Holocaust Memorial Museum Case Study

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum believes a total estimate of 6,673,900 non-Jewish people were persecuted and murdered at the hands of the Nazis due to the Nazi policies and Hitler’s orders. Many people believe that the Jews were the only race that suffered during the Holocaust and the reign of Hitler, but this is not the case. Non-Jewish people also suffered hardship during this time period, almost as much as the Jews themselves endured. The number of casualties they had surpasses those of the Jews themselves. The Nazis targeted not only the Jews, but other races/people during World War II. To begin, the Roma, or Gypsies, were specifically targeted by the Nazis to be exterminated. Secondly, the Nazis also had the idea of “purifying” society by disposing of those who were incurable. Thirdly, some subcultures were
The Nazis looked upon the Gypsies as inferior by racial means. The Nazis were also supported by several other Germans who also despised the Gypsies. Since the Nazis, and many others, thought of the Roma in this way, they proceeded to mass murder them, force them into internment and into labor. 30,000 Gypsies were deported to labor camps, where they often died due to the harsh environment. According to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, “Nearly half the Roma died within the first months of their arrival due to lack of adequate food, fuel, shelter and medicines.” The Gypsies were also prone to illnesses, like smallpox and dysentery, due to the lack of medicines and bad living conditions. The very few Gypsies that managed to survive these labor camps were immediately taken to killing centers across Germany. They were exposed to poisonous carbon monoxide gas, or “gassed,” in these centers alongside the Jews. To conclude the Jews were not the only race segregated and persecuted by the Nazis, the Gypsies suffered almost as much as the Jews