For the past few days you have been watching the documentary entitled, "
Amen." As you know, the film is based on the testimony of Waffen SS officer Kurt Gerstein who visited Sobibor, Belzec, and Treblinka in August of 1942 and witnessed the mass gassing of thousands of Jews. Please post your thoughts about the film in the form of a letter.
26 comments:
Dear Gabby,
Over the past couple of days in my Facing History and Ourselves class, we watched the movie Amen! It’s about a Nazi SS officer named Gerstein who witnessed the Jews being gassed at one of the death camps. He felt obligated to tell the Vatican of what he saw and the Holy Father, the Pope in other words. When he tried to tell his father and one of the cardinals, none of them believed him, only a priest. The priest and Gerstein tried to let the people know what is happening to the Jews at these camps. No one helps the Jews not even the Vatican and so the priest gets on one of the trains with the Jews to the death camps, and ends up being killed there. Gerstein was horrified and haunted by the image of the Jews dying at the camps, and is determined to stop it. He gathers evidence of the mass gassing of the Jews, but goes to America to show them, instead of giving it to the Vatican who ignore what is happening to the Jews. This movie left me angry and upset at all those people who knew about this, but stood by doing nothing about it. Even though its people of another religion that was being killed, that doesn’t mean that Catholic Church cannot help them. They may not share the same faith, but the Jews are still people. If the church wasn’t doing anything because of that, I don’t think God would have agreed with them. No matter race, gender, or belief you are or have you are still a human being. No person deserves to be treated like that.
Sincerely,
Heather Mannarino
Dear Allie,
In my Facing History class we watched a film called Amen. It was about an SS officer , Kurt Gerstain, who witnessed the gas chambers and tried to warn people about what was happening but nobody wanted to believe him because he was part of the SS. Kurt Gerstein went to the church to try telling them but they didn’t want to listen as well but then one of the priests decided to listen to him because he wanted to help stop the tragedies. The church wouldn’t listen to him as well so he pretended to be Jewish and went to one of the camps. I thought it was really messed up that nobody wanted to listen to Kurt or the priest because Kurt was part of the SS. All they were doing was trying to warn the people of Germany what was really happening at the work camps. Even by watching the film the people of the church were really starting to make me mad because they refused to listen to him when they should of at least given him a chance to explain what he saw.
Sincerely,
Marina Lucas- Santos
Dear Zoey,
I have been watching a film titled Amen in my Facing History & Ourselves class for the past couple of days and we finished watching the movie yesterday. This movie was an inspiring story of a German SS Commander, Kurt Gerstein, who witnessed the extermination of the Jews in the gas chamber at a Nazi death camp. This SS Commander couldn’t believe what he had seen with his own eyes. He now knew that the extermination of the Jews was actually happening. Gerstein tried to make everyone including the American Ambassador and the Pope aware of what was actually happening to the Jews. He wanted to put an end to the Holocaust. Unfortunately, no one listened to him and he was forced to resign from his post. He was eventually imprisoned for treason and finally hung.
This movie really made me think more about the German people as a whole. Although Kurt Gerstein was a SS Officer, he didn’t agree with what the Nazis were doing. He had sympathy for the Jews which not a lot of German people had during this time. This movie made me realize that not all of the Germans were out to get Jews. They were forced to go along with what the Nazis believed in, but they didn’t always think it was right. This movie was very sad especially because of all the Jews who were being deported to death camps, while Kurt Gerstein was trying to stop all of it. The trains that kept passing by were filled with hundreds of Jews who were on their way to die. Although this movie was heartbreaking, it was nice to see someone standing up for the Jews for once and not just being a bystander. All of the other Germans are bystanders whether they agree with the Nazis or not, if they do not stand up for what they believe in, they are just as bad as the Nazis. This film has yet again showed me the effects of being a bystander and how it is necessary to stand up for what you believe in.
