Why Go To Poland?

No country in the world so systematically put their entire nation at risk to help rescue Jews from Nazi occupied Poland. Shame on all of you who continue to spread these lies. It was OFFICIAL government policy to do everything possible, including endangering the entire population of Poles, to help as many Jews as possible. Compare this to countries we retrospectively admire for being the victors of the war who OFFICIALLY and SYSTEMATICALLY turned their back on the Jews, including England, the USA and others.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%BBegota

Where did you get this one? It's the first I've heard of it. Perhaps you are confusing Poland with Denmark, where the people, led by their King, did do everything possible to thwart the occupying Nazis in their Jew-hunts?

After the war was over, Jews who returned to see if others were also alive and went to their homes were SHOT on the street by Poles. My three year old cousen came out of hiding and was shot like a dog by antisemite in Poland. This after the war was over. Did you think anyone wanted to give the lovely home back to the Jew who owned it? Do not believe they did anything but add hate.

My daughter went to Poland with her seminary. Her feelings were similiar to the writer's daughter. Her line that stays with me" the camps looked like they would take an hour to get running again." No one forgets the Nazis are responsible but the Poles were happy to assist and have a 1000 year history of virulent anti-semitiism. Yes, anti-semitism is everywhere but not every nation was so obliging to the Nazis.

It's disappointing to read such a biased piece. In this anti-Polish screed one would hardly know the Germans who carried out the atrocities, built the camps, committed the genocide. The Poles were anti-Semites, to which the souls of my murdered relatives there attest, but it was the Germans who were the spark and flame that spread throughout Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Don't go to Poland, or Germany, but please don't stop. Don't go to the UK, France, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark(!), Holland (shall I go on?), don't go to Canada (really!), and please, please don't go to the US! If you want to be mindful of history, be comprehensive, not selective. And why stop with the last century? Certainly you shouldn't go to Spain. In fact, you should make aliyah at once so as to be at home, among your people, instead of just working on parnassah and memories...For your children's and the future of our people's sake!!

Having visited Poland numerous times, I cannot agree with you more! To the author of this piece, I submit: I have a full beard, I wear typical Chassidic garb, and have visited Poland many times. Not once, not even one little time, did I ever feel threatened by anyone or anything. I have also heard this from the observant-looking Jewish people living there. It's a sham to talk about "anti-Semitism" because of kids peering through windows. I don't believe that, and it is inconsistent with what many others are saying.

People threw things at us when I was there! It's OK bc it's a place we shouldn't be living in anymore! There is tons of anti semitism out in the world.....they hate us today & they will hate us always....." Esav sonne et Yaakov"

The author's daughter just doesn't get it and has been robbed of her senses by misconstruing the Torah.
I would love to go to poland to kill every anti semite there.
If I could do that their population would be smaller than Israel's.

You have just used the very same hateful words the Nazis used. Shame on you.

I was reminded recently at Klez Kamp in the Laurentians while straining in the audience to see and hear a woman whose family perished in Poland that just as a pole blocked my vision so did the Poles block us at every turn.

As Polish Jewish I kindly ask you to learn more history. Please do it for our nation future.
I'm alive because Poles helped my family! One more there were German Camps! Yes there is antisemitism in Poland but trust me lower level then in France or even USA! Please ask your girl about story with young kids... because as I know Polish police and and Isreali Security and... it's almost impossible that those "Polish kids" would be walking without being arrested in 5 minutes!
I'm proud to be Jewish and I'm proud of being Polish!

to quote Rabbi goldfein ZTL former rosh yeshiva if YG JHB .

It was a time when ships were made of wood and men were made of metal.

Actually this is just Anti-Polish article written by someone who wants to be treated with respect but himself doesn't want to respect others. Really sad....

It just shows that the lesson from the history hasn't been learnt or it was taken wrongly. PLEASE WATCH THE MOVIE "DEFAMATION" by Yoav Shamir (you can find it on youtube), then maybe the picture will be more clear.... The movie shows how many lies is behind famous Israeli trips to Poland. After watching you will hopefuly understand that the trips are made on purpose, as well as the "anitsemitism" is made on purpose, tailor made by Israeli propoaganda as an motivation for this yound kids that are supposed to thake a gun in their hands and go to army. This porcess is painful and in this process Poland is being used as a manifestation of "danger" as an exapmle and it's a false example, becouse its unfair, unrespecful and based on lies or false logic. I feel very offended by this article too! That's very sad! It's just written by the same kind of person than this young Polish stupid kids. My only hope is that it is an exception, as this young kids are. shavua tov! שבוע טוב

personally I am against this kind of trips. Israel is enough to have connection to our history........frustration of.knowledge us supporting very same ppl who murdered us is making me sick to my stomach....

