The Holocaust was a genocide that claimed the lives of approximately six million Jews, as well as
five million others, during World War II. However, the persecution of Jews began long before the
actual genocide took place. The Nazis implemented anti-Jewish racial laws known as the
Nuremberg Laws in 1935, which defined Jews by their ancestry and deprived them of citizenship
and various professions. Over the next four years, the goal of the Nazi government was to force
Jews to emigrate while extracting as much wealth as possible from them. In November 1938, the
Nazis started a nationwide pogrom known as Kristallnacht, in which synagogues were burned and
thousands of Jews were arrested. Meanwhile, high-ranking Nazi officials were exploring
permanent options for ridding the Reich of Jews. In the end, the "final solution to the Jewish
question" - the Nazi's euphemism for the Holocaust - was decided to consist of systematic murder.
However, most of the victims of the Holocaust were not from Germany but were Jews from Eastern
Europe who faced harsh anti-Semitism and had nowhere to run. When the war began, the Nazis
drove Jews into hastily constructed ghettos, which ended up costing the lives of approximately
500,000 people from starvation and disease.
Testimonies from Holocaust survivors supply invaluable insight into an era characterized as one
of the bleakest moments in human history. Holocaust survivors include Sam Bankhalter and Hinda
Kibort, whose accounts of their experiences illuminate the horrors of Nazi Germany's Final
Solution. Through their testimonies, we can learn how the Holocaust deprived the Jewish people
of options, resulted in large numbers of deaths, and transformed the lives of survivors and the
world. Studies have shown that the descendants of Holocaust survivors are at a higher risk of
exhibiting signs of psychological distress, including anxiety and depression, than those whose
families were not directly affected by the Holocaust. This intergenerational trauma can manifest
in various forms, including nightmares, avoidance behaviors, and difficulties with attachment and
intimacy.
Sam Bankhalter was only fourteen when the Germans invaded his home in Poland. In her
testimony about him, she describes how the abuse began before the invasion, when the men's
beards and sidelocks were forcibly cut off. When the Germans took power, any semblance of
choice faded for the Jews. They were assigned prison uniforms and given a number without saying
anything on the matter. "There was not yes, or no; there were no options," Bankhalter recalls. Jews
could only survive by obedience.
Similarly, Hinda Kibort's testimony describes the loss of choice that Jews experienced during the
Holocaust. They would survive if they were strong and useful to the Germans, but any sign of
weakness meant certain death. Kibort saw his mother murder her because she was too weak to
continue working under harsh conditions and because she was trying to protect his daughters from
her. She also lost many other members of her family to the Nazi regime. Kibort's testimony, like
Bankhalter's, underscores the total lack of options for Jews during the Holocaust.
The loss of life during the Holocaust was staggering. The scale of the loss of life is elusive, and
the testimonies of Bankhalter and Kibort are reminiscent of the unspeakable horror of the
Holocaust. Bankhalter recalls an eleven-month mission to the crematorium, where he saw torture
and death daily. He saw 25,000 Russian soldiers killed and burned, along with countless women
and children sent to their deaths when they reached the camps.
The impact of the Holocaust was felt in all nations, and it is vital to understand how it affected
people at all levels of society. However, the Holocaust were not limited to Jews. In the Stutthof
camp, Kibort met women from Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Belgium, among others.
A research question that could be explored with these primary sources and further reading is, "How
did the Holocaust shape the lives of survivors and their descendants?"
Holocaust survivors like Bankhalter and Kibort experienced trauma that with living with them for
the rest of their lives. The loss of family members, the horrors of the concentration camps, and the
lack of opportunities left deep scars on the survivors. Additionally, their experiences would shape
the lives of their descendants, who would inherit their traumas and memories. In the 1970s and
1980s, a series of films and television programs brought the history of the Holocaust to audiences
around the western world, and survivors of the Holocaust began speaking publicly about their
experiences in large numbers. The emergence of Holocaust Denial in the 1970s led to the
organization of survivors and the establishment of Holocaust memorials around the world.
(Volume 3, Chapter 11:The Holocaust–Western Civilization). Today, the Holocaust is an integral
part of history taught in schools and universities almost everywhere, and it is widely recognized
as one of the most infamous events of the twentieth century.
A major area of research is the study of the impact of the Holocaust on contemporary society. For
example, studies have found that engaging with Holocaust education can increase empathy and
reduce prejudice towards marginalized groups. In addition, research has examined how Holocaust
denial and distortion continue to threaten historical understanding and social justice.
Overall, the experiences of Holocaust survivors and their descendants have profoundly impacted
individuals, families, and society. By studying primary sources, such as the testimonies of
Bankhalter and Kibort, and secondary sources, such as memoirs and research studies, we can gain
an understanding of the holocaust's current relevance in contemporary society.



"History of Western Civilization - Volume III: Chapter 11 - The Holocaust." Northern
Virginia Community College, 2023, https://blogs.nvcc.edu/westernciv/history-ofwestern-civilization/102-2/volume-3-chapter-11-the-holocaust/.
Bankhalter, Sam. "Sam Bankhalter: Memoir." United States Holocaust Memorial
Museum. Accessed April 30, 2023.
https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn505559.
Kibort, Hinda. "Hinda Kibort: Memoir." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Accessed April 30, 2023. https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn510682.