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Showing posts with label Jacques Lusseyran. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jacques Lusseyran. Show all posts
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Jacques Lusseyran
Jacques Lusseyran
Faces of Courage: Young Heroes of World War II.
http://www.dogpile.com/search/web?fcoid=417&fcop=topnav&fpid=27&q=Jacques+Lusseyran&ql=
Sally M. Rogow.
Vancouver, BC: Granville Island Publishing, 2003.
162 pp., pbk., $16.95.
ISBN 1-894694-20-1.
Subject Headings:
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)-Juvenile literature.
World War, 1939-1945-Jews-Rescue-Juvenile literature.
Jewish children in the Holocaust-Juvenile literature.
Teenagers-Europe-Biography-Juvenile literature.
Grades 6-10 / Ages 11-15.
Review by Harriet Zaidman.
** /4
excerpt:
The following Monday, Karl was arrested and put in a green paddy wagon with twenty other prisoners. Rudi and Gerhardt were arrested a few days later. They were in the same jail, but they were not allowed to see one another. Despite the rough treatment and the cruelty of the guards, not one of them betrayed the others.?
Helmuth stood up in the courtroom. “You have sentenced me to die, even though I have committed no crime. But I must tell you that your turn will come. Germany will lose the war.” Karl was amazed at his courage.
Everyone was silent as the four boys were led out of the courtroom. Karl, Rudi and Gerhardt were sent to slave labor camps in Poland and Russia. Helmuth Heubner was seventeen years old when he was executed by guillotine. He was the youngest resistance fighter to lose his life in Ploetzensee, the infamous Nazi center of death. (Pp.131-132).
Personal stories of resistance and sacrifice inspire young adults. Teens think about how they, themselves, would react to situations of stress, war, terror and other abnormal situations; role models put their imaginings into concrete perspective. Faces of Courage is a collection of short stories about resisters in World War II. Three of the stories are based on accounts of real people; nine are based on accounts of how many people, young and old, acted under the Nazis including Jews, Christians, Gypsies (Rom) and the disabled. The smallest act of resistance was punishable by death, and many died because they dared to defy barbarism. Whether the story is an actual account or not, the example set by the ordinary heroes of these stories is inspiring. It’s hard to distinguish between the stories that are true and those that are not. The postscripts to the fictional accounts are as sad and plausible as those of the true stories.
But each shines the light on young individuals or groups whose humanity overcame their fear of tyranny and death. It’s almost unimaginable that people procured printing machines to produce anti Nazi leaflets and newspapers and then distributed them clandestinely, but brave souls knew that their countrymen needed a banner under which to rally. Individuals acted alone or combined secretly to help others by hiding them, feeding them, guiding them to safety. Disguising the truth and lying became polished skills to prevent information from leaking out when neighbours or family could not be trusted. People displayed bravery that they never would have shown in other times, their courage a testament to their fundamental convictions of brotherhood and opposition to racism and brutality.
“I’ve come to deliver your chickens,” he said to the man who opened the door.
The man nodded. “I’ve been expecting you,” he said and took the chickens. Yojo went back to the wagon, brushed the hay to one side and lifted the blankets. The pilots shivered as they climbed out of the wagon. Their clothes were wet. Fred turned to Yojo, grabbed his hand, shook it and made a victory sign.
Inside the house, a woman gave them towels and dry clothes. After a dinner of spicy stew and bread, the man in charge of the safe house spoke to the pilots in English. He took their pictures for fake French identity cards....Yojo and the pilots were also given thick woolen socks, sweaters and climbing boots with heavy spiked soles. (p.72)
Enough praise can never be awarded to those who resisted the Nazi terror, and that’s why this book will be part of the growing body of literature that reminds us about these brave people. Faces of Courage can be used as part of a classroom unit about the World War II and the Holocaust. The writing style is occasionally too earnest and the dialogue slightly artificial, but teens will ignore these faults because the content will touch their souls. Each story can be used as a starting point for historical research and discussion. The cover of the book shows three youths standing in a village square, defiantly facing Nazi soldiers. The pen and watercolour sketch is not appealing, considering the high level of illustration that is being produced these days. The rough quality of the drawing chosen seems inadequate to the material. A woman and girl who stand at the bottom of the sketch have a more modern appearance than one would expect.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Lusseyran
Jacques Lusseyran From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, search Jacques Lusseyran (1924-1971) was a blind French author and political activist.
Lusseyran was born on September 19th, 1924, in Paris, France. He became totally blind in a school accident at the age of 8. He soon learned to adapt to being blind and maintained many close friendships, particularly with one boy named Jean. At a young age he became alarmed at the rise of Adolf Hitler in Germany and decided to learn the German language so that he could listen to German radio broadcasts. By 1938, when Nazi Germany annexed Austria, he had accomplished this task. Germany invaded France in 1940. In the spring of 1941, at the age of 17, Lusseyran formed a Resistance group called the Volunteers of Liberty with 52 other boys. He was put in charge of recruitment. The group later merged with another Resistance group called Défense de la France. In July 1943 he organized and participated in a campaign to drop pro-resistance leaflets on trains, and claimed to carry tear gas canisters to stop people from interfering, though he never used them.
On July 20, 1943, Lusseyran was arrested by the Gestapo, betrayed by a member of his resistance group. His knowledge of German helped him understand more of the situation than most French prisoners. He was sent to Buchenwald with 2000 other French citizens, where, because he was blind, he did not have to participate in forced labor as most other prisoners did. Soon most of his childhood friends and fellow resistance operatives were arrested, and he met some of them in the concentration camp. Lusseyran helped to motivate a spirit of resistance within the camp, particularly within the French and German prisoners.
In April 1945, he was liberated, surviving German massacres of the concentration camps in which some of his friends were killed. Many of his friends had died during the course of the war, including Jean. After the war, Lusseyran taught French literature in the United States and wrote books, including the autobiographical And There Was Light, which chronicles the first 20 years of his life. He died together with his third wife Marie in a car accident in France on July 27, 1971. He is survived by his four children.
[edit] BooksAgainst the Pollution of the I: selected writings of Jacques Lusseyran. New York, NY: Parabola Books, 1999. ISBN 0-930407-46-6.
And There Was Light: autobiography of Jacques Lusseyran, blind hero of the French Resistance. New York, NY: Parabola Books, 1998. ISBN 0-930407-40-7.
[edit] External linksStories of the teenage resistance
_________________________________________________________________________
http://www.holocaust-trc.org/faces.htm
Lesson Plan
Lesson Plan for
Faces of Courage: Teenagers Who Resisted
by
Sally Rogow, Ed.D.
Objectives:
Develop an understanding the importance of resistance in the face of oppression.
Develop an understanding of discrimination and exclusion.
Recognition of the many young people who bravely resisted the Nazis and who risked their own lives to rescue others.
Teaching Strategy:
Edelweiss Pirates and Annaliese
Present and discuss the enormous pressures imposed on German young people to conform to Nazi doctrine.
Discuss the issue of bullying and why it was so common in Nazi Youth groups for conformity.
Discuss the differences in Nazi attitudes towards girls and boys and the pressures on young German girls to conform.
Discuss how the Nazis violated the rights of their own people with their policies.
Discuss how racial propaganda was used to perpetuate the idea of "Aryan" superiority.
Louise and Jacob
Discuss what life was like in hiding with no adults to provide food or shelter?
Discuss the importance of personal identity in survival. How did these young people maintain their Jewish identity?
Discuss the realities of hiding and the importance of being part of a group.
