Hero of the Week 31

Welcome back viewers!

This week's hero is...

Ulrich Wegener

Ulrich Wegener (no relation to Armin Wegener) was born on August 22, 1929 in Jüterbog, Germany. While growing up he was forcefully conscripted into the German Army during the final days of World War II. After the end of the war, Wegener became a police officer in Western Germany. He eventually rose to the rank of colonel. In 1972 however, Wegener and the rest of the world watched as  a terrible tragedy unfolded during the Summer Olympics in the city of Munich. 

On September 5, 1972, 8 Palestinian terrorists infiltrated the olympic compounds and took 11 Israeli athletes and coaches hostage. After a day long standoff, German police attempted to rescue the hostages and kill the terrorists. However, the rescue was botched and all 11 hostages were killed (along with a German police officer). Wegener was among those who watched the horror unfold on International TV. 

Inquiries into the massacre concluded that the botched rescue happened due to a lack of coordination and a lack of training among the German police in handling terrorist situations. The German government concluded that the country needed to have an elite police force that was equipped and trained to deal with terrorists (especially hostage situations). Ulrich Wegener was asked to create and lead this elite unit. Wegener (who had been affected by the massacre) accepted the task. He then got in contact with special forces from Great Britain, Israel, and the United States. With their help, Wegener was able to create the elite police unit that could combat terrorists. This unit was officially established on April 17, 1973 and was named, "GSG-9". The creation of GSG-9 came not a moment too soon.

On October 12, 1977, a German airliner (Lufthansa Flight 181) took off with 86 passengers and 5 crew members on board. Minutes after takeoff the plane was hijacked by four Palestinian terrorists of the PFLP (Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine). The terrorists diverted the plane to five different airports before finally stopping at an airport in Mogadishu, Somalia after running low on fuel. Once there, the four terrorists demanded the release of 13 imprisoned terrorists and a ransom of $15 million. The situation became even more dire when the terrorists executed the pilot of the flight and threatened to begin executing more hostages if their demands were not met. To save the hostages and not give in to the terrorists's demands, German chancellor Helmut Schmidt gave the green light for Colonel Wegener to launch a rescue mission codenamed: Operation Feuerzauber (Fire Magic). 

Wegener led 30 commandos of GSG-9 to Mogadishu on October 18, 1977. They quietly landed at the airport and took positions around the hijacked aircraft. Wegener decided to launch the rescue from the aircraft's rear (this was its blind spot). While this was happening, a negotiator distracted the terrorist leader and Somali soldiers lit a bonfire in front of the aircraft which caused the remaining terrorists to rush to cockpit. This left the hostages unguarded and presented a window of opportunity for the rescue. Wegener and GSG-9 did not waste the opportunity. At 2:07 their assault began. They climbed onto the wings and blasted open the aircrafts emergency doors. The commandos then threw stun grenades which disoriented the terrorists and made them easy prey. Within seven minutes three of the terrorists were killed and the fourth was severely wounded and captured. 

As a result of the rescue all of the remaining 90 hostages on Lufthansa Flight 181 were saved. Operation Fire Magic was declared a major success and the GSG-9 commandos returned to a hero's welcome in Germany. Ulrich Wegener received the Federal Cross of Merit for his heroism in leading the rescue. He would continue to command GSG-9 until 1979 when he was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General of German Federal Police. He retired from the police force in 1988 and went on to train many countries in ways of countering terrorism. Ulrich Wegener died on December 28, 2017 at the age of 88.

To this day, thousands of people around the world have been victimized by acts of terrorism. Ranging from aircraft hijackings, hostage situations, mass shootings, and bombings, these acts of killed many people and left deep scars on the world. However, there are those who stand up to terrorists and find a way to fight back against them and deter future attacks. Ulrich Wegener was one of those people. He was a man who witnessed a terrible act of terrorism and resolved to find a way to prevent future attacks from happening. Because of this, the hostages of Flight 181 all survived their ordeal and many other people have been rescued from similar situations. I believe that Ulrich Wegener is one of the greatest heroes in history.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/03/obituaries/ulrich-wegener-dead-german-commando-ended-hijacking.html

http://www.dw.com/en/ulrich-wegener-german-hero-of-mogadishu-dies-aged-88/a-42018291

https://special-ops.org/sof/mission/hijacking-of-lufthansa-737-airplane/

Hero of the Week 30

Welcome back viewers!

This week's hero is...

