The Final Solution | Seared Souls: S.C. Voices of the Holocaust - Episode 5

By 1939, the schools were closed for Jewish children, the synagogues were closed, and the business were closed. Jews were not allowed to have any businesses. Getting food was difficult and had to be smuggled in. The penalty was death. The Germans took able-bodied men and boys for forced labor. Everyone lived in fear.

On Tuesday, January 20, 1942, a meeting was called by Reinhard Heydrich, head of the security police and secret service. It was held at Wannsee, a suburb of Berlin. In attendance were 14 key representatives of the Nazi Party, the SS and the government bureaucracy. They met for 90 minutes, and by the end of the meeting had been told the details of the plan for implementation of the  Final Solution, by which the Jewish race would be eradicated.

Standards

• 7-4 The student will demonstrate an understanding of the causes and effects of world conflicts in the first half of the twentieth century.
  • The influence of both world wars and the worldwide Great Depression are still evident. To understand the effects these events had on the modern world, the student will utilize the knowledge and skills set forth in the following indicators:
    • 7-4.5 Summarize the causes and course of World War II, including drives for empire, appeasement and isolationism, the invasion of Poland, the Battle of Britain, the invasion of the Soviet Union, the "Final Solution," the Lend-Lease program, Pearl Harbo...
    • 7-4.6 Analyze the Holocaust and its impact on European society and Jewish culture, including Nazi policies to eliminate the Jews and other minorities, the Nuremberg trials, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the rise of nationalism in Southwest...
• USHC-7 The student will demonstrate an understanding of the impact of World War II on the United States and the nation’s subsequent role in the world.
  • In defense of democracy, a government may need to confront aggression and ask its citizens for sacrifice in wars and providing foreign aid that, in turn, affects the practice of democracy at home. To make informed political decisions about when and ho...
    • USHC-7.4 Summarize the economic, humanitarian, and diplomatic effects of World War II, including the end of the Great Depression, the Holocaust, the war crimes trials, and the creation of Israel.

Resources