Discuss how the Nazis used the men of the occupied countries as laborers in Germany and other occupied lands.
Discuss how Jacob's determination in a hostile environment helped him to survive.
Jacques Lusseyran and Jean:
Discuss the difficulties of organizing effective resistance in France in World War II.
Present information about French collaboration with the Nazis.
Present and discuss what the Nazi occupation meant for the people in Paris.
Karl and Noni:
Present background information.
Nazi racial and genetic theories made outcasts of young people with disabilities. Thousands were murdered by starvation, poisoning and gassing in Germany's psychiatric hospitals and institutions in which many people with disabilities were forced to live. Use your judgement in describing the euthanasia program.
Discuss attitudes towards people with disabilities and how exclusion and discrimination isolates people with disabilities.
Yojo
Discuss the reasons why Gypsies were persecuted by the Nazis.
Explore the role of Gypsies in the Resistance movement.
Explore the reasons why so little attention is being given to the persecution of the Gypsies by the Nazis.
Maria
Explore the importance of the Greek Resistance.
Discuss the status of women in Greek society.
Explore Nazi attitudes towards the Greek people.
Explore the role of young people in the Greek resistance.
Kirsten
Explore how the rescue of the Jews helps to mobilize the Danish resistance.
Explore the reasons for the determination of the Danish people to rescue the Jewish population.
Discuss the role of the Danish church and government leaders in the rescue of Jewish people.
Questions for Discussion:
Why was it so difficult to organize resistance during the Nazi occupation?
Why were bullies so dominant in Nazi Youth groups?
Why did the French government collaborate with the Nazis?
Why do you think everyone knew about the American pilot in the small French farming village?
Why were the families of children and young people with disabilities so powerless during the Nazi era in Germany?
Do you think attitudes have changed towards people with disabilities?
What is the importance of learning about rescuers and resistors?
Are these stories relevant to changing attitudes about people with disabilities?
Why is so little known about resistance groups in Germany?.
Terms
"Euthanasia", defined as "Mercy killing"..It was the euphemism for the mass murder of thousands of people with disabilities in Nazi Germany.
Thinking skills
Comprehension of the nature of discrimination based on race, religion or physical or mental disability or difference.
Understanding of the plight of resistors in Germany and countries occupied by the Nazis.
Understanding the risks of joining organized resistance groups.
References:
Dornblaser, Irene L. Land That I Love: The Escape of a Nazi Youth. Columbus, Ohio, Warthurg Press, 194
Hoffman, Peter, The History of the German Resistance. Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press.1988.
Lusseyran, Jacques, And There was Light: Autobiography of Jacques Lusseyran, Blind hero of the French Resistance. New York, Little Brown and Co. 1963.
Perrault,G. and Azema, P. Paris Under the Occupation. New York City:The Vendome Press, 1989
Peukert, D. (1987) Inside Nazi Germany: Conformity, Opposition and Racism in Everyday Life. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.
Rings, W. Life With The Enemy: Collaboration and Resistance in Hitler's Europe 1939-1945, 1982. Garden City, New York: Doubleday and Company, 1092
Bury Me Standing: The Gypsies and Their Journey, Isabel Fonseca. Vintage Books, Division of Random House, NY, 1995.
Gypsies of the World: A Journey into the Hidden World of Gypsy Life and Culture, Neboojsa Bato Tomasevic and Raijko Djuric, NY Henry Holt. 1988
Crossing, Jan Yoors, NY Simon and Shuster, 1971
Gypsies An Illustrated History, Jean Pierre Ligeois, Al Saqi Books, London, England, 1986
Harrington, Lyn, Greece & The Greeks, Thomas Nelson, New York, 1962
Hart, Janet, New Voices in the Nation: Women and the Greek Resistacne, 1941-1964. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY, 1996
Darkness Over Denmark: The Danish Resistance and the Rescue of Jews, by Ellen Levine, Holiday House, New York, 2000
The Rescue of the Danish Jews: Moral Courage Under Stress, Leo Goldberger,(Ed.) NY: NYU Press.1987
Faces of Courage:Teenagers Who Resisted
Jacques Lusseyran
Jacques Lusseyran was only seventeen years old when he organized the "Volunteers of Liberty" (Voluntaires de la Liberte) an underground resistance group of university and secondary school students. The "Volunteers" became part of the "Defense de la France", a major underground resistance network affiliated with Charles De Gaulle and the free French government. The Germans occupied Paris from June 14, 1940 until August 25, 1944.
Blinded in an accident when he was eight years old, Lusseyran was a brilliant student and courageous leader who led a double life as resistance fighter and brilliant student until his arrest by the Gestapo and internment at the Buchenwald concentration camp.
The story of Jacques Lusseyran is based on historical accounts of the French resistance and his own autobiography.
Jacques and his family were living in Toulouse when the German army marched up the Champs Elysee, took over the center of the city and threw Paris into chaos. Thousands of people crowded the roads trying to leave and those who remained were relieved that there was no destruction, bombing or shooting. Jacques' father, an engineer, was ordered to return to Paris in September 1940.
The family settled in an apartment on the Boulevard Port-Royal in the Latin Quarter, a part of the city known for centuries as the place where poets, writers, and artists lived, worked and met with one another in the cafes that lined the streets. After the Nazi occupation, the city was wrapped in a silence, broken only by the ringing of the church bells. The familiar sounds of automobiles, buses and trucks had vanished along with the lively chatter that made the streets of Paris so lively. The silence made the streets seem wider and the houses taller.
Jacques Lusseyran
http://www.holocaust-trc.org/faces.htm#jacques
Jacques Lusseyran was only seventeen years old when he organized the "Volunteers of Liberty" (Voluntaires de la Liberte) an underground resistance group of university and secondary school students. The "Volunteers" became part of the "Defense de la France", a major underground resistance network affiliated with Charles De Gaulle and the free French government. The Germans occupied Paris from June 14, 1940 until August 25, 1944.
Blinded in an accident when he was eight years old, Lusseyran was a brilliant student and courageous leader who led a double life as resistance fighter and brilliant student until his arrest by the Gestapo and internment at the Buchenwald concentration camp.
The story of Jacques Lusseyran is based on historical accounts of the French resistance and his own autobiography.
Jacques and his family were living in Toulouse when the German army marched up the Champs Elysee, took over the center of the city and threw Paris into chaos. Thousands of people crowded the roads trying to leave and those who remained were relieved that there was no destruction, bombing or shooting. Jacques' father, an engineer, was ordered to return to Paris in September 1940.
The family settled in an apartment on the Boulevard Port-Royal in the Latin Quarter, a part of the city known for centuries as the place where poets, writers, and artists lived, worked and met with one another in the cafes that lined the streets. After the Nazi occupation, the city was wrapped in a silence, broken only by the ringing of the church bells. The familiar sounds of automobiles, buses and trucks had vanished along with the lively chatter that made the streets of Paris so lively. The silence made the streets seem wider and the houses taller.
Ever since he lost his sight in an accident when he was eight years old, Jacques relied on sounds to bring him information and create images in his mind. Without sight, Jacques learned to concentrate his attention to sounds, touch and smell. His family encouraged his independence and never isolated him. He mastered Braille reading and
writing in six weeks and returned to his school his friends. When his family lived in Toulouse, he was as much at home on country roads and mountain hikes as he was on the streets of Paris.
