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To me the holocaust was the peak of cruelty of centuries of antisemitism in Europe especially.
My parents fled Eastern Europe before the nazis took power so my personal past is tied to what is today Belarus.
The antisemitism today is present all over the world as You are being redirected... and other pages on that site makes clearly. So to me, Germany is just one country among a host of countries that have anti-Jewish bigots.
My parents fled Eastern Europe before the nazis took power so my personal past is tied to what is today Belarus.
The antisemitism today is present all over the world as You are being redirected... and other pages on that site makes clearly. So to me, Germany is just one country among a host of countries that have anti-Jewish bigots.
Tumah
Veteran Member
All four of my grandparents lost the majority of their [rather large] families to the Nazis. I grew up with stories from my grandparents and heard from my parents about their own experiences being raised by Holocaust survivors. I think it's too personal for me and perhaps my generation of descendants. Germany does have a "special" place in my head unlike other European countries. But I also think that this won't be the case for my children or grandchildren.
TagliatelliMonster
Veteran Member
In my experience as a non-jewish Belgian neighbour of Germany, many Germans (I might even say "german culture in general") are very much aware of their nazi-past and tend to go out of their way to make clear that they are no longer what many of their grandparents were. There is quite some "shame" in their discourse concerning their nazi past.
Nevertheless, even to me, a non-jewish person, germany is "tainted".
I grew up in the 80s. Germany wasn't exactly a place to go to, what with the whole berlin wall thing.
Most of the german language I heared when I was a small child, concerned speeches of Hitler and Goebles and alike from documentaries about WW2, both on TV as well as in school. WW1 as well, Germany played a big role. And idd, with the whole berlin wall thing, they once again were the center of "evil" attention.
This had a very deep effect on me to my very core. This effect persists till this day - I can't help it.
When I say something in German, my first instinct is to "scream" it with an authoritarian undertone. Whenever I hear German, I can't help but to hear Hitler speaking in my head. The language simply "resonates" as racist in my mind. I can't help it.
It's an association deeply rooted in my brain that I can't seem to get rid of.
I'm aware of it so I can look beyond it. It's not like I think every German speaking person I meet is a racist nazi or something... But the association is always there at the back of my mind.
So in relation to your question directed at jews....
If even only a few documentaries can do that to my mind... I can't even imagine what it is like for jewish people who actually witnessed these horrors up close.
I totally understand how it can install trauma's for multiple generations, in people born decades later.
Nevertheless, even to me, a non-jewish person, germany is "tainted".
I grew up in the 80s. Germany wasn't exactly a place to go to, what with the whole berlin wall thing.
Most of the german language I heared when I was a small child, concerned speeches of Hitler and Goebles and alike from documentaries about WW2, both on TV as well as in school. WW1 as well, Germany played a big role. And idd, with the whole berlin wall thing, they once again were the center of "evil" attention.
This had a very deep effect on me to my very core. This effect persists till this day - I can't help it.
When I say something in German, my first instinct is to "scream" it with an authoritarian undertone. Whenever I hear German, I can't help but to hear Hitler speaking in my head. The language simply "resonates" as racist in my mind. I can't help it.
It's an association deeply rooted in my brain that I can't seem to get rid of.
I'm aware of it so I can look beyond it. It's not like I think every German speaking person I meet is a racist nazi or something... But the association is always there at the back of my mind.
So in relation to your question directed at jews....
If even only a few documentaries can do that to my mind... I can't even imagine what it is like for jewish people who actually witnessed these horrors up close.
I totally understand how it can install trauma's for multiple generations, in people born decades later.