The Heroes of the Holocaust, or Those Who Risked Their lives to Save Their Fellow Man

1. The Heroes of the Holocaust, or Those Who Risked Their lives to Save Their Fellow Man Elizabeth Simpson

2. According to dictionary.com: a hero is, “a person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal.” Examples of fictional heroes: like Batman, Aquaman, the Flash, Wonder Woman, etc. What is a hero?

3. The Holocaust was the mass murder, (genocide) of Jews, executed by the Nazi party of Germany in the years of World War II. This plan was put into action by the dictator Hitler. What was the Holocaust?

4. What does it mean to be a righteous person? • It means to be a person who is willing to sacrifice her/his self, and to put aside her/his own personal safety for the good of others.

5. Was Oskar Schindler a hero? • Although he was at first a part of the factory business to earn money from the war he later put all his funds and efforts towards saving Jews • He saved over one thousand Jews from being victims of the mass murdering of Jews during World War II by sheltering them in his work camp in which no arbitrary killing or any kind of killing occurred.

6. Did he have a choice? • No, because it is every person’s duty to watch out for his/her fellow man. • He also had the means to save these people, so he is perhaps more obligated than others to have taken action. • But, others did decide not to shelter/save Jews from the mass killing in the Holocaust because of fear or hatred.

7. Was he a moral person? • Yes, Oskar Schindler was a moral person, but like any human being, he had his flaws. • But, despite his flaws, he saved 1,200 Jews from death (plus their descendents).

8. Why do cultures discriminate or even kill based on religion? • In the case of the Holocaust, the Jews were blamed for the many issues of post World War I Germany. Because of the creation of the “Big Lie,” these wrongly accused Jews were rounded up and brought either to death camps or work camps. • But, generally cultures may discriminate or kill others simply because the other culture is different, or it seems strange, or it may be that they discriminate to have a scapegoat for the problems the particular culture maybe experiencing.

9. Who are these people who would risk everything to protect their fellow man? Why do they do it? Are they normal? • These people are ordinary people who do extraordinary things. • They may do it of the kindness of their heart, or feel personally obligated to protect their fellow man. • All people have greatness locked within, it is what they do with it that defines them. So, yes they are normal, but they are doing astonishing things to protect others despite their ordinary background.