Life in Paris in the autumn of 1940 had become a struggle; food shortages forced housewives to stand in lines for hours waiting to purchase their share of the meager food supplies. The fuel shortage caused constant cold and Paris clocks were turned to Berlin time. Logic seemed to have vanished along with the hustle and bustle of the streets.
No one was talking about the occupation. People turned away from one another when the words "Nazi" "Gestapo", "torture" or "killings" were mentioned. Jacques wondered if people were simply afraid to talk or
afraid to face the reality of the occupation. But like other boys, he was eager to get on with his life. Blind students were required to take a special exam to prove they could keep up with their studies A good student and well prepared, Jacques passed the exam and was accepted to the Louis Le Grand Lycee, a well known secondary school in the Latin Quarter. Impatient to begin his studies he had to wait a month before the lycee opened. The new fascist government had closed all the schools in Paris.
Jacques spent his time rediscovering the Paris streets with his friends, Jean and Francois. His parents gave him the two small rooms in the back of their apartment. A long corridor separated the rooms and this gave Jacques the privacy he needed to study and meet with his friends. Jacques arranged his furniture and stacked his Braille books
neatly against the walls.
The school opened in October and school life resumed in a normal fashion, in spite of the new rules imposed by a government eager to conform to Nazi ideology. The principal read announcements from Marshall Petain and other government officials over the loudspeaker.
Jacques walked to the lycee with Jean and Francois every morning, and could never understand why he attracted so much attention. Groups of other boys seemed always to be trailing behind him and when he reached the school, the concierge greeted Jacques by shouting, "It's the Lusseyran parade".
Enrolled in philosophy, psychology and history classes, Jacques found his history class to be the most interesting. His history teacher commanded Jacques' attention with his rapid speech and warm resonant voice. He told class about the war and Hitler's ambitions. One by one, the Germans occupied Austria, France, Holland, Denmark and Norway. Hitler's plan was to make all of Europe subservient to Germany and 85% of the agricultural and industrial production of France was being sent to Germany.
Incidents of Nazi brutality were becoming more and more obvious and they were happening to people Jacques knew. Francois was almost in tears as he told Jacques of Mr. Weissberg's arrest. Weissberg was Francois' good friend and tutor and when he arrived for his weekly biology lesson, Weissberg's rooms were empty. The concierge told Francois that the Gestapo had arrested Weissberg that morning. Weissberg was Jewish. Soon after Jacques heard about other Jewish friends who were taken away by the Gestapo.
The French police were acting like Nazis, there were book burnings, arrests and racial laws. Paris newspapers were censored and carried only German news. Some boys at Louis Le Grand joined Nazi youth clubs and boasted that the Nazis were good for France. Jacques' school was closed for a month after a demonstration by university and lycee students. Twenty students were shot and killed.
It was freezing cold in his little room; Jacques felt his fingers stiffening and had to stop reading. The frightening events that were happening around him dominated his thoughts; something had to be done to arouse the conscience of the French people. The idea of forming a resistance group of young students took shape in his mind.
Knowing his friends as well as he did, Jacques was not surprised that Jean and Francois readily agreed and they began to organize a resistance group made up students from Louis le Grand and the university. In school the next say, they spoke with trusted classmates.
A few days later, ten boys crowded into Jacques' room, and the next week 52 boys showed up. The student resistance group called the "Volunteers of Liberty" became a reality.
From now on there was to be no turning back and no giving in to fear. Jacques warned the boys to say nothing about the meeting, even to their families. Gossip was dangerous and would give them away. No more than three boys would meet with one another at any one time. A Central Committee was formed to keep the students in touch with one another. Their task was to inform the French people about the brutality of Gestapo arrests, the persecutions and torture of captured resistance fighters and the arrests of Jewish people. News of the War was to be gathered by listening to forbidden radio broadcasts from England and Switzerland. The "Volunteers of Liberty" planned to write and circulate a secret paper that they called "Le Tigres". Before they could begin, more students had to be recruited.
Jacques was elected to the Central Committee and went to the first secret meeting with Francois. The meeting was held in an old apartment house in a working class section of the city, the old building was chosen because there were always people coming in and going out and the arrival of strangers was not likely to arouse suspicion. Jacques was to be responsible for interviewing everyone who wanted to become a "Volunteer". The other boys trusted his ability to judge people.
The "Volunteers" sent word out about the secret resistance group to the lycees and university. Students who wanted to join were watched for several days or sometimes weeks by one of the original 52 members. Those who were considered trustworthy were told "to visit the blind man."
Jacques conducted the interviews in his rooms. Two short rings and one long ring of the doorbell told him that a perspective volunteer had arrived. The rules were strict. No one was interviewed if he was not expected or did not appear within five minutes of the specified time. No one was given Jacques' name. Forced to rely on his instincts, Jacques knew he was not infallible and was constantly on guard. It was too easy to be trapped by an informer or spy. He planned the interviews carefully and discussed nothing of importance for the first 10 minutes. Sometimes he conducted the interview in the dark because he forgot to turn on the light.
Taking his time, Jacques listened intently to the words and the silences. Elaborate explanations and well-rehearsed speeches aroused his suspicions. He knew they covered lies and deceit. He also knew that anger was a difficult emotion to disguise. If Jacques considered a boy trustworthy, he gave his name to the Central Committee and he was admitted to the "Volunteers of Liberty". At first, only young students between 17 and 19 appeared, but after a few weeks, older students from the university began coming. Jacques interviewed 600 young men in less than a year
The Volunteers did not think of themselves as a professional group, they were simply young students eager to liberate their country from the terror of Nazism. They wrote, mimeographed and distributed their bulletin, "Le Tigres", to houses all over Paris. One boy watched the exits while the other went from floor to floor, carrying his shoes in his hands and slipping the paper under doors.
The French government no less than the German characterized the Resistance as a gang of terrorists. Denouncing them was seen as a civic duty, for which informers received money. Jacques and the other leaders were aware of the dangers; resistors who were caught were arrested and punished severely. It was also disappointing that so few of Jacques' classmates were willing to join the Volunteers, only 6 boys of the 90 enrolled in the elite classes at Louis Le Grand joined. In every class, there were 2 or 3 boys willing to report them to the police. Some of the
teachers were also Nazi collaborators and they had to be careful never to talk about their activities at school. There were many narrow escapes.
Surveys, discussions, choosing articles for the bulletin and frequent Central Committee meetings kept Jacques busy. Meetings were never held in the same place. Always by Francois or Jean, Jacques traveled on the routes set up for safety. Schoolwork occupied his daytime hours, but at 5 PM, Jacques became a resistance fighter and
sometimes did not return home until 11 PM.
Keeping up his grades while devoting so much time to the "Volunteers" took all his energy, but he succeeded and graduated from Louis Le Grand in the Spring of 1941. He enrolled at the University and planned to take the special exam to qualify for "Ecole Normale Superieur", the highest institution in the French educational system. The Vichy government and its Nazi racial laws, declaring students with disabilities to be ineligible, dashed his hopes Disappointed and angry, Jacques wanted to fight the ruling, but he knew that he would put the "Volunteers" in jeopardy by calling attention to himself, so he put his ambitions aside and decided not to appeal the ruling.