I'm Polish with Jewish roots and I don't agree with the point of view presented in this article. Poland is not a graveland, it's a country and as a country it has it's history, present and future. There are many different people living here including my Jewish fiends who live here very happily, as many other people do. If you come to see the gravelands you see only this, but please dont think stereotypicaly about things that you probably dont know. It's not as simple as black and white...

I went to Poland, and was glad that I did. I was surprised with how horrendously devastated the country was during World War II, and the Pole meticulously rebuilt the country. Also, the Poles today have a deep fascination with Jewish culture and history, and Yiddish. Jewish Poland is slowly being rebuilt, but the great numbers before World War II, will not be back with it. But it is definitely a place that Diaspora Jews should go to. Because after all, "Polen" in Yiddish means "here we shall spend the night."

Poland during the WW II became the grand stage where humanity was tested to the extreme. That there were Poles who despite being exposed to centuries of bad press with respect to the demonization of Jews by the Church chose to risk their lives and the lives of their family to save Jews is one of the most dramatic examples of how humanity is capable of holiness. These heroic individuals manifested the quintessential teaching of Judaism-that all of humanity is of one family with each of us having the potential for the divine spark. Organizations such as the Foundation for Righteous Gentiles where Jews honor the capacity of humanity to transcend bigotry and truly behave in the image of the Divine is to me much more in keeping with the “Jewish mission” of bringing godliness into the physical world than focusing on the negative press being promulgated by this article . The Torah honors the Egyptian midwives who transcended a truly legitimate fear of punishment from the “all powerful” ruler of Egypt and saved Jewish babies in response to their apprehending the awesomeness of the divine (same language as used to describe Abraham’s achievement in not sacrificing Isaac). As Jews we should push that kind of positive message and not paint a given people with broad strokes from such a negative brush.

I totally agree with Mr. Friedman.

Agreed! My sons just recently had the privilege to visit Poland. Our Jewish history came alive for them. It's important for them to see what the world did to us & on the flip side see that maybe bc of all the hate we endured we now have a state & a home to call our own.

Poland was invaded by Germany in 1939. The German Nazi Regime was wholly responsible for the extermination of 6 million Polish citizens, all of whom were human and if one must delineate, half were ethnic Poles of mostly Christian faith and the other half Poles of Jewish faith. WWII saw the extinction of over 55 million souls thanks to the German Nazi and the Soviet Communists.

Let us assume that you are right about the proportions of Jews to non-Jews killed by the Nazis. (I think it was in fact at least two thirds Jewish, but let that be.) The Nazis singled out Jews for extermination in a way they singled out no other group. And in killing nearly every Jew in Poland, they had help from much, probably most, of the non-Jewish population. Men like Karol Woytila (sp?), who later became Pope John Paul II, were inspiring exceptions, but the majority of Poles assisted the Nazis. In countries where the populations resisted, e.g., Norway, Bulgaria, large proportions of the Jewish population survived. The Nazis designed and directed the extermination of Polish Jewry, but the Poles also bear responsibility.

Try to live that time and choose from your whole family being killed by nazis, or help them. However most of Poles were helping Jewish people with hiding form nazis, exposing their families to horrible death. Fault of polish people is that they wanted to stay alive only.

'Wholly responsible' no way! The Poles willingly collaborated..even to this day they are antsemites

Anonymus who wrote at 3:04 and Barry. Please go back to school and learn more about Poland. You need a strong lesson, do not compare Poland with other countries. Poles too are the victims of the Holocaust, "forgotten holocaust" I want you to tel me if your family were Polish and there was a death penalty for the whole family for hiding Jews, would you hide Jews, I bet not. Many Jews who were asked this question answeared no. Fortunately, there are many many great Jews not only those who live in Poland but also those whose families are from Poland who say fair things about this country. There are those who emigrated to Poland from Israel and US. those strongly oppose commends like yours. There are Poles who love Jews, but when they hear or read commends like yours, they really get angry. Just to add, my family members were in Majdanek, Auschwitz and Ravensburg, they were murdered by the Nazi, my father's sister was shot to death b/c she was crossing the street while the Germen were passing by. She was not even 3. Thanks a bunch to those who left fair commands.

