Although these names are not mentioned in Berlin at War, Eva Kor and Oskar Groning were living in Europe during the Second World War. Eva Kor, a Holocaust survivor, was in Auschwitz for some time during the global conflict. Oskar Groning, a former SS guard, was responsible for the killing of thousands of innocent Jews. These two people are still living today and have been able to get passed the events that transpired about 70 years ago.
During the war, Jewish citizens were constantly subjected to persecution. Many of their belongings were taken away from them and they were forced into concentration and labor camps. They were also publicly humiliated since they had to wear a yellow star on their clothing to show that they were Jewish people.
Yom Kippur, an important Jewish holiday, took a turn for the worst in 1941 when Gestapo officials appeared outside one of the only synagogues in Berlin. They took control of the building and turned it into a transit camp. It became a “holding bin” for Jewish people before they were sent to more distant camps. Jewish citizens were given detailed instructions, which told them what to bring and what must be surrendered to the Nazi State. Everything would be filtered by the Gestapo to ensure that the Jewish citizens were following the rules. The Jews did not know what was to come next after being transported to other Nazi camps.
Jews did not know the conditions of various camps, so it was unclear whether they would be living comfortably or they would be fighting to survive. In numerous cases, Jews were sent to concentration camps, where death was likely to occur. However, in this news story I found, Eva Kor survived Auschwitz and continues living to this day. Recently, she served as a witness in a case against Oskar Groning in which the SS guard is being charged with 300,000 counts of accessory to murder. Although she testified against him, Eva did embrace Oskar with a hug, showing that former enemies can move on with life. Eva wanted to show the world former survivors and Nazis can get along. She also wanted to teach young people that nothing good has been created from killing one another.
In closing, Eva received a kiss from Oskar, remarking that it was probably better than what would have happened to her 70 years ago. Her main goal is for both sides to come together, try to heal, and work to ensure that the Holocaust will never happen again. I think that this story is important for everyone because it is important to move on from difficult events, whether you experience a death in the family or personal problems with a best friend. We are all humans, and we tend to make mistakes. The lessons learned from these mistakes, and our ability to prevent them from happening in the future is what makes humans different from other living things.
The following link is the ABC News article: http://abcnews.go.com/International/holocaust-survivor-eva-kor-embraces-nazi-guard-oskar/story?id=30561120
Great story.