Final Reflection on Poland

Poland has a fascinating history of which alone is worth studying. For centuries, Poland was a safe haven for the oppressed in which many could go about their lives and practice their faith in peace. The extremist politics of the 20th century brought a lot of that to an end through violent and bloody means. Through all that’s happened, there are many ways to look at Poland. Some see Poland as a giant cemetery where graveyards are everywhere and mass graves are still being uncovered. Others see this bad history but are optimistic about Poland’s future. Neither is necessarily wrong. 

It goes without saying that Poland played a role in the oppression of Jews during the Second World War as well as before and after. Some Poles collaborated with the Nazis and outed their neighbors. Some actively killed their Jewish neighbors. But, we cannot forget about the Poles who risked everything to protect their Jewish neighbors. The risk of helping Jews in Poland was death to all involved and their families. Many were successful in hiding Jews and some were not. These righteous gentiles are cherished today for the heroism that they showed in the face of evil. But lastly, there were Poles who were indifferent. They did not care whether Jews were there or not and did not care that they were taken away. It is unfair to tell the story of Polish Jewish history without including all of these three groups. 

What scares me today is that it seems the world is ready to forget the Holocaust. Polls have come out revealing that many American millennials know little to nothing about the Holocaust. I believe it was Elie Wiesel who said something along the lines of “to forget the dead would be akin to killing them again.” The pathetic Polish Holocaust denial bill is an effort to distort history and embolden the extremists. Thankfully there is pushback through the hard work of educators and activists. The Holocaust will and must never be forgotten and those who try to deny it will never be successful. 

I am grateful that there are amazing people in The U.S., Poland, Israel, and other countries that are working to preserve the memory of those we lost in the Holocaust and work tirelessly to prevent genocide from reoccurring. Many are unmotivated as we say “Never Again” but it happens again and again. I can’t blame them for thinking that because they’re right. It continues. But we have to keep trying to stop genocide as it wreaks it’s destructive forces. I saw the remnants of the Holocaust on Polish land. I live with the scars of the Holocaust on the Nation of Israel. But that motivates me to never let those scars reopen nor to let any force rise to hurt us as we’ve been so hurt before. As I reflect on my walks through Warsaw, Krakow, Auschwitz-Birkenau, Brzesko, Pinczow, and Chmielnik and reflecting on the destruction that took place there, I fight for “Never Again.” 

Please stay with me on this fight. Travel when you can. Expand your mind. Educate. And maybe some day “Never Again” will mean Never Again! 

~Noah Goldman

Rural Poland and the Lost Jewish Communities

The last day in Poland has finally come. I think it’s always important to finish strong. As I stated earlier, it can be argued that rural Poland is the real Poland. It’s where most Poles live and there’s plenty of history and sights to see. But first, there was some work to complete in the Brzesko Jewish Cemetery. I had more bushes and weeds to chop away. Over the past few days, we did so much work. We cleared up a large portion of the cemetery, uncovered plenty of tombstones, and hopefully played a role in getting the town interested in preserving the cemetery and in doing so aiding in the preservation of the town’s Jewish memory. It might not have been much but you have to start somewhere.
We finally left Brzesko to head back to Warsaw. But, we decided to make some stops along the way. We decided to stop at two towns that used to be shtetls. For those who don’t know, shtetls are towns that used to have a large majority of the population be Jewish. The two towns we visited were Pinczow and Chmielnik. These two towns had their old synagogues turned into museums - at least the ones that survived the war. Prior to 1939, Chmielnik had a population of about ten thousand people, 8,000 of whom were Jewish. Today, the town has 4,000 people. None of whom are Jewish. Pinczow has a very similar story. Most fled, were shot, deported, or taken to Treblinka. After the war, few came back but were encouraged to leave. Those who survived, more than likely left to Israel. What was inspiring though was how many of the townspeople today are working to preserve the memory of the town’s Jewish past even though they know they will not come back. They’re doing the most they can, preserving the memory of those who would otherwise be there today. While of course, many Jews lived in Warsaw and Krakow, several still lived in shtetl communities out in the rural heart of Poland. Today, not many even live in all of Poland.
We made one more stop before Warsaw. There’s a city in Poland called Kielce which was the site for the beginning of the major catalyst of Jews emigrating from Poland. When you can, look up the Kielce Pogrom. What’s disturbing was that it was Poles who killed Jews based on a blood libel in 1946. In Kielce, there are monuments to the Jewish community and the massacre that hurt the community. The monuments are worth seeing if you ever get the chance and are passing through Kielce. I’m not sure what else there is to do in Kielce though.
After Kielce we finally make it to Warsaw to finish off a long trip. We had a farewell dinner with the Taube Foundation. When you are in Poland, you have to ask them for a tour. They are fantastic and you will learn so much about Polish Jewish history. After dinner, it was time to go to bed and get ready for the next leg of the journey. Next stop: Prague.
~Noah Goldman

