1 V: ROLES OF PHYSICIANS, NURSES, AND CAREGIVERS IN THE “FINAL SOLUTION” Professor Susan Benedict UT Health Science Center Houston, Texas, USA 77030 [email protected] 001-713-500-2039 Purpose of the Module: The purpose of thIs moduLe Is to descrIbe the roLe of physIcIans, nurses, and caregIvers In the pLan to extermInate the Jews of Europe. Suggested Readings: 1. BeLzec, SobIbor,TrebLInka by YItzhak Arad; 2. Into that Darkness by GItta Sereny; 3. “Mad, Bad, or EvIL: How PhysIcIan Healers Turned to Torture and Murder” by MichaeL GrodIn. In MedIcIne after the HoLocaust, edIted by SheLdon RubenfeLd. Suggested Videos: 1. “Escape from SobIbor” 2. “Shoah” by CLaude Lanzmann Objectives: 1. Describe the purpose of the “Final Solution.” 2. Describe the Aktion Reinhard death camps. 3. Explore the evolution caregivers to killers. Discussion Points: 1. Some of the death camp staff returned to nursing jobs after the war. Could they be compassionate caregivers after being murderers? 2. What do you think about the “just following orders” defense? Synopsis: The FInal SoLution On November 29, 1941, ReInhard HeydrIch, ChIef of the SecurIty PoLIce and the SS SecurIty ServIce, InvIted tweLve SS men and cIvIL servants to a meeting to be heLd on December 9th. The purpose of the meeting was to fInalLy resoLve who was, In fact, a Jew. ThIs was a vexIng question because In Germany there were many assImILated Jews, half-Jews, “Aryan” spouses of 2 Jews, and Jews who had served In WorLd War I. ThIs conference, however, had to be postponed because Germany decLared war on the UnIted States on December 11, 1941. The new date for the conference was January 20, 1942.1 The conference was heLd at a LakesIde VILLa at Wannsee and Lasted between one and two hours. By the time of the conference, the topIc had changed from “who Is a Jew” to how to kILL the Jews of Europe. AdoLf EIchmann assured that the stenographer dId not IncLude the verbatim conversation of the meeting whIch IncLuded kILLIng, eLImInation, and destruction.2 At hIs trIal In Jerusalem years Later, EIchmann stated: …these gentlemen were standIng together or sItting together, and were dIscussIng the subject quIte bLuntly, quIte dIfferently from the Language whIch I 3 had to use Later In the record. DurIng the conversation they mInced no words about It at alL…they spoke about methods of kILLIng, about LIquIdation, and extermInation.3 Two extermInation camps were already under construction: CheLmo and BeLzec. CheLmo [KuLmhof In German] was a smalL town, wIth a popuLation about 250 peopLe, most of whom were PoLIsh. In the center of thIs smalL town, an extermInation camp was buILt around the SchLoss, or vILLa, and Its surroundIng grounds. The purpose of thIs camp was not kept a secret from the townspeopLe. At fIrst, the grounds were surrounded onLy by wIre. Later a fence was erected to bLock the vIew. The fIrst Jews to be kILLed were from surroundIng communIties. ArrIvIng by trucks, the vIctims were Led Into the SchLoss where they were undressed and surrendered theIr valuabLes. They were then Led Into a mobILe van where they were kILLed by exhaust fumes. In January 1942, two addItional vans were obtained for gassIng the Jews.4 EventualLy at Least 152,000 Jews were kiLLed In Chelmo.5 The second extermInation camp, BeLzec, was buILt at the same time as CheLmo; however, the kILLIng technIque dIffered. Stationary gas chambers LIke those of the euthanasIa centers were used. BeLzec had as Its admInIstrator ChrIstian WIrth from the Bernburg euthanasIa Institution. WIrth was famILIar wIth the stationary gas chamber used at Bernburg but he objected to usIng the same type of carbon monoxIde tanks. He feared that the tanks, whIch were produced by a prIvate company, couLd arouse suspIcIon and, addItionalLy, the manufacturer was Located at quIte a dIstance from BeLzec. Thus WIrth opted for use of a automobILe engIne for producIng the carbon monoxIde LIke that used In the gas vans of CheLmo. The fIrst transport of Jews arrIved at the end of February 1942 and were used as subjects to test the kILLIng process.6 4 WIrth deveLoped several prIncIpLes upon whIch BeLzec was to operate. FIrst, arrIvIng trains were to be unLoaded and the vIctims were to be ImmedIateLy processed so that they wouLd have no time to refLect upon what was happenIng. The second prIncIpLe was that everythIng was to be carrIed out wIth the utmost speed. VIctims were to be made to rush and run so that they had no time to Look around. ThIs wouLd produce shock and paralysIs of reactions so escape or resIstance couLd not be organIzed. ThIs wouLd also maxImIze the effIcIency of the kILLIng process. A thIrd prIncIpLe was that