Most commented posts
- “The Birds Don’t Sing Here” — 2 comments
- It Can’t Be Beautiful — 2 comments
- Seeing the Invisible — 2 comments
- The Holocaust’s Impact on International Law — 2 comments
- Poland: Take 2 — 1 comment
Alexandra Arnold
Author's posts
Jul 03
The Holocaust’s Impact on International Law
The Holocaust had a great impact on the international community and how the law and its punishments are carried out. Terms such as ‘genocide’ and ‘crimes against humanity’ were not used or cited until the Nuremberg Trials that followed World War II. The fact that these terms did not exist in the legal arena while …
May 30
Post-Trip Reflection
It has been less than a week since our group returned to the US, and I have not stopped thinking about everything we experienced. All study abroad trips, regardless of topic, provide students with unique learning environments. However, especially while studying the Holocaust, these unique learning environments surpass any lesson that can be taught in …
May 24
Forgotten Landscapes: The Importance of Collective Memory
Remembering the events of the Holocaust is a complex task, one that extends way beyond Auschwitz-Birkenau. Between 1941 and 1942, around 1.3 million victims were claimed by Nazi mobile killing units and their auxiliary support groups. Even though this number surpasses the victims of Auschwitz, the history of these mass executions has largely been forgotten …
May 21
Seeing the Invisible
I didn’t like the memorial at Chelmno at first. It seemed forgotten, in disarray, and haphazardly thrown together. Put together by the Soviet Union in the 1960s, and having minimal funding today, it is not well maintained. This makes sense given the strained relations between Russia and Poland, and the obscurity of the site itself. …
May 21
It Can’t Be Beautiful
Birds are singing. The sky is blue. The grass is green. The trees are rustling in the wind. The sun is warm. A recipe for a beautiful day. But this place can’t be beautiful. A place of death and suffering, where so many people lost their lives in such a violent manner is incapable of …
May 21
The Pride of Krakow, Not of Poland
Coming into Poland, I knew that attitudes towards the LGBTQ+ community were not on the positive side. In fact, Poland is the second worst country to live in as a member of the LGBTQ+ within the EU. I was surprised when our tour guide pointed out the Pride Parade happening in Krakow during our stay. …
May 20
“The Birds Don’t Sing Here”
A personal reflection on my visit to Birkenau People often like to say that “the birds don’t sing” at Birkenau. On my first visit to the site I might have agreed. I think that it is easy to become so overwhelmed by the site that our senses dull to anything outside of the wind and …
May 20
Auschwitz as a Site of Dark Tourism
The State Museum of Auschwitz-Birkenau is an interesting place to be. The exhibits at Auschwitz I, in the reconstructed and preserved prisoner barracks, have always made me feel disconnected from the memory of the site. Not only do the exhibits and signs direct and manipulate you attention, they attempt to influence your emotions as well. …
May 16
Traces and the Commercialization of Jewish History in Krakow
Before World War II, Krakow was home to around 65,000 Jews. The current Jewish population is officially unknown, but unofficially thought to be anywhere between 300-600. Just like the population itself, Jewish history in Krakow, and Poland in general, is a shadow of its former self. Traces of Jewish history can be seen on a …
May 06
Poland: Take 2
I still feel amazed at the fact that I am able to head back to Poland for a second time so soon. When I went on this trip last year I absolutely fell in love with Poland and discovered a passion in historical studies of the Holocaust. Though I knew I would make it back …