Brzesko - Returning Life to a Forgotten Cemetery

The last leg of our journey takes place in the small town of Brzesko. One might wonder what brings some Americans to Brzesko of all places in Poland. Well, interestingly enough, there is an old Jewish cemetery that has existed in the town since 1824 but was for the most part abandoned by the end of the war. This was because most of the Jewish residents of the town either fled the nazis or were killed by them. One Holocaust survivor remains in the town to this day. The cemetery was largely forgotten and untreated. Tombstones fell over and some were stolen. Trees and plants consumed the cemetery being a primary perpetrator of knocking over and even burying some tombstones.
Thankfully in recent years, some people began to care about the cemetery. Some people have devoted countless hours into not just restoring the cemetery but also getting the town to care about the well-being of it. It’s a difficult task all in one. We came to spend a few days moving branches and chopping up bushes.
Normally, I’m not a big fan of doing physical labor but this was different. We were doing a good deed. I had all the energy and strength in the world to work on this project. I spent most of my time cutting away the bushes and fighting through the thorns and ticks. Several hours were spent chopping and carrying away but it was all worth it. At one point, I uncovered a buried tombstone. God knows how long it’s been buried under roots and dirt. The heartbroking part was that the writing on the tombstone was no longer legible. The memory of a person who once lived here is potentially gone forever. We may never know where they rest or who they were.
Time flew while working in this cemetery. I just felt motivated the whole time to work hard at clearing things up in hopes that the cemetery may one day be properly restored. It is a lot of work that requires many people to help with a lot of time available to do so. There is work being done to get local high school students involved. I hope they become inspired to do so. It’s not the most ideal work but it’s good work.
There were moments that had me really upset though. At some point, some tombstones were vandalized by terrible people. The two I remember was on one where a cross was spray painted and it said “Satan Jew.” How classy... Another tomb had spray painted on it “Free Palestine.” The irony being that the individual died before Zionism was a thing. I don’t care who you are or what you believe, but leave the dead alone! I wish people had more respect for the dead.
The time in Brzesko is short but I think entirely worthwhile. When people travel to Poland, they typically go to Warsaw and Krakow but that’s not how majority of Poles live. Most live in the calm countryside. It can be argued that that is the real Poland. As our time wraps up in Brzesko, I am thankful for the time spent on the opportunity to do a good deed. This is something where the recipient cannot repay me or even thank me, and that is okay. Weirdly enough, the opportunity to clean the cemetery to the best of my ability was reward enough. I got to bring sunlight back onto some tombstones and help clear bushes away so that they can be seen. That is all I wanted out of this. Back in Charlotte, our cemetery is well-kept and regularly maintained so it can be easy to be unappreciative of what that work really does. I’ve gotten to see the massive difference between well-kept cemeteries and forgotten cemeteries. There is a lot of work to be done and there are great people stepping up to the plate.
We can only hope they succeed.
~Noah Goldman

Auschwitz-Birkenau

Please, forgive me for getting personal but one cannot express the magnitude of such a place without sharing their history - especially if one is a Jew.

