About the Star of David's Significance in the Holocaust
During World War II, Jews were branded with the yellow Star of David as a symbol of hatred and scorn. But today, because of what the Jewish people suffered during the Holocaust, the star has become a symbol of nationalism and pride.
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Identification
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The Star of David, or the Magen David, is the premier Jewish symbol in present day. It is formed by two interlocking equilateral triangles that form a six-pointed star or hexagram.
Evolution
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The badges used by the German government to mark the Jews during World War II varied by geographical location and time period. Early in the war, Jews wore yellow arm bands or white armbands with a blue or yellow Star of David. The most recognizable badge, eventually adopted by Germany, Poland, France, Holland, Bohemia-Moravia, Belgium and Slovakia, was a yellow Star of David outlined in black with the word "Jew" written or abbreviated in center. However, some regions wore solid yellow stars or a yellow star emblazoned on a black circle.
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Function
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The German government implemented the Star of David badge to organize the persecution and destruction of the Jewish race. Prior to the mandatory badge, it was not easy to identify the European Jews, particularly if they did not have distinctly Jewish features. But, when forced to wear the star, Jews could be easily identified, cut off from society, herded into ghettos and concentration camps and eventually murdered.
History
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Though the Star of David was originally used in medieval times as a mystic symbol, Jewish people almost universally adopted it as the symbol of their race in the 19th century.
The Nazis used the Star of David to mark the Jews for persecution and extermination during World War II.
The first reference to marking the Jews came not from the Nazis, but from Robert Weltsch, a German-Jew and Zionist. During the Nazi-declared boycott on Jewish-owned stores, yellow Stars of David were painted over the windows. Weltsch wrote an article following the incident entitled "Tragt ihn mit Stolz den Gelben Fleck," translated, "Wear the Yellow Badge with Pride." Little did he know Jews would soon literally be wearing yellow badges.
On Nov. 9 and 10, 1938, the Nazi militia in Germany and Austria attacked the Jews, killing and beating them, looting their homes and shops and burning their synagogues. Nearly 100 Jews were killed and thousands of homes and businesses were destroyed. This event became known as Krystallnacht or "the night of broken glass."
Two days later, under the direction of Hitler's right-hand propagandist, Joseph Goebbels, Nazi leaders met together for a two-fold purpose: to make the public believe the Jews were at fault for Krystallnacht so the German government could hold them legally and financially responsible, and to use the horrific event as an excuse to pass several anti-Semitic laws. At this meeting Reinhard Heydrich, head of the Gestapo, suggested that all Jewish persons should wear a yellow badge.
Shortly after the start of World War II in 1939, Nazis required all Jews within occupied Poland to wear a yellow, 10-centimeter-wide armband just below their right armpit. Later, the yellow armband was replaced with a white armband emblazoned with a blue or yellow Star of David. Eventually, in 1941, the Jewish badges in Germany and Poland became yellow stars, outlined in black, with the word "Jew" in the center. Many countries followed suit, but some kept their own designs.
Many Jews attempted to thwart the government by hiding their stars. When the badge was a white armband with a star, Jews would don white shirts or blouses. When a large Star of David was to be worn on the left side of the chest, some Jews would carry large objects that shielded their star from view. Some Jews would use safety pins instead of sewing the badge to their clothes. This allowed them to vary their wardrobes since they usually owned far more outfits than stars. It also allowed them to remove their stars quickly if they sensed danger. Eventually the German government made safety pinning stars a punishable offense and some local authorities required additional stars to be sewn on the back and the knee.
Misconceptions
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Many people associate the Star of David badge during the Holocaust with Adolph Hitler's rise to power in 1933. But the German government didn't officially introduce mandatory badges until the start of World War II in 1939.
The idea of marking the Jewish race for persecution did not originate with Hitler's Nazi party. Countries all over the world have persecuted Jews and forced them to wear some mark of distinction. In 807 A.D., Abbassid caliph Haroun al Raschid commanded Jews to wear a yellow belt and cone-like hat. Pope Innocent III and the Fourth Lateran Council decreed in 1215 that Jews and Muslims should be marked by their dress. King Henry III of England ordered Jews to wear badges shaped like the Ten Commandments and Louis IX of France forced Jews to wear yellow circles on their clothing. In Germany and Austria, Jews were made to wear a hat called a "horned hat" or "Jewish hat," an accessory Jews wore freely before the crusades. In the 1500s, the horned hat was replaced with a badge. It wasn't until the 18th century that many countries began to abolish their discriminatory, anti-Semitic laws.
Effects
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When the Jewish badges were first implemented during the Nazi regime, the Jews were angry, humiliated, and embarrassed to leave their homes. But eventually the shame gave way to fear. A Jew caught without a badge could be fined, beaten, imprisoned or killed. If a Jew was caught with a wrinkled Star of David, or one slightly out of place, they could be severely punished. But all wearing the yellow star were shunned by society, denied access to schools, businesses and shops, and subject to the ever-looming possibility of being hustled off the street and whisked away to a concentration camp by the Gestapo. Many Jews simply "disappeared" in this manner.
In the present day, because of the atrocities of the Holocaust and the badge Jews were forced to wear, the Star of David has become symbolic of martyrdom, bravery and heroism.
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- Photo Credit star of david image by Pix by Marti from Fotolia.com
