The Significance of Judeas Actions and Freedmans Speech - Essay Example

The Significance of Judea’s Actions and Freedman’s Speech If there is one event in history that deeply saddened and shocked the world, it would be the Holocaust. While there may be killings in Darfur or Sudan, Bosnia’s war and journalists massacre in the Philippines, all these things pale in comparison to the Holocaust. Today, many college students have forgotten what has happened during the Holocaust. Memorials like the war memorial in Berlin are the only reminders to young people about the nameless faces that died in hunger, sorrow or oppression.

However, when I came across the two readings, a lot of my emotions and beliefs were challenged. Many questions came into my mind: Why did the Jews push Germany too hard? Why did they turn against the country that accepted them after their exodus from Russia? How come many people are not aware of such events? As I read the news about Judea’s declaration, I felt transported during that time in history. I could feel the zealous calling of Jewish organizations to rally all Jews against Germans.

Likewise, I placed myself in situation of Germans; the economic depression that time even came with political turmoil. Remarkably, in a twist of events,the oppressed became the oppressors as Germany focused their efforts in extinguishing Jews as the last stand to defend themselves. Unfortunately, this declaration of Judea is the missing link for many misinformed people about the Holocaust. If you closely look at the chain of events, it could be said that “you sow what you reap”. This is one of the biblical teachings that Jews forgot to think about.

The second reading was a transcript from Benjamin Freedman’s speech. It can be compared to the movie Conspiracy Theory that starred Mel Gibson. People who are interested in unraveling the events that triggered the Holocaust would find the transcript a wealth of information. For one, the speaker is a former Jew who had close relationships with famous Jews. Also, the flow of his arguments are cohesive that you can almost make a mind map about the events. The only sad thing is that Germany was the sacrificial lamb for other countries political interests.

The sadder part is that the campaign against Germany is similar to the Inquisition during the Middle Ages. The Jews were on a witch-hunt to push their political and economic agenda. Unfortunately, not all things happen as planned as the threats backfired on the Jews trapped in Germany. As the Germans felt pressure coming from all sides, their national spirit exploded and created a new monster. The Jews suffered a heavy backlash that showed them the strong spirit of Germans. After reading the transcript, there were many questions running in my mind.

Yet, it is too late to ponder and out the blame on such conspiracy. The best thing that we can do as students is learn from history’s mistakes. We should learn how to recognize propaganda and objectively evaluate things that are happening around us. If we can do this, then history would not repeat itself. Tragedy could be avoided before they happen. Works Cited Benjamin H. Freedman, Germany and the Jews: The Role of the Jews in WWI and WWII. ( Updated January 2009) Retrieved from http://mailstar.

net/freedman.html on 28 April, 2011. Myers, Peter ( 2000) .The Jewish Declaration of War on Germany. Retrieved from http://www. wintersonnenwende.com/scriptorium/english/archives/articles/jdecwar.html on April 28, 2011.