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History
Want to turn red? Read the Washington Post letters section. (I can’t avoid it. I’ve been getting it free from my apartment building.)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40140-2004Sep21.html
Germany’s Camp, Not Poland’s
Wednesday, September 22, 2004; Page A30
With deep sadness and disappointment I once again draw attention to The Post’s use of an unacceptable term, “Poland’s Auschwitz-Birkenau camp.” In the Sept. 19 Travel section this term appears twice in photo captions. The meaning of the term “Poland’s Auschwitz-Birkenau camp” goes far beyond geographic dimensions and perpetuates false stereotypes distorting a historical truth — that concentration camps were created and run by Nazi Germans, not by Poles.
Lack of sensitivity to this problem among some American journalists is really painful, especially to the people of Poland and Americans of Polish origin. Six million Polish citizens perished in World War II, and using such terms is deeply offensive and unacceptable.
PRZEMYSLAW GRUDZINSKI
Ambassador, Embassy of Poland
Washington
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58388-2004Sep28.html
Poland’s Role In the Death Camps
While the ambassador of Poland is correct that German Nazis built the concentration camps in Poland, his Sept. 22 letter, “Germany’s Camp, Not Poland’s,” nevertheless reflects a historical inaccuracy in suggesting that Poland bore no responsibility for what transpired on Polish territory.
A large percentage of people who worked in the death camps and assisted the Germans in their murderous plans were Poles — without whose assistance the Germans would never have been able to kill as many people as they did in such a short time.
There are many things Poles can do to build a better country where the sad events of the past won’t be repeated. Rewriting history is not one of them.
ANDREW M. CAPLAN
Arlington
——————
I’m still looking for the precise words to reply to this (unless the Ambassador finds some first.) Here’s Caplan’s point: Because some Poles collaborated with the Nazis (especially those who worked in forced labor in the death camps) ALL Poles have to share collective blame and guilt. Nevermind that ALL ethnic groups in the camps had some collaborators. Nevermind that Poland took millions of casualties because they maintained a stiff, open resistance throughout the war drawing German troops away from the beaches of Normandy. Nevermind that Enigma was INVENTED by Poles and in operation before they gave it to the Brits. Nevermind that Poles also were victims of ethnic cleansing policies. Nevermind that for years afterward, Poland led resistance to Soviet occupation even as leftists in the west sought appeasement. Nevermind that Germany itself received more aid than Poland from the U.S. after the war for rebuilding. Let’s see ALL of that in the history books.
Maybe I should unleash my wife on them.
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