Your Friend,
Jenna Kelley
Dear Carlos,
I just watched a movie called Amen. This movie was about some people during the Holocaust. It was very good and intriguing. This movie was very moving and sad. One of the people was an SS officer. He saw what was going on in the death camps and tried to get the news out to other countries. Each time he tried to talk to a country ambassador or an organization, he was not believed and made fun of. During one of the visits, he met with a Catholic Church leader who did not believe him. He thought the news was a trick from the Nazis and refused to believe it. A priest, that was in the room, believed him. The priest tried to speak to the Cardinals and the Pope about what was happening. When the church said that the news was boring them and all they would do is pray for them and help those who converted, the priest decided to go to the concentration camp himself and present him as a Jew. During that time, the SS officer tried his best to stop the camp from working. He tried to slow down the process by saying the gas containers were leaking. In the end of the movie, he tries to help the priest escape from the camp, but the priest does not want to. The SS officer was then found guilty of foraging Himlers name on a document and sent to jail. The ending is very sad and moving. I think you should watch this movie.
Sincerely, Aidan Dolan
Dear Carlos,
I just watched a movie called Amen. This movie was about some people during the Holocaust. It was very good and intriguing. This movie was very moving and sad. One of the people was an SS officer. He saw what was going on in the death camps and tried to get the news out to other countries. Each time he tried to talk to a country ambassador or an organization, he was not believed and made fun of. During one of the visits, he met with a Catholic Church leader who did not believe him. He thought the news was a trick from the Nazis and refused to believe it. A priest, that was in the room, believed him. The priest tried to speak to the Cardinals and the Pope about what was happening. When the church said that the news was boring them and all they would do is pray for them and help those who converted, the priest decided to go to the concentration camp himself and present him as a Jew. During that time, the SS officer tried his best to stop the camp from working. He tried to slow down the process by saying the gas containers were leaking. In the end of the movie, he tries to help the priest escape from the camp, but the priest does not want to. The SS officer was then found guilty of foraging Himlers name on a document and sent to jail. The ending is very sad and moving. I think you should watch this movie.
Sincerely, Aidan Dolan
Dear Carlos,
I just watched a movie called Amen. This movie was about some people during the Holocaust. It was very good and intriguing. This movie was very moving and sad. One of the people was an SS officer. He saw what was going on in the death camps and tried to get the news out to other countries. Each time he tried to talk to a country ambassador or an organization, he was not believed and made fun of. During one of the visits, he met with a Catholic Church leader who did not believe him. He thought the news was a trick from the Nazis and refused to believe it. A priest, that was in the room, believed him. The priest tried to speak to the Cardinals and the Pope about what was happening. When the church said that the news was boring them and all they would do is pray for them and help those who converted, the priest decided to go to the concentration camp himself and present him as a Jew. During that time, the SS officer tried his best to stop the camp from working. He tried to slow down the process by saying the gas containers were leaking. In the end of the movie, he tries to help the priest escape from the camp, but the priest does not want to. The SS officer was then found guilty of foraging Himlers name on a document and sent to jail. The ending is very sad and moving. I think you should watch this movie.
Sincerely, Aidan Dolan
Sincerely, Aidan Dolan
Dear Elizabeth,
How are you doing honey? We watched a movie in our History class called Amen. It was about the Holocaust. I know since your seven years old, you probably don’t know what that is but when you learn, this letter will make much more sense. The movie was about a SS solider who tried to stop the horrific events that where presented before him. Throughout the movie, it shows every aspect of falling apart. His family is slowly separating away because he is never home because he’s trying to save people. His job is clearly at risk because he disagrees with what his leaders and boss’s say. The biggest problem that forms is when he tries to get help to stop the unbelievable slaughtering, and they call him a liar or simply don’t care. Everything ends badly, with him dying and one body helping all the innocent people. You see Elizabeth, it is so sad to watch but that isn’t the point. The point wasn’t to make everybody sad. It was to show the world that there was some people in Germany, who were grown up hating a certain person, just like you hate your dad, and still couldn’t believe and needed to stop this massacre. That’s what is important. Knowing that not everyone followed orders, murdered and was a bystander to the killing of 20 million people is critical to know because we just imagine heartless uncaring Nazi’s when the truth was, that small handful of people actually did make a difference even if they only saved a few peoples life. Their attention and passion to free the millions of people was a help stop this horrific situation. I know this isn’t very clear now but you’ll understand. I love you always
Love, caroline <3
Dear Jimmy,
Amen! Is a film that we watched in Facing History and Ourselves, this film shows the story of how one man saw the wrong in what the Nazi’s were doing. Kurt Gerstein is a SS Officer, he is working to make systems to purify water by the use of the chemical Zyklon B. He then visits concentration camps in Poland, Sobibor, Belzec, and Treblinka to see how affective this chemical is being. What he sees is the mass murder of Jews in the Gas Chambers. Kurt Gerstein is horrified by what he saw and when he returns home he lets the church know what he saw and begs for them to do something. One priest takes this information to the Vatican where he is given little support and it seems that nobody cares. This priest is later gassed along with the Jews and dies, but he died trying. I was absent from school the day my class finished but I was informed that Kurt Gerstein was hung after being in jail for treason, we are unsure if he hung himself or if he was hung by other Nazi. I would recommend you seeing this movie because it is very powerful and gives a great showing of what happened during this time period. You really see how many people were aware of what was going on at this time, but they just didn’t care. These two men, Kurt Gerstein and the Priest made their best effort to stop what was going on but they simply had no support. These men are extremely brave for what they did. This film sparks many emotions while viewing it, at times I felt myself get angry and annoyed with what I was seeing because nobody was stopping the mass murder. I felt bad for what was going on, the mentally disabled were being killed like they were all part of an experiment and thousands of families were dying as minutes passed. Again I would recommend you watch this because it truly was a great and informative film.
