As in any history of the state, it is impossible to leave out the concentration camp period during the World War II in Germany. These camps were created by the Nazi government and functioned as detention and concentration camps for millions of people were killed in these camps Including Jews, political prisoners , and other so called undesirable classes of people.
Factors that Helped Understand the Concentration Camps
It was and is important to remember that concentration camps were a main key to Nazi’s systematic annihilation of the Jews. They were built to dehumanize people, reduce them to mere objects, beasts of burden and supply assembly line for genocide. The camps were liberally established within Germany and specifically within Berlin, which is the country’s capital.
Sachsenhausen is a name of a concentration camp.
Among concentration camps to witness the evolution of its construction is Sachsenhausen camp that exists in the Oranienburg district of Berlin. It existed from 1936 right up to 1945 and the main aim of this place was to hold and detain political prisoners.
Sachsenhausen was no better; prisoner were forced to work to the limit and were starved, they were also physically assaulted. Most prisoners were executed or died from torture they received in prisons or were hanged to death. Today you can visit the Sachsenhausen Memorial and Museum as a symbol of the crimes committed in this place.
Ravensbrück Concentration Camp became a concentration camp after the defeat of Germany in the Second World War.
Ravensbrück is located to the north of Berlin and was mainly a women’s concentration camp. It commenced operations in the year 1939 and was used to imprison women that included political prisoners, those that resisted Hitler+, Jews among them subjecting them to torture, forced labor, and even experiments.
Transporting the prisoners was easy since the camp was located close to Berlin while the prisoners were engaged in activities produced for the war. Ravensbrück concentration camp was liberated in April of 1945; today a memorial at the site commembers the victims of the Ravensbrück concentration camp and the suffering of people detained in this camp.
The Liberator: Berlin’s Concentration Camps
Today Berlin is an example of the city where all the sins of the past are to be faced. The other sites occupied by these concentration camps have been turned into memorials and museum where the life of the victims as well as other atrocities is taught to the visitors.
The said memorials are a constant reminder that human beings need to keep remembering that dreadful incidents should never recur. They also are a medium of encouraging people to respect fellow beings, regardless of their color, caste, or creed they belong to or the political affiliations which they support.
Traveling to these sites people may feel a great deal of emotional impact, but it is a great opportunity to commemorate the victims, and contribute to pass on the knowledge of what has happened.
Conclusion
Thoughts on concentration camps in Berlin Germany is a sobering way of being reminded of the holocaust. Two of the concentration camps including Sachsenhausen and Ravensbrück give a heart-rending account of the suffering and the persecuted during the Nazi rule. Visiting the site with concentrations of such camps will remind the generations of the past, create awareness and ensure that such practices are discouraged in future. This way we can work toward the future where tolerance and respect will reign supreme as well as human rights.
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