Friday, May 18, 2012
Faces of Courage Young Heroes of WWII by Sally Rogow
http://www.amazon.com/Faces-Courage-Young-Heroes-World/dp/1439547254
From Booklist
Gr. 5-9. These 12 fictionalized accounts of teenage rescuers, resistance fighters, and survivors under Nazi occupation in Europe are based on true accounts of young people who fought back, not only Jews this time but also others whose stories are not often told, including descriptions of German Edelweiss Pirates who resisted Hitler, young Mormons in Hamburg, and a teenage girl in the Greek resistance. There are also several stories of disabled individuals: some escaped, many were murdered, and some, including a blind leader in the French Resistance, rescued others. Rogow supplies a brief bibliography of sources on which the stories are based, but the blurring of fact and fiction doesn't always work, especially when the author imagines inner experience ("Despair welled up inside her. . . . He could see the sorrow in her eyes"). The personal histories are the drama here. Rogow never denies the history of the millions who did not survive as she brings readers close to the astonishing individual stories of young people who made a difference. Many readers will want to go on from here to find out more. Hazel Rochman
Faces of Courage is an inspiring compilation of twelve stories of courageous teenagers from all across Europe who resisted the Nazis.
There is Kirsten, a Danish girl who helped save a group of Jewish children from the Nazis. Jacob, a young Pole, survived the Holocaust by concealing his Jewish identity and working in a German armament factory.
Jacques Lusseyran, a blind French boy, organized a student resistance group called the Volunteers of Liberty. The Edelweiss Pirates were a group of German teenagers who opposed The Hitler Youth and aided homeless runaways from reform schools and labor camps.
Review
"Faces of Courage is a major step forward in the evolution of Holocaust education. These stories about young people who lived through that time in history enable us to feel the terror of living under German occupation during World War II. Only when we identify with this reality can we learn from it and begin to take action." --Mark Nataupsky, Ph.D. - Founder, Holocaust Education Fondation, Newport News, Virginia
"Rogow never denies the history of the millions who did not survive as she brings readers close to the astonishing individual stories of young people who made a difference." --Hazel Rochman, ALA's Booklist
"Sally Rogow has written a book about courage and the indomitable spirit of humanity. The heroes of Dr. Rogow's book provide a shining light for all of us to follow. Like The Diary of Anne Frank, Faces of Courage should become required reading in every high school in this country." --Bernie Farber, Executive Director, Canadian Jewish Congress
"Sally Rogow has written a book about courage and the indomitable spirit of humanity. The heroes of Dr. Rogow's book provide a shining light for all of us to follow. Like The Diary of Anne Frank, Faces of Courage should become required reading in every high school in this country." --Bernie Farber, Executive Director, Canadian Jewish Congress
"Faces of Courage is a major step forward in the evolution of Holocaust education. These stories about young people who lived through that time in history enable us to feel the terror of living under German occupation during World War II. Only when we identify with this reality can we learn from it and begin to take action." --Mark Nataupsky, Ph.D. - Founder, Holocaust Education Fondation, Newport News, Virginia
http://umanitoba.ca/outreach/cm/vol10/no9/facesofcourage.html
excerpt:
The following Monday, Karl was arrested and put in a green paddy wagon with twenty other prisoners. Rudi and Gerhardt were arrested a few days later. They were in the same jail, but they were not allowed to see one another. Despite the rough treatment and the cruelty of the guards, not one of them betrayed the others.?
Helmuth stood up in the courtroom. “You have sentenced me to die, even though I have committed no crime. But I must tell you that your turn will come. Germany will lose the war.” Karl was amazed at his courage.
Everyone was silent as the four boys were led out of the courtroom. Karl, Rudi and Gerhardt were sent to slave labor camps in Poland and Russia. Helmuth Heubner was seventeen years old when he was executed by guillotine. He was the youngest resistance fighter to lose his life in Ploetzensee, the infamous Nazi center of death. (Pp.131-132).
Personal stories of resistance and sacrifice inspire young adults. Teens think about how they, themselves, would react to situations of stress, war, terror and other abnormal situations; role models put their imaginings into concrete perspective. Faces of Courage is a collection of short stories about resisters in World War II. Three of the stories are based on accounts of real people; nine are based on accounts of how many people, young and old, acted under the Nazis including Jews, Christians, Gypsies (Rom) and the disabled. The smallest act of resistance was punishable by death, and many died because they dared to defy barbarism. Whether the story is an actual account or not, the example set by the ordinary heroes of these stories is inspiring. It’s hard to distinguish between the stories that are true and those that are not. The postscripts to the fictional accounts are as sad and plausible as those of the true stories.
But each shines the light on young individuals or groups whose humanity overcame their fear of tyranny and death. It’s almost unimaginable that people procured printing machines to produce anti Nazi leaflets and newspapers and then distributed them clandestinely, but brave souls knew that their countrymen needed a banner under which to rally. Individuals acted alone or combined secretly to help others by hiding them, feeding them, guiding them to safety. Disguising the truth and lying became polished skills to prevent information from leaking out when neighbours or family could not be trusted. People displayed bravery that they never would have shown in other times, their courage a testament to their fundamental convictions of brotherhood and opposition to racism and brutality.
“I’ve come to deliver your chickens,” he said to the man who opened the door.
The man nodded. “I’ve been expecting you,” he said and took the chickens. Yojo went back to the wagon, brushed the hay to one side and lifted the blankets. The pilots shivered as they climbed out of the wagon. Their clothes were wet. Fred turned to Yojo, grabbed his hand, shook it and made a victory sign.
Inside the house, a woman gave them towels and dry clothes. After a dinner of spicy stew and bread, the man in charge of the safe house spoke to the pilots in English. He took their pictures for fake French identity cards....Yojo and the pilots were also given thick woolen socks, sweaters and climbing boots with heavy spiked soles. (p.72)
Enough praise can never be awarded to those who resisted the Nazi terror, and that’s why this book will be part of the growing body of literature that reminds us about these brave people. Faces of Courage can be used as part of a classroom unit about the World War II and the Holocaust. The writing style is occasionally too earnest and the dialogue slightly artificial, but teens will ignore these faults because the content will touch their souls. Each story can be used as a starting point for historical research and discussion. The cover of the book shows three youths standing in a village square, defiantly facing Nazi soldiers. The pen and watercolour sketch is not appealing, considering the high level of illustration that is being produced these days. The rough quality of the drawing chosen seems inadequate to the material. A woman and girl who stand at the bottom of the sketch have a more modern appearance than one would expect.
___________________________________________________________
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helmuth_H%C3%BCbener
Helmuth Hübener From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, search Helmuth Hübener
Helmuth Hübener, flanked by Rudolf Wobbe (left) and Karl-Heinz Schnibbe (right)
Born January 8, 1925(1925-01-08)
Hamburg, Germany
Died October 27, 1942(1942-10-27) (aged 17)
Berlin, Germany
Conviction(s) Treason
Penalty Death by beheading (guillotine)
Status Deceased
Helmuth Günther Hübener, (8 January 1925 – 27 October 1942), was one of the youngest opponents of the Third Reich to be sentenced to death by the Volksgerichtshof and executed.[1]
Contents [hide]
1 Life
2 Friends
3 Arrest and execution
4 Church reaction
5 Legacy
5.1 Depiction in books, drama, and movies
6 Quotations
7 Notes
8 References
9 External links
[edit] LifeHübener came from an apolitical family in Hamburg, Germany. He belonged to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), as did his mother and grandparents. His adoptive father, Hugo, gave him the name Hübener.
