Pre-Site Visit Reflection: Gunter Demnig constructed a memorial in 1992 to commemorate the 1,000 Cologne Roma and Sinti who were taken to the city center on May 6, 1940, for deportation to extermination camps. Demnig created a single bronze monument etched with the deportation order and placed it in the municipal square in front of… Continue reading Stumbling Stones – By Ruby L.
Author: prasog
Neue Synagoge – By Beah
Pre-Site Visit Reflections: During our time in Berlin, we will enjoy the privilege of holding our class time at the Neue Synagoge (New Synagogue) on Oranienburgerstrasse. As a Jewish person on this trip, I think it is extremely significant that in the midst of our learning and visiting sites of Jewish (and other) persecution and… Continue reading Neue Synagoge – By Beah
Bebelplatz Book Burning Memorial – By Ava
Pre-Site Visit Reflection What is the memorial physically? The sunken library is a memorial that highlights what is missing. Underneath the ground of Bebelplatz sits a square of empty white shelves. This empty library has space for over 20,000 books as a reminder of the 20,000 books burned on May 10, 1933 by the Nazi… Continue reading Bebelplatz Book Burning Memorial – By Ava
Memorial to Homosexuals Persecuted Under National Socialism – By C. Watt
Pre-Site Visit Reflection The 2008 Memorial to Homosexuals Persecuted under National Socialism was erected to commemorate those persecuted for their sexuality under the Nazi edition of the anti-homosexuality law Paragraph 175. Although the law itself exclusively concerned gay men, other queer people were persecuted under the Nazi regime. Over 50,000 convictions were made under the… Continue reading Memorial to Homosexuals Persecuted Under National Socialism – By C. Watt
Berlin Memorial for the Sinti and Roma – By Olivia
Pre-Site Visit Reflection The Berlin Memorial for Sinti and Roma is located in the Tiergarten and was completed in October 2012. Designed by Dani Karavan, the monument consists of a round water basin with a triangular stone stele in the centre. A fresh flower is placed on the stele daily, both to remember the murdered… Continue reading Berlin Memorial for the Sinti and Roma – By Olivia
Sachsenhausen Museum and Memorial – By Marisa
Pre-Site Visit Reflections Sachsenhausen concentration camp opened in July of 1936. It was one of the earliest concentration camps and was created as a way to train soldiers, and detain “enemies of the state” in the early years of Hitler and the Nazi’s Third Reich. At that point, they were quite focused on vocal political… Continue reading Sachsenhausen Museum and Memorial – By Marisa
Topography of Terror – By Lucas
Pre-Site Visit Reflections: Described as once being “the most feared address” in Berlin, the site on which the Topography of Terror now stands serves as an example of the city’s multilayered history (Connolly). In telling the stories of both perpetrator and victim, this museum and memorial site shows us the challenges memorial work meets in… Continue reading Topography of Terror – By Lucas
Rosenstraße Memorial/Block der Frauen – By Alex
For my memorial site, I have the privilege of researching, presenting, and eventually visiting the Block der Frauen, or Block of Women, a memorial to the Rosenstraße protest that occurred in Berlin between February 27th and March 6th in 1943. This memorial interested me as it is very visually interesting, and I felt that my education in… Continue reading Rosenstraße Memorial/Block der Frauen – By Alex
Wrocław Old Jewish Cemetery – By Emily
Pre-Site Visit Reflections: Acquired by the Jewish community of Wrocław in the mid-19th century, this cemetery is the oldest remaining Jewish cemetery in the area and has been immaculately preserved during its 150+ year history. With the first burial occurring in 1856, the cemetery soon became the main place of burial for Jews in the… Continue reading Wrocław Old Jewish Cemetery – By Emily
Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum and Memorial – By Jordyn
Pre-Site Visit Reflections Auschwitz was founded on the orders of SS Reich Leader Heinrich Himmler on the 27th of April 1940 in Oświęcim, Poland. The first prisoners sent here were majority Polish Political prisoners who were to be exploited for slave labour. In March 1941, Himmler ordered a second and larger complex be built next to… Continue reading Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum and Memorial – By Jordyn
Mauthausen Memorial Site – By Annika
Pre-Site Visit Reflection Mauthausen was a Nazi concentration camp, now a memorial site and museum, located roughly 20 kilometres east of Linz, Austria. On our trip, we will visit Mauthausen from Vienna and stay in Linz for a night afterwards. Mauthausen concentration camp was established in August of 1938 following the annexation of Austria. During… Continue reading Mauthausen Memorial Site – By Annika
ARCUS/Shadow of a Rainbow – By Jami
Pre-Site Visit Reflection Opened in 2023, ARCUS, or Shadow of a Rainbow is the result of a long process of competitions and failed memorials to commemorate the persecution of Homosexuals under Paragraph 129b during the Nazi occupation of Austria. The open call for memorial submissions began in 2021 and was won by artist Sarah Ortmeyer… Continue reading ARCUS/Shadow of a Rainbow – By Jami