A Different Side of Auschwitz

 If you teach Night, Maus, or other Holocaust-centric book, you know that videos can be powerful tools.  Here is a video of a different nature - the resort at Auschwitz.  Yes, you read that correctly.  There was an actual resort at Auschwitz.

The video comes from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.  It is of a photo album of a Nazi officer who worked in Auschwitz during the time that Elie Wiesel was there.  It shows a resort that was on the premises where Nazi soldiers could hang out with women, lounge on a deck, and even participate in sing-alongs.  It is absolutely fascinating and horrifying at the same time to see that while unspeakable suffering was going on, these soldiers were having a grand time relaxing.

If you are teaching the term juxtaposition in your classroom, this would be a moment where you could see juxtaposition in real life.  It floors me every time I see this the complete disconnect between these men and women with what is happening within an easy walk from the premises.