The youthful Helmuth had, since early childhood, been a member of the Boy Scouts, an organization strongly supported by his church, but in 1935 the Nazis banned scouting from Germany. He then joined the Hitler Youth, as required by the government, but would later disapprove of Kristallnacht, when the Nazis, including the Hitler Youth, destroyed Jewish businesses and homes. When one of the leaders in his local congregation, a new convert of under two years, undertook to bar Jews from attending its religious services, Hübener found himself at odds with the new policy, but continued to attend services with like-minded friends as the Latter-day Saints locally debated the issue. (His friend and fellow resistance fighter Rudolf Wobbe would later report that of the two thousand Latter-day Saints in the Hamburg area, seven were pro-Nazi, but five of them happened to be in his and Helmuth's St.Georg Branch (congregation), thus stirring controversy with the majority who were non- or anti-Nazis.)
After Hübener finished middle school in 1941, he began an apprenticeship in administration at the Hamburg Social Authority (Sozialbehörde). He met other apprentices there, one of whom, Gerhard Düwer, he would later recruit into his resistance movement. At a bathhouse, he met new friends, one of whom had a communist family background and, as a result, he began listening to enemy radio broadcasts. Listening to enemy radiobroadcast was then strictly forbidden in Nazi Germany, being considered a form of treason. In the summer of that same year, Hübener discovered his brother Gerhard's shortwave radio in a hallway closet and began listening to the BBC on his own and used what he heard to compose various anti-fascist texts and anti-war leaflets, of which he also made many copies. The leaflets were designed to bring to people's attention how skewed the official reports about World War II from Berlin were, as well as to point out Adolf Hitler's, Joseph Goebbels's, and other leading Nazis' criminal behaviour. Other themes covered by Hübener's writings were the war's futility and Germany's looming defeat. He also mentioned the mistreatment sometimes meted out in the Hitler Youth.
In late 1941, he managed to involve three friends in his listening: Karl-Heinz Schnibbe and Rudi Wobbe, who were fellow Latter-day Saints, and later Gerhard Düwer. Hübener had them help him distribute about 60 different pamphlets, all containing typewritten material from the British broadcasts.[2] They distributed them throughout Hamburg, using such methods as surreptitiously pinning them on bulletin boards, inserting them into letterboxes, and stuffing them in coat pockets.[3]
[edit] FriendsRudi Wobbe and Karl Schnibbe were very close to Hübener. Hübener started getting the British information from a Rola short wave radio. Surprised by the differences he heard between BBC radio and the German radio, he decided he wanted everyone to know. He involves his two closest friends. They did almost everything he did. They were tried with Helmuth and were also sentenced. They were also interviewed for Susan Bartoletti's book "The Boy who Dared". They were key roles in her book.[citation needed]
[edit] Arrest and executionOn 5 February 1942, Helmuth Hübener was arrested by the Gestapo at his workplace The Hamburg Social Authority in the Bieberhaus in Hamburg. While trying to translate the pamphlets into French and have them distributed among prisoners of war, he had been noticed by Nazi Party member Heinrich Mohn at his place of work, who had denounced him.
On 11 August 1942, Hübener's case was tried at the Volksgerichtshof in Berlin, and on 27 October, at the age of 17, he was beheaded by guillotine at Plötzensee Prison in Berlin.[3] His two friends, Schnibbe and Wobbe, who had also been arrested, were given prison sentences of five and ten years respectively.
Volksgerichtshof's proclamation from 27 October 1942 announcing Hübener's executionAs stated in the proclamation (at right), Hübener was found guilty of conspiracy to commit high treason and treasonous furthering of the enemy's cause. He was sentenced not only to death, but also to permanent loss of his civil rights, which meant he could be (and was) mistreated in prison, with no bedding or blankets in his cold cell, for instance.
It was highly unusual for the Nazis to try an underaged defendant, much less sentence him to death, but the court stated that Hübener had shown more than average intelligence for a boy his age. This, along with his general and political knowledge, and his behaviour before the court, made Hübener, in the court's eyes, a boy with a far more developed mind than was usually to be found in someone of his age. For this reason, the court stated, Hübener was to be punished as an adult.
Hübener's lawyers and his mother, and the Berlin Gestapo appealed for clemency in his case, hoping to have his sentence commuted to life imprisonment. In their eyes, the fact that Hübener had confessed fully and shown himself to be still morally uncorrupted were points in his favour. The Reich Youth Leadership (Reichsjugendführung) would have none of it, however, and stated that the danger posed by Hübener's activities to the German people's war effort made the death penalty necessary. On 27 October 1942, the Nazi Ministry of Justice upheld the Volksgerichtshof's verdict. Hübener was only told of the Ministry's decision at 1:05 p.m. on the scheduled day of execution and beheaded, in the execution room at 8:13 p.m.[4]
[edit] Church reaction
The execution chamber at Plötzensee PrisonIn 1937, LDS President Heber Grant had visited Germany and urged the members to remain, get along, and not cause trouble. Consequently, some LDS members saw Hübener as a troublemaker who made things difficult for other Mormons in Germany. This recommendation didn't change after Kristallnacht, which occurred the year following Grant's visit, after which he evacuated all non-German Mormon missionaries.
Local LDS leader Arthur Zander was a fervent member of the Nazi Party, even to the extent of affixing notices to the church door stating "Jews not welcome" beginning in 1938. Immediately after the arrest of Helmuth Hübener, Zander, acting for the LDS, excommunicated the young man demonstratively.[5]
Four years later and after the war, Hübener was posthumously reinstated in the LDS Church in 1946.
The day of his execution, Hübener wrote to a fellow branch member, "I know that God lives and He will be the Just Judge in this matter... I look forward to seeing you in a better world!" — from a letter written by Hübener, the only one believed to still exist[6]
[edit] LegacyA youth centre and a pathway in Hamburg are named for Helmuth Hübener. The latter runs between Greifswalder Straße and Kirchenweg in Sankt Georg. At the former Plötzensee Prison in Berlin, an exhibit about young Helmuth Hübener's resistance, trial, and execution is located in the former guillotine chamber, where floral tributes are often placed in memory of Hübener and others put to death by the Nazis there.
[edit] Depiction in books, drama, and moviesHübener's story has been the subject of various literary, dramatic, and cinematic works. In 1969, German author Günter Grass published the book Local Anaesthetic, about the Hübener group.[7]
In 1979 Brigham Young University professor Thomas Rogers wrote a play titled Huebener, which has had several runs in various venues. Schnibbe, one of Hübener's co-accused, attended some of the performances on the BYU campus. Rudolf Wobbe, another co-accused, attended one. Wobbe died of cancer in 1992; Schnibbe died in 2010.
Schnibbe wrote the first-hand account When Truth Was Treason. It was edited by Blair R. Holmes, a professional historian, and Alan F. Keele, a German-language specialist. This monograph was published in 1995 by University of Illinois Press, with new publishing rights, theatrical rights, and copyright transferred 2003 to Academic Research Foundation, a subsidiary of Stratford Books, Inc.
The book Hübener vs. Hitler; A Biography of Helmuth Hübener, Mormon Teenage Resistance Leader, by Richard Lloyd Dewey was published in 2003; upon selling out the first edition, a second, revised edition with new material and corrections was released in late 2004. It is a biography written in a popular-historical style. It includes interviews with all living friends and close relatives of Hübener before most of them died. It also utilizes primary documents from the Nazi regime that investigated his case.
Rudolf Wobbe (Hübener's other co-resistance fighter) wrote the book Before the Blood Tribunal. Published in 1989, the book provides a personal account of his own trial before the Volksgerichtshof, the infamous "people's court" of Nazi Germany. Rudi, as he was known, was charged with Conspiracy to Commit High Treason and Aiding and Abetting the Enemy. Chief Justice Fikeis sentenced him to 10 years for his participation in the resistance. The account also describes events leading up to the trials of the three German youths and Rudi's own experience as a prisoner.
