“You will not be a victim. You will not be an author. Above all, you will not be a spectator. (Berenbaum) Would you save the lives of others at the risk of losing your own? Many people faced with this question during the Holocaust became bystanders while very few had the courage to risk everything to save others. As the Nazis terrorized others and eliminated their freedoms, others became bystanders and accomplices of the Nazi Party. The Holocaust; an attempt to rid a country of its impurities, create a superior race, and create a perfect civilization in a land of discrimination and hostility. A time of suffering for many, a time of hiding for others, but for most it was years of watching the genocide happen, in their country, in their community, for their friends, for their colleagues and for their neighbors. Very few of them offered help to their desperate friends, but they continued with their daily lives ignoring the tragedy happening around them. Those who helped gave everything they could to protect those suffering from the crimes committed. Hitler's rise to power in 1939 marked the beginning of the Holocaust. It began with the loss of Jewish rights, such as the boycott of Jewish-owned stores and the Nazi burning of books written by Jewish authors. Jews also had to be easily recognizable by wearing the yellow Star of David. They were not allowed to serve in the army and the Jews were eventually stripped of their German citizenship. The first act of dehumanization imposed on Jews was their displacement into ghettos. Life in the ghettos was characterized by overcrowding and filthy living conditions. The ghettos became the beginning of the Jewish experience of the Holocaust. Fr...... middle of paper ......history. Such genocides could have easily been avoided if people had not turned away and remained silent. “Of course, indifference can be tempting, and even more, seductive. It is so much easier to look away from the victims. It is so much easier to avoid such abrupt interruptions to our work, to our dreams, to our hopes. It is, after all, embarrassing and painful to be involved in the pain and despair of others. (Wiesel) When asked if you would save the lives of others even if you put your own life in danger, would you remain silent and indifferent? Would you choose to be a spectator to the violence and terror and turn a blind eye? Or would you have a voice and participate? Would you like to try to push back the devastation, destruction and dehumanization? Would you refuse to witness the death and discrimination of your closest friends, neighbors and family?