The day has come. Today, I walk into the valley of the shadow of death. Rather cliche of a phrase but certainly appropriate. It is a place I have heard so much about. A place I haveread so much about. A place that has caused so much  of an ever-lasting pain. A place that ended families and legacies. A place that reveals the suffering that humanity can bring to this world. Today, that is where I go.

Arbeit Macht Frei. Work Makes You Free. Those are the first words one sees when they walk into the camp. Walking under those words, one cannot help but imagine the prisoners walking on those same grounds. It is hard to get control of your thoughts as you enter the camp. That's just the first thing you see and feel as you enter the camp. This is just the beginning. Arbeit Macht Frei.

As we went through the camp, I saw the most daunting of things - the personal items. The suitcases, the clothes, the hair. Items that belonged to the victims. The hair exhibit is as close to the victims that you can physically get to and looking at it is almost unfathomable. There is a small exhibit at Auschwitz, with projections across the room, that shows videos of Nazi speeches that dehumanized Jews. The speeches were met with thunderous applause. You then get to see Hitler scream and rant about his evil thoughts on Jews. That is when anger set. Those speeches laid the foundation for what Auschwitz would become and thus burning 1.1 million people.

Later on, there was a beautiful exhibit of videos of Jewish life prior to the Second World War. It seemed like a place of happiness and comfort. It was peaceful, showing people smiling and being with their family and loved ones. A simple time revealed through individuals before the darkness would consume their lives. They never saw the horrors that would overshadow the light that once was.

It was Auschwitz II (also known as Birkenau) that was challenging to walk through. Birkenau was the exterminational element of the camp. The conditions that existed were beyond horrendous. I had a hard enough time just standing there. As I walked the beaten path, I imagined those who walked on it during the Holocaust and wondering what was going on through their minds. As you walk further down, you can see where the gas chambers were. The Germans destroyed them but remnants remain and we can see how it was used. Somehow, I haven’t cried yet. Somehow.

After it all, we as a group circled and said the mourner’s Kaddish (prayer for mourning), which I had not had to do before. That was a small moment of power to me.

After the tour of Auschwitz Birkenau, we sat down and reflected on our experiences and our thoughts with Sister Mary O’Sullivan of the Auschwitz Center for Dialogue and Prayer. She is a wonderful and sweet Irish Catholic nun and I am thankful that I got to reflect with her about my experience at the camp. At this point, all I could say was that I was still processing what I had seen and what it had meant. Again, I had known of Auschwitz-Birkenau since I was a child. I had read it in books and seen it in films. I even talked with survivors of the camp. But to be there on those grounds was an element separate from all I had learned. There’s no right way to emotionally prepare yourself for Auschwitz-Birkenau but nevertheless, it is important to see it with your own eyes and feel the earth it stands on through the soles of your feet. The grounds that its victims walked.

After reflecting further, I still didn’t know what to make of my experience. I asked Sister O’Sullivan about those thoughts and she told me something that will stick with me forever. She said “Let it sit with you and when you’re ready, let it speak to you.” What does that mean. I hope in reading this again in the future, I will have some answers to what Sister O'Sullivan said.

As I reflect on those words, I in some way felt defeated and overwhelmed. That’s when the number six million hit me. Six million people who shared my faith and peoplehood. Six million people murdered just because of their faith. Just because of my faith. I felt unwanted by the world, just floating in the nothingness. The fact that my people suffered this way and yet there are those that exist who simply do not care. There are those who still hate me not for me but for my faith. Why? How, after all this, can people still hate the Jews? As these thoughts hit me on the bus ride back to Krakow, that’s when the tears hit me.

I feel small, smaller than I’ve ever felt before in my life. But despite that and with the tears running down my face, I feel proud. I am proud of my culture and what it brings to the world. I am proud that despite all odds, it survives and thrives to this day. I am proud that despite it all, I can stand on the grounds of Auschwitz-Birkenau because it failed. It failed to exterminate me and for me to stand on its grounds is the greatest form of rebellion against evil. I stand on those grounds and I say “Never Again!” This experience will stick with me forever.