Sincerely,
Brian Doran
Dear Jimmy,
Amen! Is a film that we watched in Facing History and Ourselves, this film shows the story of how one man saw the wrong in what the Nazi’s were doing. Kurt Gerstein is a SS Officer, he is working to make systems to purify water by the use of the chemical Zyklon B. He then visits concentration camps in Poland, Sobibor, Belzec, and Treblinka to see how affective this chemical is being. What he sees is the mass murder of Jews in the Gas Chambers. Kurt Gerstein is horrified by what he saw and when he returns home he lets the church know what he saw and begs for them to do something. One priest takes this information to the Vatican where he is given little support and it seems that nobody cares. This priest is later gassed along with the Jews and dies, but he died trying. I was absent from school the day my class finished but I was informed that Kurt Gerstein was hung after being in jail for treason, we are unsure if he hung himself or if he was hung by other Nazi. I would recommend you seeing this movie because it is very powerful and gives a great showing of what happened during this time period. You really see how many people were aware of what was going on at this time, but they just didn’t care. These two men, Kurt Gerstein and the Priest made their best effort to stop what was going on but they simply had no support. These men are extremely brave for what they did. This film sparks many emotions while viewing it, at times I felt myself get angry and annoyed with what I was seeing because nobody was stopping the mass murder. I felt bad for what was going on, the mentally disabled were being killed like they were all part of an experiment and thousands of families were dying as minutes passed. Again I would recommend you watch this because it truly was a great and informative film.
Sincerely,
Brian Doran
Dear Mom,
Yesterday in Facing History & Ourselves, my class finished watching the movie, Amen! This movie was about a man named, Kurt Gerstein, who was a Waffen SS officer. The movie tells his story of the horrific mass gassing of thousands of Jews during the Holocaust. This movie is based on the real testimony of Kurt Gerstein from when he visited Sobibor, Treblinka, and Belzec in August of 1942. The tragedy he witnesses and his reports are helped use later on to put those who were involved in the Holocaust on trial.
Out of all the movies we have watched so far on the Holocaust, Amen had the greatest effect on me. I think the reason for this was that it was interesting to see how Kurt Gerstein actually stood up for the Jews, and recognized how awful these mass killings were. It was also interesting to see that even though other SS officers were aware of what was going on at the concentration camps; Gerstein was the only one who actually attempted to stop what was going on. Gerstein, being a Nazi, risked his own life trying to stop the acts of the Holocaust. He knew information about what the Nazis were doing and how they were gassing masses of innocent Jews with Cyclone B. This information was supposed to be kept private from the outside world, but because Gerstein was a Nazi, he was able to see what they were doing to these people. Gerstein took this information to the church, but the neither the Pope nor the people at the church would help him. The Priest though, came in contact with Gerstein and felt that he wanted to take part in helping Gerstein put an end to the Holocaust.
I have great respect for both the Priest in this movie as well as Kurt Gerstein. It still baffles me every day of how one man, Adolf Hitler, was able to gain control of so many people without one person trying to stop him and his plans for killing millions of Jews. The Priest and Gerstein are examples of people who do not follow in the footsteps of the other bystanders. Gerstein witnessed children and mothers and other innocent families being gassed to death in these deathly gas chambers. The fact that he was a Nazi himself and he still was able to stand up for these people amazes me. He recognized how wrong this situation was and because of him, justice was finally served to those involved in these horrific acts of killing.