The 2008 juvenile novel The Boy Who Dared by Susan Campbell Bartoletti, while fictional, is based on Hübener's life. Bartoletti's earlier Newbery Honor book, Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow (2005), also covers Hübener's story.[8]
Hübener's story was documented in the 2003 documentary Truth & Conviction, written and directed by Rick McFarland and Matt Whitaker.
Truth & Treason, a major motion picture based on the Hübener Group, is being produced by Russ Kendall, Micah Merrill and Matt Whitaker of Kaleidoscope Pictures based on a script by Ethan Vincent and Matt Whitaker.
[edit] Quotations"German boys! Do you know the country without freedom, the country of terror and tyranny? Yes, you know it well, but are afraid to talk about it. They have intimidated you to such an extent that you don't dare talk for fear of reprisals. Yes you are right; it is Germany — Hitler Germany! Through their unscrupulous terror tactics against young and old, men and women, they have succeeded in making you spineless puppets to do their bidding." — from one of Helmuth Hübener's many pamphlets, subsequently also published in When Truth Was Treason: German Youth against Hitler, Editors Blair R. Holmes and Alan F. Keele.
"I know that God lives and He will be the Just Judge in this matter. I look forward to seeing you in a better world!" — from a letter written by Hübener (believed to be the only one extant)[6]
[edit] Notes1.^ Barbara Beuys: Vergeßt und nicht - Menschen im Widerstand 1933-1945, Rowohlt Verlag, Berlin 1987, ISBN 3-498-00511-1
2.^ Lexikon des Deutschen Widerstandes, Hrsg., Wolfgang Benz ; Walter H.Pehle, Frankfurt Germany, 1994, ISBN 3-10-005702.3, S. 236ff.
3.^ a b Matt Whitaker (2003). Truth & Conviction (DVD). Covenant Communications.
4.^ Holmes, Blair R., ed. (1995). When Truth Was Treason. Alan F. Keele. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. p. 241.
5.^ Barbara Beuys: Vergeßt und nicht - Menschen im Widerstand 1933-1945, Rowohlt Verlag, Berlin 1987, ISBN 3-498-00511-1, Page 488
6.^ a b "Hübener at Dixie State College". 2005-03-14. http://abev.wordpress.com/2005/03/14/hubner-at-dixie-state-college/. Retrieved 2010-04-26.
7.^ Günter Grass (1970). Local Anaesthetic. New York: Harcourt Brace. LCCN 78100501.
8.^ Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler’s Shadow, Scholastic Nonfiction, 2005.
[edit] ReferencesProtecting the National Community From Juvenile Delinquency: Nazification of Juvenile Criminal Law in the Third Reich, by Wayne Geerling (Melbourne University)
Gedenkstätte Plötzensee (Brigitte Oleschinski, published by the Gedenkstätte Deutscher Widerstand, and also listed in the German article).
Lights in the Darkness: Resisters of the Nazi Regime — Youth Dissent
Review of Ulrich Sander's book Jugendwiderstand im Krieg. Die Helmuth-Hübener-Gruppe
Truth & Treason at the Internet Movie Database
The Price: The True Story of a Mormon Who Defied Hitler, by Karl-Heinz Schnibbe, with Alan F. Keele and Douglas F. Tobler. Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1984. (This book was the first "rough" and considerably shorter version of the later expanded and revised title, When Truth Was Treason, noted above under "Books, Drama, and Movies.")
Truth & Treason Official Web Site
When Truth Was Treason: German Youth Against Hitler, by Karl-Heinz Schnibbe, with Alan F. Keele and Douglas F. Tobler. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, and Provo: Academic Research Foundation/Stratford Books, 1995/2003.
Hubener Vs. Hitler: A Biography of Helmuth Hubener, by Richard Lloyd Dewey. Provo: Academic Research Foundation/Stratford Books, 2004.
[edit] External linksTruth & Conviction, a documentary on Hübener from BYU Television
From Booklist
Gr. 5-9. These 12 fictionalized accounts of teenage rescuers, resistance fighters, and survivors under Nazi occupation in Europe are based on true accounts of young people who fought back, not only Jews this time but also others whose stories are not often told, including descriptions of German Edelweiss Pirates who resisted Hitler, young Mormons in Hamburg, and a teenage girl in the Greek resistance. There are also several stories of disabled individuals: some escaped, many were murdered, and some, including a blind leader in the French Resistance, rescued others. Rogow supplies a brief bibliography of sources on which the stories are based, but the blurring of fact and fiction doesn't always work, especially when the author imagines inner experience ("Despair welled up inside her. . . . He could see the sorrow in her eyes"). The personal histories are the drama here. Rogow never denies the history of the millions who did not survive as she brings readers close to the astonishing individual stories of young people who made a difference. Many readers will want to go on from here to find out more. Hazel Rochman
Faces of Courage is an inspiring compilation of twelve stories of courageous teenagers from all across Europe who resisted the Nazis.
There is Kirsten, a Danish girl who helped save a group of Jewish children from the Nazis. Jacob, a young Pole, survived the Holocaust by concealing his Jewish identity and working in a German armament factory.
Jacques Lusseyran, a blind French boy, organized a student resistance group called the Volunteers of Liberty. The Edelweiss Pirates were a group of German teenagers who opposed The Hitler Youth and aided homeless runaways from reform schools and labor camps.
Review
"Faces of Courage is a major step forward in the evolution of Holocaust education. These stories about young people who lived through that time in history enable us to feel the terror of living under German occupation during World War II. Only when we identify with this reality can we learn from it and begin to take action." --Mark Nataupsky, Ph.D. - Founder, Holocaust Education Fondation, Newport News, Virginia
"Rogow never denies the history of the millions who did not survive as she brings readers close to the astonishing individual stories of young people who made a difference." --Hazel Rochman, ALA's Booklist
"Sally Rogow has written a book about courage and the indomitable spirit of humanity. The heroes of Dr. Rogow's book provide a shining light for all of us to follow. Like The Diary of Anne Frank, Faces of Courage should become required reading in every high school in this country." --Bernie Farber, Executive Director, Canadian Jewish Congress
"Sally Rogow has written a book about courage and the indomitable spirit of humanity. The heroes of Dr. Rogow's book provide a shining light for all of us to follow. Like The Diary of Anne Frank, Faces of Courage should become required reading in every high school in this country." --Bernie Farber, Executive Director, Canadian Jewish Congress
"Faces of Courage is a major step forward in the evolution of Holocaust education. These stories about young people who lived through that time in history enable us to feel the terror of living under German occupation during World War II. Only when we identify with this reality can we learn from it and begin to take action." --Mark Nataupsky, Ph.D. - Founder, Holocaust Education Fondation, Newport News, Virginia
http://umanitoba.ca/outreach/cm/vol10/no9/facesofcourage.html
excerpt:
The following Monday, Karl was arrested and put in a green paddy wagon with twenty other prisoners. Rudi and Gerhardt were arrested a few days later. They were in the same jail, but they were not allowed to see one another. Despite the rough treatment and the cruelty of the guards, not one of them betrayed the others.?
Helmuth stood up in the courtroom. “You have sentenced me to die, even though I have committed no crime. But I must tell you that your turn will come. Germany will lose the war.” Karl was amazed at his courage.
