The Holocaust is often considered one of the darkest and...

The Holocaust is often considered one of the darkest and most heinous periods in modern history, however there are numerous accounts of heroism and selfless charity to emerge from the ashes. Despite the Nazi regime’s stranglehold on European affairs during a large part of the second world war, their radical and racially charged agenda was not universally accepted amongst German citizens and Nazi officials. The fear of strict punishment at the hands of the SS squashed popular outcry over the atrocities, but it did not stop the heroic acts of a few compassionate and unassuming individuals. One such hero is Oskar Schindler, a German industrialist who spearheaded an effort to protect his Jewish factory workers from the uncertain fate of the†¦show more content†¦In the winter of 1939-1940 he began operations with 4,000 square metres of floor space and a hundred workers, of whom seven were Jewish (Steinhouse) By the end of the first year the labour force expanded to 300, which included 150 Jews. By the end of 1942, the factory had grown tremendously, employing almost 800 men and women. The Jewish workers, now numbered 370 and all came from the Cracow ghetto the Germans had created. Schindler’s personal accountant Itzhak Stern recounted, It had become a tremendous advantage...to be able to leave the ghetto in the daytime and work in a German factory (Steinhouse). At first, there wasn’t a defined and apparent connection between Schindler and his Jewish employees, but word quickly spread though out the Cracow ghetto that Schindler’s had cultivated â€Å"an air of quasi-security...in the factory and the men soon sought permission to bring in families and friends to share in their comparative haven† (Steinhouse). Though Schindler was not apparent in his methods, behind the scenes he was pulling strings and falsifying company reports to protect the defenseless. †Å"Old people were recorded as being twenty years younger; children were listed as adults. Lawyers, doctors, and engineers were registered as metalworkers, mechanics, and draughtsmen--all trades considered essential to war production. Countless lives were saved in this manner as the workers were protected from the extermination commissions thatShow MoreRelated Myth of Propaganda in the Balkans and Rwanda Essay6707 Words   |  27 Pagesand conquest have been among the most enduring traits of humankind throughout the ages. While we would all like to believe that we are, by nature, a peaceful species, we still understand there are some things worth fighting for, and given the appropriate context, there are some things worth killing for. As reasoning beings, we hope that if violence is the only option it is for a clear and legitimate purpose. That is why it was so confounding to hear of such heinous acts of senseless violence as stories