*Update as of December 2019*

It has now been a year and a half since I walked the grounds of Auschwitz-Birkenau. It is a little hard for me to reread this without tearing up a bit. Perhaps that speaks to the magnitude of the experience of walking on Auschwitz-Birkenau and the thoughts that came with being there. I am still trying to find out what the words that Sister O'Sullivan said to me. I am going to Israel in about a month. Maybe I'll find an answer there. 

Krakow - The Surviving City

Krakow is a beautiful city with a fascinating history. I don’t know if I could say it is my favorite city but I had a lot of fun walking around the city, looking at the history, and exploring its past. As with the theme of this trip, we focused a lot on its Jewish history. Unlike Warsaw, much of Krakow was not destroyed during the war and so much remains of old Jewish Krakow in the part of the city called Kazimierz. Prior to the war, 65,000 Jews lived in Krakow and even though there are significantly less today, the remnants of their past exist today. One way is through it’s cemeteries. They aren’t in as bad a shape as other ones but they need help. A lot of them go back hundreds of years with each grave telling a story. In some way, that’s what is so amazing about cemeteries. They help preserve memory. They of course aren’t perfect at that but nevertheless they help. The sad part is that when the Germans occupied Poland, they pushed all the Jews into a ghetto to later be deported. This severely damaged Krakovian Jewry.
But, the light shines on today. In Krakow, exists a Jewish Community Center that is now 10 years old.  I had the privilege of having dinner at the center. My favorite part of traveling is conversation over food and drink. One thing that people would love to see happen is the community rebuild itself to what it was prior to 1939. I don’t know if that is possible. What I do know is that there is a growing community that exists there and they’re doing amazing things in Krakow. It isn’t fair to judge the community based on its past, so rather help it for the future.
Krakow is a great city with ancient history existing in the present. The sites of the city are beyond gorgeous. Museums and monuments are everywhere to see and worth it.
~Noah Goldman

Jewish Warsaw - 1,000 Years to Today

I of course, started my day off right with coffee and eggs. We started the program today by going to the remnants of the Warsaw Ghetto. Not much of the ghetto stands today as it was destroyed when the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising ended. Interestingly enough, on May 16th, 1943 the Great Synagogue of Warsaw was destroyed by the nazis thus symbolizing the end of the Uprising. This tour that I went on today is the 75th anniversary of the end of the uprising. I'm not sure what to make of the fact that of all days I am visiting the remnants of the ghetto is on this day of all days. Again, aside from a few buildings, not much remains. Much of the ghetto was destroyed and buildings were built on top of its ashes. But its history lives on in the memories and documents that were saved.

Remaining wall from the Warsaw Ghetto. If you look at the background, on the right you'll see a building from the communist era and on the left you'll see a skyscraper built when free-market capitalism came.

This building also survived from the destruction of the ghetto. After the war, it was renovated and used for the Department of Psychology for the University of Warsaw.

We continue walking through the area and finally come a monument to Mordechai Anielewicz and the other brave Jewish resisters who fought valiantly against the nazis but were ultimately killed. Despite being outnumbered and outgunned, they fought for 28 days. What is unfortunate is that it can be argued that the violence did not have to reach that point if the international community cared about the well-being of European Jewry. What was happening in Warsaw was not a secret. The BBC shared news of Jewish suffering in Warsaw and the Polish Government-in-Exile in London shared the news as well. No one cared so no one did anything and the international community ignored them at their peril. 

 

Myself (caught off-guard) at the memorial for Mordechai Anielewicz and the other fighters and planners of the Uprising. 

Group picture in front of Warsaw Ghetto Uprising monument in front of POLIN Museum. 