Everyone was silent as the four boys were led out of the courtroom. Karl, Rudi and Gerhardt were sent to slave labor camps in Poland and Russia. Helmuth Heubner was seventeen years old when he was executed by guillotine. He was the youngest resistance fighter to lose his life in Ploetzensee, the infamous Nazi center of death. (Pp.131-132).
But each shines the light on young individuals or groups whose humanity overcame their fear of tyranny and death. It’s almost unimaginable that people procured printing machines to produce anti Nazi leaflets and newspapers and then distributed them clandestinely, but brave souls knew that their countrymen needed a banner under which to rally. Individuals acted alone or combined secretly to help others by hiding them, feeding them, guiding them to safety. Disguising the truth and lying became polished skills to prevent information from leaking out when neighbours or family could not be trusted. People displayed bravery that they never would have shown in other times, their courage a testament to their fundamental convictions of brotherhood and opposition to racism and brutality.
“I’ve come to deliver your chickens,” he said to the man who opened the door.
The man nodded. “I’ve been expecting you,” he said and took the chickens. Yojo went back to the wagon, brushed the hay to one side and lifted the blankets. The pilots shivered as they climbed out of the wagon. Their clothes were wet. Fred turned to Yojo, grabbed his hand, shook it and made a victory sign.
Inside the house, a woman gave them towels and dry clothes. After a dinner of spicy stew and bread, the man in charge of the safe house spoke to the pilots in English. He took their pictures for fake French identity cards....Yojo and the pilots were also given thick woolen socks, sweaters and climbing boots with heavy spiked soles. (p.72)
Enough praise can never be awarded to those who resisted the Nazi terror, and that’s why this book will be part of the growing body of literature that reminds us about these brave people. Faces of Courage can be used as part of a classroom unit about the World War II and the Holocaust. The writing style is occasionally too earnest and the dialogue slightly artificial, but teens will ignore these faults because the content will touch their souls. Each story can be used as a starting point for historical research and discussion. The cover of the book shows three youths standing in a village square, defiantly facing Nazi soldiers. The pen and watercolour sketch is not appealing, considering the high level of illustration that is being produced these days. The rough quality of the drawing chosen seems inadequate to the material. A woman and girl who stand at the bottom of the sketch have a more modern appearance than one would expect.
___________________________________________________________
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helmuth_H%C3%BCbener
Helmuth Hübener From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, search Helmuth Hübener
Helmuth Hübener, flanked by Rudolf Wobbe (left) and Karl-Heinz Schnibbe (right)
Born January 8, 1925(1925-01-08)
Hamburg, Germany
Died October 27, 1942(1942-10-27) (aged 17)
Berlin, Germany
Conviction(s) Treason
Penalty Death by beheading (guillotine)
Status Deceased
Helmuth Günther Hübener, (8 January 1925 – 27 October 1942), was one of the youngest opponents of the Third Reich to be sentenced to death by the Volksgerichtshof and executed.[1]
Contents [hide]
1 Life
2 Friends
3 Arrest and execution
4 Church reaction
5 Legacy
5.1 Depiction in books, drama, and movies
6 Quotations
7 Notes
8 References
9 External links
[edit] LifeHübener came from an apolitical family in Hamburg, Germany. He belonged to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), as did his mother and grandparents. His adoptive father, Hugo, gave him the name Hübener.
The youthful Helmuth had, since early childhood, been a member of the Boy Scouts, an organization strongly supported by his church, but in 1935 the Nazis banned scouting from Germany. He then joined the Hitler Youth, as required by the government, but would later disapprove of Kristallnacht, when the Nazis, including the Hitler Youth, destroyed Jewish businesses and homes. When one of the leaders in his local congregation, a new convert of under two years, undertook to bar Jews from attending its religious services, Hübener found himself at odds with the new policy, but continued to attend services with like-minded friends as the Latter-day Saints locally debated the issue. (His friend and fellow resistance fighter Rudolf Wobbe would later report that of the two thousand Latter-day Saints in the Hamburg area, seven were pro-Nazi, but five of them happened to be in his and Helmuth's St.Georg Branch (congregation), thus stirring controversy with the majority who were non- or anti-Nazis.)
After Hübener finished middle school in 1941, he began an apprenticeship in administration at the Hamburg Social Authority (Sozialbehörde). He met other apprentices there, one of whom, Gerhard Düwer, he would later recruit into his resistance movement. At a bathhouse, he met new friends, one of whom had a communist family background and, as a result, he began listening to enemy radio broadcasts. Listening to enemy radiobroadcast was then strictly forbidden in Nazi Germany, being considered a form of treason. In the summer of that same year, Hübener discovered his brother Gerhard's shortwave radio in a hallway closet and began listening to the BBC on his own and used what he heard to compose various anti-fascist texts and anti-war leaflets, of which he also made many copies. The leaflets were designed to bring to people's attention how skewed the official reports about World War II from Berlin were, as well as to point out Adolf Hitler's, Joseph Goebbels's, and other leading Nazis' criminal behaviour. Other themes covered by Hübener's writings were the war's futility and Germany's looming defeat. He also mentioned the mistreatment sometimes meted out in the Hitler Youth.
In late 1941, he managed to involve three friends in his listening: Karl-Heinz Schnibbe and Rudi Wobbe, who were fellow Latter-day Saints, and later Gerhard Düwer. Hübener had them help him distribute about 60 different pamphlets, all containing typewritten material from the British broadcasts.[2] They distributed them throughout Hamburg, using such methods as surreptitiously pinning them on bulletin boards, inserting them into letterboxes, and stuffing them in coat pockets.[3]
[edit] FriendsRudi Wobbe and Karl Schnibbe were very close to Hübener. Hübener started getting the British information from a Rola short wave radio. Surprised by the differences he heard between BBC radio and the German radio, he decided he wanted everyone to know. He involves his two closest friends. They did almost everything he did. They were tried with Helmuth and were also sentenced. They were also interviewed for Susan Bartoletti's book "The Boy who Dared". They were key roles in her book.[citation needed]
[edit] Arrest and executionOn 5 February 1942, Helmuth Hübener was arrested by the Gestapo at his workplace The Hamburg Social Authority in the Bieberhaus in Hamburg. While trying to translate the pamphlets into French and have them distributed among prisoners of war, he had been noticed by Nazi Party member Heinrich Mohn at his place of work, who had denounced him.
On 11 August 1942, Hübener's case was tried at the Volksgerichtshof in Berlin, and on 27 October, at the age of 17, he was beheaded by guillotine at Plötzensee Prison in Berlin.[3] His two friends, Schnibbe and Wobbe, who had also been arrested, were given prison sentences of five and ten years respectively.
Volksgerichtshof's proclamation from 27 October 1942 announcing Hübener's executionAs stated in the proclamation (at right), Hübener was found guilty of conspiracy to commit high treason and treasonous furthering of the enemy's cause. He was sentenced not only to death, but also to permanent loss of his civil rights, which meant he could be (and was) mistreated in prison, with no bedding or blankets in his cold cell, for instance.
It was highly unusual for the Nazis to try an underaged defendant, much less sentence him to death, but the court stated that Hübener had shown more than average intelligence for a boy his age. This, along with his general and political knowledge, and his behaviour before the court, made Hübener, in the court's eyes, a boy with a far more developed mind than was usually to be found in someone of his age. For this reason, the court stated, Hübener was to be punished as an adult.