Sincerely,
Erica Price
Dear Dad,
We watched a movie about the gassing of jews called Amen. It was about the gassing murders of hundreds of thousands of innocent Jews. An SS officer by the name of Gerstein and a Catholic priest tried everything in their power to notify everyone about what had been going on. No one believed them. And after all their efforts they had died in vain. It took 20 years after their death to finally clear their names. While watching the movie I felt pissed off. I couldn’t imagine what went on in their minds after they tried all they can to help the Jews. And as a result, everyone thinks you’re a traitor. Officer Gerstein had a family, and he risked everything to try and expose the Gas Chambers. In return, Gerstein gets tried for treason and is jailed. He then took his own life. It was depressing to see that all their efforts did not do anything. I don’t know how the SS officers felt so righteous after gassing innocent women and children. It didn’t even seem to faze them at all. They were heartless to watch mothers holding their babies tightly close to them and then gassing them. I hated watching the smirks the officers had when they watched the Jews getting gassed through the eye hole. Watch the movie and then write me back what you think. Hopefully you and I have similar feelings.
Sincerely,
David Ros
Dear Alex,
The past two days in Facing History class, we watched the film “Amen”. The movie tracked the efforts of Waffen SS Officer Kurt Gerstein during the Holocaust. Gerstein was a firsthand witness of the mass gassing of thousands of Jews. Though a SS Officer, Gerstein felt obligated to spread the word about these horrific murders and try to help end the gassings. He risked his job, his family, and even his life through his efforts to spread the word. When he first visited a so-called mental facility, he was expecting to see a hospital assisting the patients. However, what he witnessed horrified him, as he saw Cyclone B, an extremely toxic poison, being dropped into a room full of suffering patients.
Gerstein tried to stop these gassing by approach a Cardinal and then even the Pope about the Nazi’s plans. He felt that the Catholic Church was the only way to possibly slow down and end the use of the gas chambers. When all his attempts failed, Gerstein became extremely depressed yet still thought of ways he could try to help. Eventually, after the war and the mass murder of millions of Jews, Gerstein was arrested by the French and waiting to be tried for war crimes. In his cell, Gerstein was found dead. It is unclear if he killed himself or if he was killed by other German soldiers who knew his sympathy for the Jews. Either way, Gerstein was one of the few, if not the only SS Officer who tried to do the right thing in a time when the right thing was wrong.
Sincerely,
Max
Dear Julia,
In my Facing History and Ourselves class, we have watched a film called “Amen!”. It is the story of a Catholic priest and an SS officer trying to save the lives of innocent Jews. After witnessing the extermination of Jewish families at a death camp, the SS officer is shocked and horrified. He immediately goes to the Vatican to tell them of the tragic murders, thinking that they too will want to spring to action. But none of them believe him, except for one priest. Together, they do in everything in their power to expose the great evils. They continue to ask the church for help, even going to the Pope. However, despite their efforts, no one believes them. Eventually the priest chooses to go to a death camp, becoming a martyr for the cause. The SS officer is imprisoned, where he hangs himself.
This movie really opened my eyes to what it means to be a bystander. Being a bystander is not just not being involved in a situation; it’s allowing and enabling something to happen. In this case, bystanders allowed millions of innocent people to be killed, something truly evil. The evidence was in their faces but they chose to ignore it. The priest and the officer were pleading with the church officials, people who are supposed to be representatives of God and Christians beliefs, and yet they did nothing. Priests are supposed to uphold Christian morals, which include caring for those in need, no matter who they are. It was so frustrating to watch them being presented with such condemning evidence and yet do nothing about it. I really think you should watch this film; it will force you to think about the Holocaust in a completely different light.