After our tour of the remains of the ghetto, we went to the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews. It was a self-guided tour so I was able to go at my own pace and absorb the information as I wanted to. The only thing was I had only a little over two hours. The museum was incredible! It documented Jewish life in Poland back over 1,000 years ago. As Jews were fleeing persecution throughout Europe, they heard of a country called Polin. Polin is a word that exists in the Hebrew language meaning 'you will rest here' so it is believed that they saw it as a prophecy that they could live peacefully there. 

For a long time, they were correct. Many Polish kings were tolerant of Jews allowing them to practice their religion in peace and even appointing Jews to high positions in the kingdom. Quite often when an antisemitic pogrom took place, it was operated by individuals and not by the state which is starkly different than the rest of Europe. It all started coming to an end with the attacks of the Cossacks. The Cossacks were violent and blood-thirsty. They would loot, destroy, rape, and kill. Poles and Jewish communities throughout Poland suffered heavily by the Cossacks. The intolerance would continue throughout history. 

This quote, made in 1920, was unfortunately more accurate than what the speaker intended. 

The end of World War I led to the rise and increased popularity of extremist politics on the far-left and the far-right. For the most part, Jews were hated by both. They were hated by the far-left for "inventing" capitalism and hated by the far-right for "inventing" communism. These are blood libels. Both are show a misunderstanding of Jewish involvement in politics, history, and economics. There were Jews who were capitalists and Jews who were communists. Adam Smith was not Jewish and Karl Marx's father was a Jew who abandoned the faith before Marx was born and Marx was an atheist so his works was not influenced by Judaism. Nevertheless, blood libels persisted. 

These blood libels, that mind you are very easy to prove they are lies, were used to justify the persecution and abandonment of the Jews. Even though some Jews were active in political extremism, it did not protect them from what was to come - the Holocaust. 

This is where I will stop with sharing the story told by the POLIN Museum for two reasons. 1. I could honestly write a book on this because there is so much information to share and 2. I encourage you to go see this wonderful museum for yourself when the opportunity arises. It really is an incredible museum and I learned a lot! 

After the museum we went to another Jewish cemetery in Warsaw called the Brodno Jewish Cemetery which is the oldest, existing cemetery in Warsaw which opened in 1780. The Brodno Cemetery is in a forest and before you walk down the path, you see a beautiful forest with a peaceful path with a few tombstones by the side. 

But, there is something disturbing about Brodno. No tombstones is in its original spot. Below, I will share some pictures I took that show what the cemetery looks like today. 

These are broken tombstones that will never be placed back together properly and no one knows where the person they were placed for lays in the earth. 

One of my friends said while walking through the cemetery that it looks like "a massacre of tombstones." Brodno was spared by the nazis wrath which comes a surprise to many. So who did this? The Soviets. After the war, Poland fell behind the Iron Curtain and the Russians wanted to try and erase Jewish history in Poland and one of the ways they tried to do that was by destroying Brodno. The Soviets bulldozed the city and some of the tombstones that were there for over two hundred years were used to build homes, paths, and other things. What the Soviets did here was disgusting and leaves a painful sight. 

In Hebrew, Israel mean to "struggle with God." I always thought that struggle was during our lives and in the afterlife, I never thought our bodies that we leave behind would continue to struggle whether it be against nature or man's disturbing ideologies. Because of the Soviets, many names are lost, more than likely forever. We will never know where they are buried and there will never be closure. I left Brodno Cemetery with more disdain for the Soviets with the pain that they left behind in this old cemetery in Warsaw. 

We concluded the day in a better light. We went to visit the Jewish Community Center of Warsaw which does amazing work not just in the city but throughout the country. We got to sit down and have dinner with Alicia Mroczkowska, who works with the Jewish Historical Institute. The JCC works hard to preserve Poland's old cemeteries which trust me, is very hard work. But they also have community events such as Hebrew study, meals for guests, support for members in need of help, and so much more. They fed us well. I had a delicious soup (I sadly can't remember what type of soup but it was vegetarian), salads, falafel, hummus, and other yummy foods. We had a discussion on Jewish life in Warsaw in the contemporary. I asked Alicia if she knew what the Jewish population of Warsaw is today and she said "nobody knows." Perhaps that is a question too painful to know the answer to. All in all, it was a very impactful and heavy day. I learned so much and yet have so much more to learn. I am excited about what the rest of this journey holds.