Poles were happy to help - there is a long history of abusing and.murdering Jews there and when nazis came majority of locals collaborated with nazis on one level or other......killing Jews was one of this things... btw, in ex ussr Ukraine, Lithuania and Latvia did many similar things, like killing local Jews way before nazis came to rule over territories. history of.the region is sad and very confronting, but that what makes people who risked their lives to save us much more heroic than we can ever imagine.

It could be an interesting reading. But the intro (revealing your historical ignorance) is really discouraging and revealing your bad attitude. As a Polish friend of Israel I feel offended. My grandparents risked their life during WWII, hiding their Jewish friends (they survived war). My parents have had great relations with Polish Jews. I also have Jewish friends. I pray for Israel. I participate in pro-Israeli campaigns. My friends are learning Hebrew, attending cultural events in Israel, organising Jewish concerts. Some of them playing Jewish music, some other restore - as volunteers - Jewish sites. And we are not an exception. Well, as everywhere in Europe, there are some frustrated, unhappy people who are anti-Jewish (or anti-whatever), but I'm afraid that articles like the above one, can give such extremists very good weapons and - as a result - some other people might believe that Jews are ignorant about history or just hate Poland. That would be really sad and would spoil all the positive efforts.

The tone of your article is extremely disrespectful and offensive. The Jewish history of Poland is extemely sad, and there were many collaborators and anti-semites in Poland. Pogroms were also common, especially in the eastern poorer regions inhabited by Ukrainians and Russians. However, one fact which i believe you are unaware of is that three million Poles, (more than any other country in Europe by far) risked their own lives and the lives of their families (this penalty was specific to Poland only) by aiding the Jewish survival and save 550,000 jews.... and incredible dedication. some of these peoples were members of my family. It is incredibly disrespectful to their name to state that Poles on the whole are antisemitic, Poland lost 7 and a half million citizens (3 million of which were Jews), 40% of its land mass, almost all fo its industry, art, cultural wealth - they all were destroyed. Warsaw at the end of the war, once a beautiful city, was a smoking ruin, the most destroyed city in europe. Now Poland has a growing Jewish community, a thriving economy and a diverse cultural scene. The people are (from my experience) on the whole incredibly good willed. It is disrespectful to assume that the horrible actions of the few stupid, racist, disgusting people that collaborated counted for the actions of the entire people. Please bear this in mind.

I spent the better part of a week two springs ago in Krakow and I thought it was one of the most beautiful cities I've ever visited. Yes, Poland is home to antisemitism, but so is just about every other country too. I found my trip to Krakow enlightening and empowering. I felt more in touch with my family's heritage than before, I saw the shuls where my predecessors worshiped, laughed, cried and celebrated. I also saw a neo-nazi demonstration against homosexuality. But most importantly, I saw a counter protest and a police presence at the ready until after the neonazis disbanded. It was scary, and sad, but also victorious. Voices of hate do not go unchecked, and I, the progeny of the generation in the ghetto was able to freely return Krakow! I agree with the above commentators, it's not fair to judge all of Poland based on some rude children. I can't imagine your family's pain at the loss of your loved ones in the death camps, but I think maybe the best way to honor their memory is to return to Poland to see the vast progress the county and it's people have made from a Nazi run ghetto to a colorful, burgeoning country.

I'm from Poland and I just feel offended... and sad. I guess it's easy to say Poles are bad, that anty- Semitism is alive... but shouldn't you check what's the truth? There are good and bad in every nationality, it's just wrong to judge whole polish comunity coz few idiots 'surrounded the shul from outside and peered into the windows, jeering and running their fingers across their necks, pretending to slit their throats'. As to the Poland beeing grey, well- try going in spring/summer time, coz during winter is grey everythere [in France & Germany too]. to Paul Teltschik You shouldn't ask what is Poland doing, you should ask what are politicians doing... My family had their propety stolen as well, houses, and and buissnes and nothing was returned... You just should remember that it was Nazi and Sowiets who did that to whole country... but i hope that one day what can will be returned... There are Poles who love Jews

There were very few families that risked their necks. They are lauded everywhere. However, as a first generation post Holocaust, my parents were survivors. My mother's entire family except for one brother and her father, 3 sisters, two brothers, and mother were murdered in Auschwitz. My father worked in a terrible workcamp building the S.S.'s railroad, and ended up in Mauthausen, Germany where he was liberated. I have mixed feelings. Most of me says, why support Poland when they allowed for most of the most destructive death camps that murdered the majority of our European Jews over there (and others nationalities as well)? However, a small part of me says, maybe looking at it would make a difference to the next generation. Seeing that "arbeit macht frei" sign and some of the other stopoffs to our next generation. I cannot, as my parents would not, stomach the idea at this time for myself. However, I can see the need for our next generation of mature enough adults.

