Russell Thomas

Reflection on the Holocaust Museum.

After visiting the Holocaust Memorial Museum I feel that my out look on the Holocaust and that time period was changed. Going to the museum helped me realize all of the horrific atrocities that were done during this time to try and create the “Master Race”. It also helped me to tremendously expand on my previous knowledge about this topic.

Before going to the Holocaust Memorial Museum I did not have much prior knowledge about the topic of the Holocaust. After visiting I realized how much I did not know about the Holocaust as a whole. Some of the pictures and short films really helped me learn the much needed information that is necessary to understand the Holocaust. The picture that had the biggest impact on me was the picture of all the bodies when you first exit the elevator. That picture completely shocked me that someone could kill that many people with out even thinking twice about it. The short movies also provided some good background information that was necessary, such in the second movie, about how the Jews were criticized and discriminated against for almost all of history. Not that this made it right for some one to massacre a race like that but the thought was accepted at that time. Another part of the museum that had a major impact on me was the model of the Auschwitz concentration camp. When I first walked into the exhibit it shocked me to see the bunks and bedding arrangement. To see how small the bunks were and

knowing that they slept many people. The main part of the concentration camp that shocked me was the movie of the experiments that were performed on the prisoners of the camps. This part was the most unbelievable to me, some of the experiments were so disgusting and inhumane to do to animals let alone people, such as when the victims were put them in the very high pressure environment for so long that it shrunk the persons brain, and also when they cut people in three pieces and took every thing out of them. I believe that they were pointless and malicious and were just done as an excuse to kill many people for no reason. Lastly, I think that Rubin Sztajer put it all in perspective that all of this really happened, it was reality. Listening to his survival story and then seeing all of the exhibits in the museum had a tremendous impact on me and my understanding of the Holocaust.

My visit to the Holocaust Memorial museum was a great experience and helped me learn a lot. If I had the chance to go again sometime soon I would because I am sure that I didn’t even get close to seeing and reading everything.