Hübener's lawyers and his mother, and the Berlin Gestapo appealed for clemency in his case, hoping to have his sentence commuted to life imprisonment. In their eyes, the fact that Hübener had confessed fully and shown himself to be still morally uncorrupted were points in his favour. The Reich Youth Leadership (Reichsjugendführung) would have none of it, however, and stated that the danger posed by Hübener's activities to the German people's war effort made the death penalty necessary. On 27 October 1942, the Nazi Ministry of Justice upheld the Volksgerichtshof's verdict. Hübener was only told of the Ministry's decision at 1:05 p.m. on the scheduled day of execution and beheaded, in the execution room at 8:13 p.m.[4]
[edit] Church reaction
The execution chamber at Plötzensee PrisonIn 1937, LDS President Heber Grant had visited Germany and urged the members to remain, get along, and not cause trouble. Consequently, some LDS members saw Hübener as a troublemaker who made things difficult for other Mormons in Germany. This recommendation didn't change after Kristallnacht, which occurred the year following Grant's visit, after which he evacuated all non-German Mormon missionaries.
Local LDS leader Arthur Zander was a fervent member of the Nazi Party, even to the extent of affixing notices to the church door stating "Jews not welcome" beginning in 1938. Immediately after the arrest of Helmuth Hübener, Zander, acting for the LDS, excommunicated the young man demonstratively.[5]
Four years later and after the war, Hübener was posthumously reinstated in the LDS Church in 1946.
The day of his execution, Hübener wrote to a fellow branch member, "I know that God lives and He will be the Just Judge in this matter... I look forward to seeing you in a better world!" — from a letter written by Hübener, the only one believed to still exist[6]
[edit] LegacyA youth centre and a pathway in Hamburg are named for Helmuth Hübener. The latter runs between Greifswalder Straße and Kirchenweg in Sankt Georg. At the former Plötzensee Prison in Berlin, an exhibit about young Helmuth Hübener's resistance, trial, and execution is located in the former guillotine chamber, where floral tributes are often placed in memory of Hübener and others put to death by the Nazis there.
[edit] Depiction in books, drama, and moviesHübener's story has been the subject of various literary, dramatic, and cinematic works. In 1969, German author Günter Grass published the book Local Anaesthetic, about the Hübener group.[7]
In 1979 Brigham Young University professor Thomas Rogers wrote a play titled Huebener, which has had several runs in various venues. Schnibbe, one of Hübener's co-accused, attended some of the performances on the BYU campus. Rudolf Wobbe, another co-accused, attended one. Wobbe died of cancer in 1992; Schnibbe died in 2010.
Schnibbe wrote the first-hand account When Truth Was Treason. It was edited by Blair R. Holmes, a professional historian, and Alan F. Keele, a German-language specialist. This monograph was published in 1995 by University of Illinois Press, with new publishing rights, theatrical rights, and copyright transferred 2003 to Academic Research Foundation, a subsidiary of Stratford Books, Inc.
The book Hübener vs. Hitler; A Biography of Helmuth Hübener, Mormon Teenage Resistance Leader, by Richard Lloyd Dewey was published in 2003; upon selling out the first edition, a second, revised edition with new material and corrections was released in late 2004. It is a biography written in a popular-historical style. It includes interviews with all living friends and close relatives of Hübener before most of them died. It also utilizes primary documents from the Nazi regime that investigated his case.
Rudolf Wobbe (Hübener's other co-resistance fighter) wrote the book Before the Blood Tribunal. Published in 1989, the book provides a personal account of his own trial before the Volksgerichtshof, the infamous "people's court" of Nazi Germany. Rudi, as he was known, was charged with Conspiracy to Commit High Treason and Aiding and Abetting the Enemy. Chief Justice Fikeis sentenced him to 10 years for his participation in the resistance. The account also describes events leading up to the trials of the three German youths and Rudi's own experience as a prisoner.
The 2008 juvenile novel The Boy Who Dared by Susan Campbell Bartoletti, while fictional, is based on Hübener's life. Bartoletti's earlier Newbery Honor book, Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow (2005), also covers Hübener's story.[8]
Hübener's story was documented in the 2003 documentary Truth & Conviction, written and directed by Rick McFarland and Matt Whitaker.
Truth & Treason, a major motion picture based on the Hübener Group, is being produced by Russ Kendall, Micah Merrill and Matt Whitaker of Kaleidoscope Pictures based on a script by Ethan Vincent and Matt Whitaker.
[edit] Quotations"German boys! Do you know the country without freedom, the country of terror and tyranny? Yes, you know it well, but are afraid to talk about it. They have intimidated you to such an extent that you don't dare talk for fear of reprisals. Yes you are right; it is Germany — Hitler Germany! Through their unscrupulous terror tactics against young and old, men and women, they have succeeded in making you spineless puppets to do their bidding." — from one of Helmuth Hübener's many pamphlets, subsequently also published in When Truth Was Treason: German Youth against Hitler, Editors Blair R. Holmes and Alan F. Keele.
"I know that God lives and He will be the Just Judge in this matter. I look forward to seeing you in a better world!" — from a letter written by Hübener (believed to be the only one extant)[6]
[edit] Notes1.^ Barbara Beuys: Vergeßt und nicht - Menschen im Widerstand 1933-1945, Rowohlt Verlag, Berlin 1987, ISBN 3-498-00511-1
2.^ Lexikon des Deutschen Widerstandes, Hrsg., Wolfgang Benz ; Walter H.Pehle, Frankfurt Germany, 1994, ISBN 3-10-005702.3, S. 236ff.
3.^ a b Matt Whitaker (2003). Truth & Conviction (DVD). Covenant Communications.
4.^ Holmes, Blair R., ed. (1995). When Truth Was Treason. Alan F. Keele. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. p. 241.
5.^ Barbara Beuys: Vergeßt und nicht - Menschen im Widerstand 1933-1945, Rowohlt Verlag, Berlin 1987, ISBN 3-498-00511-1, Page 488
6.^ a b "Hübener at Dixie State College". 2005-03-14. http://abev.wordpress.com/2005/03/14/hubner-at-dixie-state-college/. Retrieved 2010-04-26.
7.^ Günter Grass (1970). Local Anaesthetic. New York: Harcourt Brace. LCCN 78100501.
8.^ Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler’s Shadow, Scholastic Nonfiction, 2005.
[edit] ReferencesProtecting the National Community From Juvenile Delinquency: Nazification of Juvenile Criminal Law in the Third Reich, by Wayne Geerling (Melbourne University)
Gedenkstätte Plötzensee (Brigitte Oleschinski, published by the Gedenkstätte Deutscher Widerstand, and also listed in the German article).
Lights in the Darkness: Resisters of the Nazi Regime — Youth Dissent
Review of Ulrich Sander's book Jugendwiderstand im Krieg. Die Helmuth-Hübener-Gruppe
Truth & Treason at the Internet Movie Database
The Price: The True Story of a Mormon Who Defied Hitler, by Karl-Heinz Schnibbe, with Alan F. Keele and Douglas F. Tobler. Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1984. (This book was the first "rough" and considerably shorter version of the later expanded and revised title, When Truth Was Treason, noted above under "Books, Drama, and Movies.")
Truth & Treason Official Web Site
When Truth Was Treason: German Youth Against Hitler, by Karl-Heinz Schnibbe, with Alan F. Keele and Douglas F. Tobler. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, and Provo: Academic Research Foundation/Stratford Books, 1995/2003.
Hubener Vs. Hitler: A Biography of Helmuth Hubener, by Richard Lloyd Dewey. Provo: Academic Research Foundation/Stratford Books, 2004.
[edit] External linksTruth & Conviction, a documentary on Hübener from BYU Television
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