open your mind to incquire the relationship between poles and jews.
compare this relationship to other nationalities eg. germans and jews, hungarian and jews, french and jews.
than, figure out yourself who built and who let the death camps beeing built and what is the language the acronym KZ (death camp) comes from?

as a jew, whose family decided to stay in poland and as a person who used to live in poland, germany, england and france, i tell you truth: you are putting the wrath onto the false people, and you do the polish very wrong in historical and in fundamental aspect.

What is Poland doing about returning stolen property to the few living survivors or their descendants ? The answer is nothing. Should the international Jewish Community not address this problem and force pressure on Poland to return the property or provide appropriate compensation to the survivors or their families.

Have you explored this subject? Not only Polish Jews haven't managed to get compensation for the lost property (in most cases destroyed by the Nazis). Polish Jews are treated in the same way as other Polish citizens who lost property. Do you suggest that the lost property should be compensated on the basis of religion or ethnic identity? So, for example Polish Jews shold receive the compensation first, and other Polish citizens later or never. I'm a Polish frend of Jews, but I cannot understand this logic.

I think that aish.com is very good for everyone, especially for young teenagers.

Polish Jes lived for many generations in Poland...they had privilges an antisemitism... they were considered a numbered estate... distinct from the Aristocracy and peasants... they were in fact the middlemen of Poland as was the Polish Armenisn estate... their was a numbers clause for their entry into University.. and they were excluded mostly from the Pugblic Service...they were brought to Poland by invitation from the Aristocracy to br tax agents, craftsmen.. in fact middlemen... the jobs Aristocracy disdained to do ... in the protective shadow of the castle.. they formed thier community of shtetls.. and the Roman Catholic Church fanned anti semitism... till it became institutionalised...and the Jews like the peasants became second clss citizens....however not all Poles hated Jews..some loved, liked and inremingled with them socially..and saved them during the Holocaust.. the converse was also true... so there you have the Polish anomaly.. a stratified society.. a stratified hate, and a stratified love... it took the Holocaust to earthquake these realities.. and force us to face the truth,, we have to cultivate and fortify and defend our castle, and our castle is Israel, and the Diaspora is the mental self imposed ghetto of the mind..and then the body...strangely when looking at my offspring and my ownface..atypical Polish face stares back,high cheeked and fair...so Poland left its mark... and I often fantasise and romantisise this heritage, but deep in my being is a Jewish soul..who realised its true identity and its origins in Abraham and the escape to the true promised castle..

Polish antisemitism unfortunately really exists.Why? The answer is not particularly complicated.This is the same kind of hatred which may be found in human hearts all over the world.It's the same and not anyway different evil that dwelled in the heart of Cain when he had killed his brother Abel(Bereshit 4,6-8).People haven't been changed.For those who really believe in God the solution of the basic problem still existing in humans' hearts is accepting His way of deliverance us from sin described in The Book of Isaiah ,chapter 53."All we like sheep have gone astray"-says the prophet.All-means both the gentiles and the people of Israel,the chosen ones of God.It means as well you and me.Why Israel was in Babylon's captivity? Who is Shiloh? (Bereshit 49,10).Sinner cannot accuse a sinner.Without love of God we are really nothing.Is His true love deep in your heart? How to know personally God of Avraham,Yitzhak and Yaakov.It's good to find answers for these fundamental questions important,as I think for all Jews who seek God.God's love enables us even to love our enemies,and to bless them.Besides,each crime committed on earth has personal dimension(Ezekiel 18).So I think in Poland may be found those who love God and the Jews even if it seems to be incredible.Shalom !

As a person from Poland, who discovered his Jewish roots just a few years ago, I feel both entitled and at the same time obliged to add a comment. Let me put it straight - if you are coming to Poland with the sole attitude to see the graveyard of the Jewish people, forget it, you will not learn anything and only strengthen your prejudice. This is a country where our ancestors have lived for more than thousand years and traces of this past is visible everywhere and remembered and preserved in many places. I will not refer to statements about Polish anti-semitism since it's a huge subject and I would spend pages writing about it, although the article also contains (and the comments too) serious bias referring to it. Enough to mention - the number of anti-semitic incidents is by far the lowest in Europe and there were no such incidents as recently in France. Also, the Jewish community in Poland is slowly but steadily increasing, with us, the third generation, discovering their roots and striving to learn as much as possible about Jewish history, traditions and religion. You may read more about this on websites maintained by Jewish youth organizations in Poland - www.czulent.pl and www.joo.com.pl - just to mention these two. Am Israel Chai!

