would support _____________________________________
because___________________________________________
_________________________________________________
(any acceptable answer supported with reasons.)
Useful Words
alien
異類
annexed
被吞併
anti-communism
反共產主義的
anti-Jewish
反猶太的
apathetic
冷漠的
attitude
態度
chaos
混亂
close friends
親密朋友
communism
共產主義
diplomat
外交人員
employers
僱主
encourage
鼓勵
entry visa
入境簽證
evidence
證據
go against
反對
hostile
敵對的
identify
辨識
influence
影響力
Marxism
馬克思主義
political party
政黨
pollute
污染
religion
宗教
senior
上司
spoil
損毀、破壞
stink
發出臭味
sympathetic
同情的
Activity 4:
Source 6
The following is excerpted from the Declaration of Human Rights proclaimed
by the United Nations in 1948.
PREAMBLE
The dignity and equal rights of all members of the human family is the
foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world…
Contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts, human beings
shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and
want…
Article 1
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights…
Article 2
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms in this Declaration,
without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language,
religion ……
Article 3
Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.
……
Article 5
No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman treatment or
punishment.
……
Article 7
All are equal before the law …… All are entitled to equal protection against
any discrimination ……
Source: Declaration of Human Rights
www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/
Source 1 shows the racial discrimination suffered by Anne Frank. Source 6 shows the
ideas of racial equality . Compare the two sources and complete the following table.
What were the problems suffered by
Anne Frank?
Which articles in the
Declaration of Human
Rights provide answers
to the problems?
She
was not allowed to study with girls of
______________________________
other
races.
______________________________
Article 1, 2
__________________
______________________________
______________________________
She
was not allowed to travel by public
______________________________
transport.
Article 3
__________________
______________________________
Her
family was put into concentration camps.
She
did not have enough food. Living
______________________________
conditions
in the camp were poor.
______________________________
Article 5, 7
__________________
______________________________
Conclusion: From the changes, we can conclude that human beings learned a
lesson from history. One must respect the importance of human rights and racial
equality is respected.
Useful Words
barbarous acts
野蠻行為
colour
膚色
contempt
輕視、蔑視
Declaration of Human Rights
人權宣言
dignity
尊嚴
distinction
區別
entitle
賦予
inhuman
不人道
justice
公義
preamble
前言
respected
受尊重
suffer
遭受痛苦
torture
酷刑
United Nations
聯合國