Stephen Shooster
The Grybower’s Point of View Kamil Kmak
Student AGH University of Science and Technology in Krakow Surveying and Cartography
Seven decades have passed since that tremendous storm of Nazi totalitarianism brought Poland to ruin. It was the end of a rich and flourishing world of Pol- ish, Jewish, Ruthenian and Ukrainian cultures mingled in the heart of Europe; the Old World. Now who shall bind the shattered glass? Who shall gather the smoke of ashes and bring back the community torn apart? The beautiful land of Poland was forced to be the scene of the most tragic and painful acts of downfall of humanity. Jews and Poles suffered from Nazi totalitarianism for no reason, just to pay toll to the fantasies of people seduced by evil. Every Polish family lost relatives. They were not exterminated for being Poles, like Jews were just for being Jews, but German Nazism was determined to annihilate Polish intelligentsia: scientists, historians, politicians, officers, teachers, priests and all patriotic movements. Their mission was to destroy the entire Polish culture and make the Poles a na- tion of slaves. But they did not break the Polish will toward freedom. They were not tough enough, because Poland situated between Germany and Russia, has struggled centuries for freedom. For every help given to the Jews, or hiding the Jews, Polish people and their families were punished with death, like no other nation in German-occupied Europe. And still thousands of brave Polish men and women risked their lives and the lives of their families to help Jews. They are known today as The Righteous Among the Nations. Poles make up more than any other nation when it comes to the total number of the Righteous, and moreover, many Poles did not claim their rights to use this title, because they helped everyone in need, Jew or not, and do not consider themselves heroes just humans of mercy.
272
Made with FlippingBook Digital Proposal Creator