~Noah Goldman

Day One in the Phoenix City

Finally, the first full day in Warsaw commences. I started the day at 7:00 a.m. and walked a little bit around the old town which is where our hostel is located. I of course, go for a delicious latte at Costa Coffee in which I will get plenty more coffee from in my time here.

Believe it or not, this is a medium sized latte. I'm scared to know what the large looks like. 

We started the program with a walking tour of Warsaw with a passionate and knowledgeable tour guide. Our program is with the Taube Center for the Renewal of Jewish Life in Warsaw, a fantastic group working to keep the memories and stories of Jewish Poland alive. Prior to September 1st, 1939, Warsaw had the second largest Jewish community in the world right behind New York City at over 300,000 people. The community suffered tremendously during the Second Workd War. I will get more into this as the trip goes on and you will learn of this through the sights I visit. Don’t worry, I’ll post pictures.
Our tour took us around the city to what is considered the Old Town, which isn’t actually that old because it was rebuilt in the 1950’s after the Second World War after the devastation that the city suffered. We also walked into what used to be the Warsaw Ghetto and the modern buildings that were built over its remains. For example, what used to be the Great Synagogue of Warsaw was destroyed by the nazis and today a MetLife building is over where it used to stand. I don’t know the reasoning so it would be unfair for me to judge at this time.
It’s a little weird to walk in a place that was devastated and destroyed. It seems that the post-communist era is one of the best times for Poland in its history. Where I stand is where unimaginable suffering occurred and chances are, I’ve walked over unmarked and unknown graves without ever possibly knowing.
We then, after lunch went to the Emmanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute. There, we learned about the efforts of many Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto to document their experiences so that their suffering would not be lost in time. I have to say, the hardest part was reading personal narratives of the ghetto residents. One person said they were envious of the dead because they didn’t have to suffer from the nazis any further.

One of the milk cartons used to hide the Ringelblum Archives to keep the stories of the ghetto alive throughout history. 

After our visit, we went to the Okipawa Jewish Cemetery. It was one of the few Jewish cemeteries to survive the nazi destruction during the Second World War. It is a large cemetery with tombstones dating back to the early 1800’s.

Okipawa Jewish Cemetery 

Mass grave site at the cemetery. Jews who were executed by the nazis were put in this mass grave site at the cemetery out of convenience. There are two known mass graves in the cemetery but there are several throughout the country. 

Some graves were knocked over whether it be because of vandalism or nature. Repairing the damages are incredibly difficult. 

Sunlight on the old graves at the Okipawa Cemetery. Today, they do about 25 funerals a year.

Janusz Korczak - Read his story; it is incredible. There is a good chance you'll cry. 

All in all it was a very impactful first day in Warsaw. What disturbs me is that in the case of cemeteries in Warsaw, there is no peace after death. Whether it be man or nature, these elements disturb the dead and rob them of the respect, peace, and silence they deserve. I hope at the very least, their souls are at peace and hopefully this journey of preserving memory will be successful in starting something important. That we can treat the living with respect and that they still receive that respect even after they are gone. 

~Noah Goldman

Arrival in Warsaw - Poland’s Capital City

So, the adventure begins. I am currently exhausted and ready for sleep. Not much occurred today aside from arriving in Warsaw and walking around for about five minutes after getting dropped off to the hostel. Despite my exhausted state, I am excited about being in Europe again and in a country of strong history but also great pain. This journey will explore how Poland is coping with the pain from its history and maybe even what the future holds for Poland. I’m still processing the fact that I’m actually in Poland and that this journey is happening. So tonight, I will try to get lots of sleep, call it a bit of an early night, and see what the Warsaw journey holds. 

Have a good night! 

Noah Goldman