Sincerely,
Caroline
Dear Mike,
In my Facing History class we watched the movie Amen, this movie took place in Nazi occupied Germany and Poland and some surrounding countries. This movie followed an SS officer, Kurt Gerstein, who thought he was hired to disinfect the water and barracks for the Nazi soldiers. The Nazi’s however were using his chemicals and knowledge to exterminate thousands of people in gas chambers. When Gerstein later figured out what the Nazis were really doing he was deeply bothered by it. He quickly learned that the higher Nazi officials were exactly what was happening and approved of it and most of the world was left in the dark about the truth. Gerstein then devoted his life to trying to stop the extermination of these helpless peoples and had a lot of trouble doing so. He believed that if he alerted the Pope or the American authorities they would be appalled by the information. However without a lot of solid evidence he did not receive the response he was looking for and the exterminations did not cease. Later Kurt hung himself in a cell before being put on trial for his crimes as an SS officer.
I think that this story was a sad one but was worth watching. It left you feeling that there was injustice done since the man who was trying to stop all the killings was the one who ended up dead and that he did not put an end to them himself. I also feel that it was very frustrating to watch all the people who were told the truth about the death camps and refusing to believe it and not taking action.
Sincerely,
Jesse Blackwell
Dear Mom,
In History class I just finished watching a film called Amen! It was a sad story that was about the Nazi’s and how they came to power. It focused on the story of an individual named Kurt Gerstein, who was a Nazi officer aware of what was happening to the Jews, and tried to stop it. The movie showed how courageous Kurt was because he could have put his family in risk. He saw Jewish people with his own eyes being killed by being in gas chambers, while they thought they were just taking a shower. A train kept coming up throughout the movie to symbolize that continuously Jewish people were being sent to these concentration camps and dying, while the Nazi’s were just going along with their everyday lives. Another character who was Christian decided to put a Jewish star back onto his clothes because he couldn’t live with what he was doing to these Jewish people. It was sad to see the Nazi officers not even listen to Gerstein and even when they did listen to him, they didn’t care about what was happening with the Jewish people. He even tried to go to the Christian church to tell the priest what he had seen happen to the Jewish people. This movie, similar to all the other movies that we have watched thus far in Facing History, was a film that taught me many lessons and immensely affected my view on how important it is to stand up for what you believe in. It also showed that one person can make a difference by doing what they believe is right.
Kurt Gerstein’s records proved the existence of the Holocaust and gave the name out of those people that should be put on trial. Many people today still don’t believe that the Holocaust even happened, but Kurt’s records prove that it did. If he had not given out the names of those should be put on trial it is like justice not being served. Though he was a Nazi officer I feel like the only reason he was one was to protect his family. I also believe that he became a Nazi because he didn’t know the extent of how awful the Jewish people were being treated. What really affected him was the day he saw Cyclone B being put into a tube going into the gas chamber and watching the Jewish people suffer and die. This proved how awful the Nazi’s treated the Jewish people.
Overall this film was a hard one to watch. Like other films that we had watched in this class, it was sad to see that because people didn’t have the same religion as others, they had to be treated like this. This movie showed that even when the Nazi officers found out about what was happening with the Jewish people, they still did not care. It makes me wonder how the other officers who Kurt was with the day he watched Jewish people be killed by Cyclone B, not be affected by it and overall not do anything about it. I will never understand how the Nazi’s kept going on with their daily lives knowing that thousands of innocent Jewish people were being killed. I also wonder if I was alive back if my father would have been a Nazi officer. This is a question that makes me feel uneasy because I think I know the answer. This is a movie that I would recommend you to watch and hope that sometime after you watch it we could talk about how you felt about the movie as well.
Sincerely,
Kate O’Donoghue
Dear Sean,
In Facing History, we watched a film called Amen. The film depicts the story of Kurt Gerstein, an SS officer and chemist responsible for designing the chemical used to exterminate the Jews in gas chambers, despite its original purpose as a pesticide exterminate. Gerstein, who unwillingly aided in the death camp operation, grew increasingly disgusted and guilty with the actions of the SS as well as his own actions and participation. Fueled by a moral desire to right his wrongs and save the human lives he had been helping to eliminate, Gerstein attempts to bring to the world’s attention the atrocities of the Nazi camps. His efforts are slow and yield little success. Gerstein eventually hangs himself when he learns of his impending trial for his part in the holocaust despite his attempts to stop it. Fortunately, almost twenty years after his death, Gerstein was internationally forgiven and recognized for his moral obligations.
I think it’s pretty remarkable that Gerstein was willing to defy both his superiors and the organization that practically ran his nation in order to adhere to a much greater force: his conscience. He risked everything he had, most importantly his life, in order to salvage some sort of humanity within himself and within the world around him. It’s pretty good. You should check it out.