Jews shouLd do alL of the physIcal work of the camp. Young healthy JewIsh men were seLected from transports and made to remove bodIes from the gas chamber and bury them. These Jews also sorted the cLothIng and possessIons of the arrIvals. After a day or two, these Jews were kILLed and repLaced wIth new arrIvals. There was, however, a smalL group of Jews that were kept at the camp to provIde skILLed Labor for the German and UkrainIan staff. Among these were carpenters, shoemakers, taiLors, and other skILLed Laborers. These Jews, referred to as “court Jews” (Hofjuden), were kept separate from the arrIvIng transports and were alLowed to LIve consIderabLy Longer.7 At Least 600,000 Jews were kILLed In BeLzec.8 SobIbor was compLeted In AprIL 1942 and Franz StangyL, formerLy of the euthanasIa Institutions of HartheIm and Bernburg, was appoInted commandant. 5 StrangyL was advIsed to vIsIt WIrth In BeLzec to Learn how a death camp was to be run. StangyL reported: I went there by car. As one arrIved, one fIrst reached BeLzec raiLway station…Oh God, the smeLL! It was everywhere. WIrth wasn’t In hIs offIce. I remember they took me to hIm…he was standIng on a hILL next to the pIts…fuLL…they were fuLL. I cannot teLL you; not hundreds, thousands, thousands of corpses…that’s where WIrth toLd – he said that was what SobIbor was for…9 The fIrst Jews to be kILLed there were brought from Krychow Labor camp for the purpose of testing the process.10 DurIng 1942 and 1943, at Least 250,000 Jews were kILLed In SobIbor.11 SobIbor staff After BeLzec and SobIbor were fuLLy operational, TrebLInka was buILt. UsIng the experIence gained from the operation of BeLzec and SobIbor, substantial Improvements were made at TrebLInka. The camp ItseLf was about 400 x 600 meters, buILt In a rectangLe and dIvIded 6 Into 3 sections: the reception area, the LIvIng area, and the extermInation area. There were 3 gas chambers, each 4 x 4 meters, whIch were suppLIed gas from a dIeseL engIne.12 The living area consIsted of barracks, a bakery, a sIck bay, a dentist offIce, and even a zoo.13 TrebLInka zoo TrebLInka map 7 TrebLInka staff CheLmo, BeLzec, SobIbor, and TrebLInka operated sImILarLy. Jews were rounded up from the ghettos of Eastern Europe and transported by train to the death camp. Upon arrIval, they were quIckly unLoaded and reLInquIshed theIr possessIons. They were toLd that they were there to do agrIcuLtural work but that they wouLd fIrst have to have a hair cut and shower In order to prevent epIdemIcs. After the haircut, they were taken to the “shower room” where they were gassed. JewIsh prIsoners hauLed theIr bodIes to open pIts where they were burned. The goal of the entire process was to kILL as many Jews as possIbLe In the shortest Length of time. BeLzec, SobIbor, and TrebLInka were known as the “Aktion ReInhard” death camps, named In honor of ReInhard HeydrIch who had been assassInated. They were dIfferentiated from CheLmo, one of the earLIest death camps, because they used stationary gas chambers rather than the gas vans depLoyed at CheLmo. Because the kILLIng operation was so massIve, BIrkenau [AuschwItz II] and Majdanek were also desIgnated as death camps to be operated sImuLtaneousLy wIth theIr Labor camp operations.14 8 UnLoadIng ramp at TrebLInka StaffIng the Death Camps: Nurses, CaregIvers, and A PhysIcIan Just as In the euthanasIa program, nurses, caregIvers, and a physIcIan had roLes In the “FInal SoLution” by staffIng the Aktion ReInhard death camps. When the T-4 kILLIng program ended In August, 1941, the question arose about what to do wIth these “highly skilled” personneL wIth theIr unIque expertise at murder. VIktor Brack not onLy wanted to put theIr experIence to good use but to also have them avaiLabLe to start up a new euthanasIa program after the war. ALthough most of the 400 members of the T-4 staff were LIkeLy sent to RussIa to be used as medIcal staff, 96 were seLected to work In the death camps In PoLand. Many had been male nurses or caregIvers In the euthanasIa Institutions. There was onLy one physIcIan, Dr. ImfrIed EberL, and no female nurses sent to the Aktion ReInhard death camps.15 Dr. IrmfrIed EberL At the age of 29 years, Dr. IrmfrIed EberL was the head of the Brandenburg euthanasIa sIte. There he dId a cursory examInation of the patients to be gassed In order to provIde a pLausIbLe cause of death to be provIded when notifyIng reLatives.16 When Brandenburg cLosed, EberL became the head of another euthanasIa Institution, Bernburg.17 In these two sItes, EberL kILLed approxImateLy 18,000 patients In about 18 months.18 In JuLy, 1942, when TrebLInka opened, EberL became the commander at the age of 32.