While it is possible that not *every* Pole was a vile anti-Semite, I saw a monument for a mass grave that was in close proximity to Polish houses. In Majdanek the tombstone reads "On November 3, 1943 18,400 Jews- Prisoners of Majdanek and labour camps in Lublin were executed at this site". There are written accounts of Polish people holding up their children in order to allow them a better view of this massacre. While the Poles may have also suffered under the reign of German tyranny, this does not excuse them from taking pleasure in the annihilation of European Jewry.

contrentation camp Aushwitz was built in 1940 , and its first prisoners were Polish ,transporting there from prisons of Cracow and Silesia ,which were full of polish inteligence,priests,and resistances.Jews were transporting to AushwitzII camp (Birkenau) which was biulding from X.41 and next spring according to Himmler Endlösung became a real death camp.Saying,that Polish were observig with happiness how German built a camp for them is stupid .

I totally agree with Ken Salkover. My father z'l lived in Eastern Europe before WW2. Though he managed to escape in August 1939, unfortunately my grandparents hy'd were not able to and were murdered by the Nazis, may their names be erased. My father told us many times of the bitter anti-Semitism of the Polish people which existed long before the Nazi era. Yes, there were a few Righteous Poles who saved Jews but they were a tiny fraction of the whole population. In fact, the husband of a friend of ours who managed to survive the war by fighting with the partisans (and even some of them were anti-Semitic) was murdered by Poles in a pogrom after the war ended. They were upset that a few Jews did survive and wanted to claim their stolen property back. So, Adam, don't try to convince us about the Polish people. We know better.

I am interested in the facts about Poland and it's history toward the Jewish people. (My great grandmother, Ethel Biller, was born

The comments left by "Adam" (above) are shocking for their blatant dishonesty. Poland was and is one of the most antisemitic countries in Europe, along with Germany and France. There are numerous accounts of Polish citizens aiding and abetting the Nazis in their search for Jews. Pogroms were a regular occurrence in Polish Jewish communities before the Holocaust. Yes, there were some Righteous Gentiles in Poland, but not nearly enough. Poles' typical reaction to the massive concentration camps built on their land was to cheer the Nazis on. The letter above is a typical Polish whitewash of the genocide committed in Poland, claiming it was all the Germans' fault and blaming the Jews too. Most Poles were delighted the Nazis solved their Jewish "problem" for them. Thanks for writing, "Adam."

MY DAUGHTER LEFT FOR POLAND THIS MORNING AND I WONDERED WHY....MAYBE I UNDERSTAND A littleBETTER NOW... BLESS YOU

It really sadens me, your article about Poland is what I am thinking about. So unproductive, besides, I was thinking that Jewish-Polish relations were developing for the better. This article makes it look like Poland was after the jews when infact the truth is that it was the Germans. Poland was the victim of WWII a country rich with culture etc, and then got raped by the Germans, and this article filled with lies rapes it yet another time. Shame on you to sat the very least. Poles are the biggest group of people who have been awared the Righteous Among the Nations award. Many Poles helped save the jews, many of them got caught aswell and killed righ on the spot for such bravery. Write an article that is true and at least based on facts that show the whole truth, just not one side.Regards,Adam

Dear Galia,the experience your daughter made while being in the synagogue certainly must have been quiete awful, antisemitism however, unfortunately could be experienced anywhere, so this could have happened anywhere and even in the States. From my own experience as well as that of many of my friends jewish and non jewish I only could say that the people of Cracow especially are extremely nice, helpful and seldomly have I experienced such wonderful hospitality.It is maybe because the people of Cracow as many Poles have suffered a lot too, most of Cracow's professors, students and cultural elite had been transferred to Auschwitz too, many died there, most of them were not jewish. And apart from a wonderful jewish festival that is taking place each year in Cracow (it is the biggest one in Europe, very joyful), Poland has many beautiful parts, it is like Chopin's music and that is precisly why Jews and Christians once loved to live in Poland and very much do so again.

Very Proud