"Somebody, after all, had to make a start. What we wrote and said is also believed by many others. They just don't care to express themselves as we did."
--Sophie Scholl
On February 22, 1943, three members of the White Rose resistance were put on trial. Their crime was publishing anti-Nazi Germany essays and leaflets. They also created anti-Hitler graffiti all over Munich while spreading their message to other parts of the country. During their trial, Sophie Scholl surprised everyone with the quote mentioned above. These three college students were from good families and had been a part of the Hitler youth, but they still defied the nationalism that was expected of them. I believe this quote to be completely true and I am sure that there were other stories just like this one during Nazi Germany's reign.
These few individuals were brave and gave others just like them a voice to thrive on. The question that I have for myself is whether or not I would be able to do the same. It is hard to imagine what Germans, whether they were Jewish or not, had to go through during this time period. If something as horrible as the Holocaust happened in our country today, would you be able to stand up? I think that we all would like to believe that we would resist something like this and speak for those that do not have a voice, but would we really? There are people right now, like in Darfur, who are suffering from the oppression of a government who aims to squeeze them out. How many of us have done anything about it? If something like this happened here, how many people in other countries would speak up for us? What the members of the White Rose did was not only brave, but it was also heroic. Not everyone can be so strong while staring directly into the face of death.
These few individuals were brave and gave others just like them a voice to thrive on. The question that I have for myself is whether or not I would be able to do the same. It is hard to imagine what Germans, whether they were Jewish or not, had to go through during this time period. If something as horrible as the Holocaust happened in our country today, would you be able to stand up? I think that we all would like to believe that we would resist something like this and speak for those that do not have a voice, but would we really? There are people right now, like in Darfur, who are suffering from the oppression of a government who aims to squeeze them out. How many of us have done anything about it? If something like this happened here, how many people in other countries would speak up for us? What the members of the White Rose did was not only brave, but it was also heroic. Not everyone can be so strong while staring directly into the face of death.
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