Some outlines from the book:
Arbiet Macht Frei
In this book you'll find what the tour guides don't show you. Auschwitz was designated a Class 1 camp for prisoners-of-war. This was the highest class, where common criminals and political agitators had a good chance for release. Yeager writes: "The aim was reform, re-education and rehabilitation. Former Auschwitz Museum Director Francizek Piper wrote that 1,500 prisoners were released from Auschwitz, but that doesn't include those who were transferred elsewhere and then released. The Arbeit Macht Frei slogan on the gate was only used at Class 1 camps, where labor did indeed bring freedom; it was not a cruel irony" (p. 9).
Working Hours
The workdays had been formalized in 1938: On weekdays, work hours were 7:30-12:00 noon and 12:30-5:00. Saturdays: 7:30-12:00. Saturday afternoon and all day Sunday were free. "Inmates were encouraged to attend Christian religious services and to reflect on the reasons for their imprisonment" (p. 10).
Cultural Life
Not only did they in fact enjoy a swimming pool for recreation, but there was also a flourishing cultural life in the Auschwitz camp. For example: Block 24 also held the camp art museum. "The idea came from Polish inmate and artist Franciszek Targosz, whose accomplished sketches impressed Commandant Hoess. He named Targosz head of the museum, founded in October 1941, with its first home in Barracks 6. It was moved to Barracks 24 in March 1942, where it occupied two rooms until late January 1945. Art materials were supplied by the camp administration, and classes took place. Art of all kinds, including sculpture, was producd and exhibited for the enjoyment of the entire camp" (p. 16).
The Kitchen
The largest building in the camp, was actually the kitchen, across the entry road from the library. It had 12 chimneys for the stoves, and included a dietary section, a bakery and butchery. "Forty inmates worked in the kitchen. Special diets were prepared for patients in the infirmary and hospital. The kitchen had flush toilets, which were unknown to the first Soviet soldiers to arrive, who thought they were places to wash their hands" (p. 18)!
The camp orchestras
Many musical groups were formed by the inmates over the life of the camp. "Today the signs and guides tell us the only purpose of 'the orchestra' was to keep the prisoners orderly when marching out to and back from work. They don't want visitors to know the camp had a flourishing cultural life. In truth, the orchestras gave regular Sunday concerts and played on many other occasions" (p. 19).
You can read more about the history of these orchestras and other music and theater groups on the pages 20 to 22.
The Auschwitz Post Office
This is worth mentioning. Nothing in the museum litterature mentions the post office, the guides don't speak of it, but the Geneva Convention rules, strictly followed by the Germans, ensured the sending and receiving of mail by all prisoners. Actually the camps encouraged inmates to write to their relatives by making available pre-printed cards and letter forms. This was checked by the Red Cross, who never found any violation of this privilege at Auschwitz-Birkenau. Regulations printed on the address side are clearly stated. They translate as:
Every prisoner is allowed to receive (and send) two letters or cards from (to) his relatives each month. The letters to prisoners must be easily readable, be written in ink, and consist of no more than 15 lines on a single sheet. Only letter sheets of the normal size are allowed. Envelopes must be unlined. Only 5 stamps of 12 Pf each may be enclosed with each letter. No other enclosures are permitted, and will be confiscated. Postcards consist of 10 lines. Photographs may not be used as postcards.
An example:
Addressed to; Josef Novy, Bakery
Domazlice, Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
From: Josef Novy
Date of Birth: 27th April 1911
Prisoner Number: 73,034. Block 9a,
Concentration Camp Auschwitz, Post Office II
Auschwitz, 14th February 1943
My dear ones!I'm in good health, and I'm all right - I hope the same applies to you. I've received three letters and six parcels from you recently - all in good shape. Letters and parcels may not be sent registered, just send the parcels as per the first ones. The first parcels made me very happy - particularly the chocolate, honey and the many sweets - please send more like that. My brother Jarde and aunt Milka could also send me packages - I would be very grateful. Send the money as I previously asked you, i.e., RM 40 - per month. From now on I shall only be allowed to write once a month. Your lovely letters are a source of great happiness, and I look forward to receiving more. Please don't forget to send me garlic, onions and enough sugar. I thank you for everything you have done for me, and I hope that you will not forget about me. I'm always with you in my thoughts, and am looking forward to seeing you again. Please give my regards to all friends and relations, especially the Faila familyYour thankful son, JosefPS. You can send parcels frequently.
Yeager notes the following: "There are many such letters from concentration camp inmates recorded in the literature and circulating around the world. Note that this is February 1943 after thousands had supposedly been gassed at Auschwitz I, and 'everybody knew' what was going on. But inmate Josef Novy appears blissfully unware of this and confidently looking forward to his release" (pp. 25-26). Photo copies of letters, post cards and the regulations are to be found in the book (pp. 24-25).
The Hospitals
"Dr. Laszlo Tauber, now a wealthy Jewish landlord in Washington D.C., was the chief surgeon at the inmates' hospital at Auschwitz-Birkenau. Birkenau had several hospital buildings. One well-known inmate, Otto Frank, the father of Anne Frank, stayed there for three months in late 1944 - early 1945, with the complaint of the suffering from exhaustion. While he remained hospitalized, his two daughters were evacuated (following the rules of the Geneva Convention), along with many others, to Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, away from the advancing Soviet army. Otto Frank was still there when the Soviets arrived" (pp. 32-33). Note also that Anne Frank and her sister later died from Typhus (not gassing!).
And then it's this story about another famous inmate, Elie Wiesel. In his own book he writes that he was in hospital in Auschwitz recovering from an operation on an infected foot, and his father had been allowed to stay with him in the hospital. "However, Wiesel chose to leave the hospital to go with the 60,000 others who marched west with the Germans to another camp, away from the impending Soviet 'liberation'. The guides at Auschwitz don't show the hospital" (p. 33).
In sum
These, and many other stories, are to be found in this remarkable book from the author Carolyn Yeager. Your will also find headings like "Liberation as propaganda", "The workshops", "Recreational sports", "The swimming pool", and many others. This book shows another story than the one you're supposed to believe in. The whole picture differs hugely from the "orthodox holocaust faith", and is probably closer to the real historical facts about what happened at the labor camp for prisoners-of-war in Auschwitz. I highly recommend this book. It's definitely a "must-read" book for everyone searching for the truth. And who wouldn't?
Quelle:
Literature:
Yeager, C., Auschwitz: The Underground Guided Tour. What the Tour Guides Don't Tell You at Auschwitz-Birkenau, The Barnes Review, Washington D.C., 2010
Publisher:
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