Sincerely,
Dan Terry
Dear Daniel,
Amen! Is an inspiring movie that portrayed the verification of the “Final Solution”. Near the end of World War Two, when the mass murdering of the Jews began, there were many rumors going around Poland. People were frantic trying to find out if the rumors were true and if they were what to do next. This is when the movie introduces SS Commander, Kurt Gerstein. Gerstein, even though he was a Nazi, was appalled and taken back by the extermination of the Jews. The first time he witnessed the gassing of the Jews he was speechless and immediately went to the Christian Churches for help. Gerstein did not get the power he needed to influence the killings and make a significant change in Poland. The only result he got from the churches was one priest who eventually faked being a Jew, went into a concentration camp at his own will, and made the decision to get gassed to death. Gerstein, as a result of the Christian Churches little help, decided to take an even greater risk. He forged a letter from Himmler stating that there needed to be explanations for the murders. Gerstein was ultimately charged for treason in his attempt to save the Jews. In conclusion, Gerstein was hanged, willingly or forcefully is unknown, in prison and millions and millions of Jews were executed.
This film was eye-opening for me, especially because I am of Jewish faith. I never realized or had been showed that not all Nazi’s were ruthless. Some commanders tried to save the Jews and tried to stop the significant massacre that Poland had begun. However, even though some SS commanders and Nazi tried to stop what was going on, there were not enough that believed Jews were good people to make a difference. The Holocaust not only tares at me emotionally but I cannot mentally wrap my head around the fact that the Nazi’s had a plan, and put it into action, to exterminate an entire race. So, I believe you should see this movie because it will provide you important insight into the murder of our ancestors.
Sincerely,
Shendyl Kayla
Dear Matt,
I recently watched a film in my history class, and I thought that I would share my experience with you. The name of the film is Amen, and it is about an SS officer, Kurt Gerstein, who is not exactly on the same page as his fellow SS members. He witnessed firsthand what the Nazis were doing to the Jews, specifically; he saw a group of Jewish people being gassed. This was the turning point for Gerstein as well as me. When I saw his reaction I was dumbfounded because all of this time I thought all Nazis were cold hearted and did not care for the Jewish people in any respect. To see an SS officer care for the Jewish people and do all he can to protect them, shed a sliver of light, in my eyes, on a very dark situation. Watching Gerstein work against the SS and all they stand for made me think that if one man disagreed with the Nazi way, then there could have been others who agreed with Gerstein’s point of view. It’s a shame that only Gerstein had the gall to make it known he disagreed with the Nazi’s actions, but even as one man, he was doing a really miraculous thing. Gerstein knew the consequences for what he was doing if he was caught, but he did it anyway and that lifted the usual feeling of sadness while watching films on the Holocaust. Watching Amen gave me satisfaction in a sense that an SS officer, as Nazi as one can be, had the heart to stand against essentially every Nazi and try to notify outside powers to help stop the madness that was taking place in the concentration camps. The end of the movie left me with sigh of disappointment because Gerstein hanged himself in his cell. It’s a sad feeling because he was the man that was going to make a difference due his compassion and bravery. In the end, my experience while watching this movie was still very unhappy, but Gerstein was able to instill in me the thought that somewhere in the Nazi party someone knew it was wrong, they just weren’t brave enough to publicize their feelings.
Sincerely,
Nick Ferretti
Dear Kara,
I wanted to write to you to talk to you a little about what I’ve been learning about. In my Facing History class we’ve been watching a multitude of movies about the atrocities of the holocaust and how an entire race of people can be persecuted to the point of total annihilation. Since you’re so close to me I needed to share with you what we’ve been learning so nothing like this will ever happen again. We watched a movie called “Amen” where an SS officer witnessed the horrors of the Nazi concentration camps and then does everything in his power to try and stop them. This man’s search for justice fell upon deaf ears from almost everyone around him. The fact that this kind of genocide can just be overlooked or pushed aside by anyone is sickening. If I could instill upon you one message that I took away from this movie it would be to never let injustices like this occur in your presence. Believe it or not you have the power to change so much around you, but the first step is to take action. You have so much more power and control than you think you do and even in your darkest times you have the ability to change someone’s outlook to a positive. Please Kara, Don’t let yourself be a victim. You need to stand up when you see these things happening because we all have the power to change the world.
