Upon meeting a Holocaust survivor, every thought I had about such a bitter crime seemed shadowed by what this man knew and experienced. Just by his presence everything that I have read, discussed, or seen on T. V. appeared ten fold as real as before. And, only now can I begin to piece together the events that led to such an unforgivable crime.

The events that led to the Holocaust are drastic and well planned. In 1933, shortly after Hitler's rise to power, Nazi Germany began a “homogenization” (Hoffmeister 45) process that wiped all Jews clean of possessions, culture and most important, Morale. To be more specific, the regime abolished “All distinctions based on class, religion, economics, and institutional loyalty,” (Hoffmeister 45) This marks an important date in the events leading to the Holocaust, the birth of the Nuremberg Laws. The delivery of these laws forbade any Jews in taking place in significant activities as well as stripping them of various professions.

For example, all Jews “were no longer allowed to be lawyers (July 22 1934), Professors (Dec. 13 1934), writers (Apr.12 1934), Engineers (Jan. 20 1938), and real estate agents (July 6 1938). Students were expelled from universities (July 7 1935) and children from public schools. (Nov. 15 1938).” (Hoffmeister 45) Drastic as they may seem, the Nuremberg laws were a minute step in the war machine's destructive path.

 As the years progressed and more people were oppressed, the Holocaust matured into what many people know it as today. By 1939, resettlement plans for Polish Jews had been announced. Shortly thereafter, all Jews were required to wear a “visible emblem” (Hoffmeister 45) on their outer clothing. Shortly thereafter, Goring gave orders to Reinhard Heydrich to begin the “final solution” (Hoffmeister 47) and by Dec 1941, extermination of the Jewish race had “become a matter of state policy” (Hoffmeister 47). The exact estimate of those who perished curing the Holocaust remains at large, but, records calculate the deaths to reach as high as six million. Although this number may be underestimated it serves to remind us of the terrible losses and hardships suffered during World War II.

 As an overview, one could say that Holocaust was only a cold hearted act of killing. Indeed this is true but, not only was it a heinous crime, it was a well planned event that the Nazi political regime used to better their chances in becoming the superior race. And, now that I have met a Holocaust survivor, I can better understand the events that lead to the Holocaust.
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Works Cited
1.  Hoffmeister, Gerhart., and frederic C. Tubach. Germany: 2000 years. New York: Unger, 1986
2.  Web Page of Dr. Esa for German 1125 [http://wwwfac.wmdc.edu/German/German1125/index.html]