Płaszów

Monument to the Victims of Fascism in Krakow Soviet Era Monument in Płaszów

While photo might focus on the massive monument the Soviets put up at the site of the former concentration camp of Płaszów, this post is more concerned with the green space at the bottom of the image. The structure sits on top of a small hill, at the bottom of which is a mass grave. This mass grave, like most of the Płaszów site, is unmarked. Płaszów is a public park nowadays, with signage only being added in recent years to label and indicate the history of the space. When we visited the site, the only reason we knew that this space was the site of a mass grave is due to our guide telling us so. Because of this we know that there is a very slim chance that anyone visiting the site would know that this specific patch of green space sits on a mass grave and therefore we afford them more leeway in judging their behaviours. While it felt wrong to watch a man walk his dog over the mass grave, I could not blame him for his actions because I knew that it was unlikely he knew what the space was. Yet at other sites, many of which also lack proper signage, we assume that everyone is informed about the history and knows the proper social behaviour to follow in these spaces. As we saw with the Memorial to the Sinti and Roma, when sites are properly labelled and have clear boundaries, people are more able to interact with these spaces with intent and respect.