Sincerely
Andy Kinsman
Dear Jonathan,
In a Facing History I just watched a movie called amen. This movie was about Nazi’s killing lots of Jews. The Nazi’s were trying to get rid of all the Jews living. One of a Nazi’s SS officer’s Kurt Gerstein found all the Jews were being taken to camps to be killed. He couldn’t believe what was happening and wanted to stop it. He thought that they shouldn’t be killing the Jews and he didn’t like it even though he was part of the Nazi group. He also did some things to help the Jews. For example when they had a car load of poisonous gas he said some of them have a crack and he can smell it. He was lying so maybe the Jews could have more time to live or escape. Also a priest named Riccardo Fontana wear a Jew symbol because he also wanted to help the Jews lived and thought they shouldn’t be killed. When the other Priest and Bishops stop trying to help he decided to put on a Jew symbol to see how they felt. He wanted to feel their pain since he was unable to do anything about it. I like the movie and was surprised that an SS officer was part of Hitler’s group who hated Jews was trying to stop them from killing and Jews and didn’t want it to happen to innocent people. Also I liked a Priest wanted to help the Jews and since he couldn’t he decided to put on the Jew symbol and be put in a concentration camp. I was thinking why would he want to do this he knows what goes on in those camps and why would he want to put his life in danger and take the chance of risking his life for people he doesn’t even know. Why would someone take that chance because I probably wouldn’t but that’s what I liked about a Priest doing that.
Dear Jonathan,
In a Facing History I just watched a movie called amen. This movie was about Nazi’s killing lots of Jews. The Nazi’s were trying to get rid of all the Jews living. One of a Nazi’s SS officer’s Kurt Gerstein found all the Jews were being taken to camps to be killed. He couldn’t believe what was happening and wanted to stop it. He thought that they shouldn’t be killing the Jews and he didn’t like it even though he was part of the Nazi group. He also did some things to help the Jews. For example when they had a car load of poisonous gas he said some of them have a crack and he can smell it. He was lying so maybe the Jews could have more time to live or escape. Also a priest named Riccardo Fontana wear a Jew symbol because he also wanted to help the Jews lived and thought they shouldn’t be killed. When the other Priest and Bishops stop trying to help he decided to put on a Jew symbol to see how they felt. He wanted to feel their pain since he was unable to do anything about it. I like the movie and was surprised that an SS officer was part of Hitler’s group who hated Jews was trying to stop them from killing and Jews and didn’t want it to happen to innocent people. Also I liked a Priest wanted to help the Jews and since he couldn’t he decided to put on the Jew symbol and be put in a concentration camp. I was thinking why would he want to do this he knows what goes on in those camps and why would he want to put his life in danger and take the chance of risking his life for people he doesn’t even know. Why would someone take that chance because I probably wouldn’t but that’s what I liked about a Priest doing that.
Sincerely,
Andrew MacElhaney
Dear Ethan,
I am writing this to you today to expose the truly rediculous nature of people's attitudes towards the systematic extermination of the jews during World War II. The common theory is that nobody did anything to stop the extermination, and that it was not common knowledge. This is not even remotely close to the truth, and What I found out after watching Amen! was truly shocking. Not only did people attempt to expose the death camps and stop the exterminations, but people completely ignored the words being spoken. A nazi named Kurt Gurstein made one of the greatest attempts at exposing this conspiracy, and eventually ended up getting imprisoned by the French who believed that he was responsible for the mass murders, due to him ordering Zyklon-B. He went to the French to expose the killing, and they did not believe him. Nobody did. He went to the pope in rome, but the pope decided to side with the Nazis even after knowing about the killing, out of his own fear. By the end of the war, the death camps became extremely well known, and people just overlooked it out of fear. There were a few good souls Like Gurstein, but most people would rather run and hide from the truth then do something about it. It was quite obvious what was happening to the millions of jews being thrown into cattle cars and shipped across the country, but the truth was upsetting, so people decided to overlook it. I’m glad I have gotten the opportunity to share this atrocity with you.
