Warsaw+Ghetto

Before WWII, Warsaw was a major center of the Jewish culture in Poland. The population of Jews in pre-war Warsaw was more than 350,000. This was almost thirty percent of Warsaw's population. Those numbers made the Warsaw Jewish community the largest in all of Europe. That of course was before the Germans began moving them out in 1940. On October 12, 1940, the German authorities declared that all Jews in Warsaw be moved to a designated area separate from the rest of Warsaw. In November 1940, Jews were beginning to arrive in the Warsaw Ghetto. The "neighborhood" they moved into was more like a prison. The entire ghetto was surrounded by a wall ten feet high. The tops of the walls had rows of barbed wire circling the ghetto. This separated the community inside from the rest of Warsaw.

Life in the ghetto was a horrible experience for anyone who was forced to live there, which was about 400,000 Jews. The ghetto was very small, only about 1.3 square miles of land. With so many Jews, and so little room, space was used extensively. The housing projects and apartments had very small living spaces. Some peoples' homes were only one room big. This was a problem due to the fact that each room held between seven to ten people. Food rations were given out to the Jews in the ghetto, but the amounts given to each person were not enough to support life. The human body needs between 2,200 and 2,700 calories per day to live a healthy life. The average Jew in the ghetto consumed only 1,125 calories a day, sometimes even less. Between 1940 and 1942, 83,000 Jews died of starvation.

Many people smuggled foods and medicines into the ghetto. The Germans did everything to seal off the ghetto and to not allow a single gram of food. Smuggling took place through the walls, through the gates, through underground tunnels, through sewers, and through house borders. They had to try and smuggle food or die.

Nazis liked to amuse themselves and embarrass the Jews in public areas. Most Jewish men had beards that were an important part of their religious identity, so Nazis would cut them off. Sometimes they would make Jews clean the concrete streets and sidewalks for no reason. You would grab a pail of water a rag and have to start cleaning. Even sometimes they would put on music and select a bunch of Jews to start dancing to it, while everybody surrounded them watching. During this, the Nazis would laugh at them so the Jews know they were being humiliated.

Today the remaining buildings of the Warsaw Ghetto are adorned with pictures depicting the history. It is now a center for culture and education.

Joseph and McKenna