Dear Justin,
For the past few days in the Facing History and Ourselves course, Mr. Gallagher [the teacher] has shown the class a movie titled ‘Amen!’ ‘Amen!’ focuses on a German officer of the Waffen-SS in the Hygiene Institute, Kurt Gerstein. Gerstein at the time is trying to eradicate typhus on the German front and kill vermin, such as rats, using Zyklon-B a very powerful and lethal chemical agent. The Nazi’s end up using the Zyklon-B in the extermination camps all over German occupied areas. Gerstein is beside himself when he goes to the camps to witness the chemical in action. He does everything in his power to stop the Zyklon-B from reaching the facilities by faking a hazardous leak, informing to the Allies, and by even trying to go through Roman Catholic clergy to tell them of the truth, of which they didn’t accept.
Gerstein was tried as a war criminal but was found in a holding cell dead from hanging himself. I believe he is a hero, not just from actually trying to do something to stop the Holocaust by his own means but to stay with the SS throughout the whole ordeal was extremely courageous. Gerstein showed that he was not a bystander or a manufacturer of death but instead a rescuer, he may not have saved all the Jews but actually doing something about the killings is good enough for anyone, to stand up to the Nazis is no easy feat. I recommend you see this movie and I hope you are moved just as I was when I saw it and I hope it shows you that the suppression and persecution of anyone is terrible and should be stopped at any cost because it is morally wrong.
Sincerely,
Evan Rodriguez
Dear Amaresh,
In my Facing History and Ourselves class, we have each been asked to tell someone we know about a film we watched called “Amen” in the form of a blog. This film is based on real testimony from German SS Officer Kurt Gerstein.
In the film, Gerstein is a professor that works with the chemical Cyclone B. He works to instruct other soldiers how to use this chemical for various functions, like the cleaning of water. While on a mission to a concentration camp, Gerstein sees Cyclone B being used to gas and kill thousands of Jews. Gerstein is deeply affected. He goes to a Catholic church in Germany to persuade them to do something to stop this. In response, nothing is done. A priest witnessed Gerstein at the church and took the matter into his own hands. His superiors were Nazi sympathizers. The priest visited the Pope to tell him what was going on, but nothing was done to stop the deportation of the Jews. He converts to Judaism and goes on a leaving train from Italy to be deported. During this time, Gerstein tries to stop the issue in his own way, even if his family will be harmed. He finds the priest at a concentration camp but the priest will not leave. Gerstein has one hope left. He crosses the border into France and tells his story to the allies. Before his testimony is reviewed, he is put in jail to be tried for not doing everything in his power to stop the massacre of people. Gerstein, distraught, hangs himself in his prison cell. Later he is rehabilitated as a good person.
I think that this film shows the best in Gerstein and the worst in people. Gerstein stood up against his own nation for what was right. I think this is what everyone needs to do, every day. If the German people had stood up for the right thing, the holocaust may not have happened, or would have ended much sooner than it did. Always stand up for what is right. Thanks for your time.
Sincerely,
Brendan Dolan
I was absent from class.
Dear Mom,
We just finished watching the movie Amen! in my Facing History and Ourselves class this past week. It was about Nazi SS officer Kurt Gerstein, who was a chemist for the Nazis. After witnessing the extermination of Jews in a gas chamber, he was horrified by the Nazis actions and did not want to continue supplying them with the chemical used in the chambers. Kurt was one of few who had knowledge of what the chemical was being used for, and he was scarred by what he saw. He felt obliged to inform others of the atrocities being carried out at such labor camps. He went to inform a Cardinal of the mass murder; murder was a sin and Kurt believed that the Holy Church must stand up for those being killed, no matter their religion. Unfortunately, the only one willing to listen to what Kurt had to say was a priest. The priest continued to bring forth this information to the Pope, yet nothing was done.
It was tragic to watch the trains constantly moving in and out of the death camp station: thousands of Jews were killed everyday, and there wasn't anyone to stop the murders despite Kurt's warnings. I can't imagine being in Kurt's position: he feared for the Jews and was shut down by his own church for support; he had to leave his family to protect them; he went against the beliefs of the Nazis and so he had to fear them. This movie ended with a sense of loss as the priest was stuck in a death camp, Kurt hung himself, and there was no help sent to the Jews. It was sad and frustrating to watch as a Nazi stood up for what is right, going against his own peers, yet he was shut down and his actions went unnoticed until the war was over.
Sincerely,
Anna
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