Adolph Kiefer

Adolph Kiefer was born on June 27, 1918. During his early childhood, he fell into a Chicago drainage canal during winter. Despite having a near-death experience, his accident prompted Kiefer to learn how to swim. While he attended high school, he joined the swim team and quickly established himself as being very skilled. When Kiefer was 16 years old, he became the first athlete to ever break the one-minute mark in 100-yard backstroke. His skill and talent at backstroke led to his recruitment by the United States's 1936 Olympic team. 

At the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Kiefer won the gold medal for the men's 100 m backstroke. He also set an Olympic record at 1:05.9. His record would not be broken for 20 years (he also became good friends with Jesse Owens). From the years 1934 to 1942, he would win more than 200 races and set at least 17 world records at distances of 100 to 1,500 yards. However, his proudest personal achievement was what he did while serving in the US Navy during WWII.

In the summer of 1942, Kiefer put his athletic career on hold and entered the US Navy. To his astonishment he found out that nearly all of the American sailors (even the officers) did NOT know how to swim (some records show that more sailors died from drowning than gunfire). Although the navy did have a Swim Training Program it was quite inadequate in teaching the sailors how to swim for long periods of time. 

Kiefer immediately set about running swimming and lifesaving instructions for the entire American navy. He convinced the commanders of the navy to make swimming lessons compulsory for all members of the navy (enlisted men and officers). As a result, no man was allowed to board a ship without taking a 21 hour course in swimming. One of the strokes that he taught was the, "victory backstroke", where both arms were extended over the head to form a V. This stroke was credited with saving the lives of thousands of American sailors from drowning after their ships were sunk in battle. 

Throughout World War II, as many as 2 million American recruits learned to swim at 6 different bases. Even after the end of WWII, the US Navy still uses the programs and strokes that Kiefer introduced in 1942. Many years later, Kiefer remarked that teaching the navy to swim was the biggest thing that he had ever done in his life (much more valuable than his gold medal).

After the end of World War II, Kiefer became an innovator and entrepreneur for swimming. His innovations included the first nylon swimsuit, a commercial line of floating kick boards, and the PVC rescue tube that lifeguards now use. These along with many other innovations helped to revolutionize the sport of swimming around the world. In 1965, Adolph Kiefer was in inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame. In 2013, USA Swimming named him, "the father of American swimming". Kiefer lived to age of 98 (even then he was still swimming) before passing away on May 5, 2017. At the time of his death he was the last surviving gold medalist from the 1936 Summer Olympics.

For more than 100 years, the world has watched millions of athletes compete in the sporting events of the Summer and Winter Olympics. What many of us usually forget about is what these athletes do when they are not competing. We don't realize many of them use their talent and skills to do much more than break records. Many of them also use them to help the world around them. Adolph Kiefer was one of those people. He was an impressive athlete who used his gift to help people and revolutionize the sport of swimming. I believe that he is a great example of what it takes to be a true champion and a major inspiration to the whole world. 

https://www.kiefer.com/history-pages-188.php

https://www.kiefer.com/adolph-kiefer---our-founder-pages-317.php

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/adolph-kiefer-olympic-champion-who-taught-the-navy-to-swim-dies-at-98/2017/05/06/c92be39c-326a-11e7-8674-437ddb6e813e_story.html?utm_term=.fb3d7a7400f3

https://www.cnn.com/2017/05/06/us/olympic-swimmer-adolph-kiefer-dies/index.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/05/sports/olympics/adolph-kiefer-dead-olympic-swimming-champion.html

Hero of the Week 29

Welcome back viewers!

This week's hero is...

Henrietta Bell Wells

Henrietta Wells (born Henrietta Bell) was born on October 11, 1912 in Houston, Texas. She grew up in a neighborhood that was very segregated and very racist at the time. She attended Phyllis Wheatley High School and graduated in 1929. After that she enrolled in Wiley College (a segregated school) with a scholarship. There she met an English professor named Melvin Tolson who invited her to join the college's debated team. Tolson was a well-known poet who believed that argumentation was good way to improve mental alertness.

Wells was the only female member of the debate team, but she quickly established herself as being able to deliver a very effective argument. She and her team went on to have debate challenges with numerous other black colleges, and won them all. However, a defining moment for the Wiley debate team wass when Professor Tolson chose to challenge the debate team of the University of Michigan (an all-white college). To everyone's surprise, the debate team from UM accepted the challenge. At the debate itself, neither team was declared a winner. Never the less, it was recorded as the first ever interracial debate between colleges. Professor Tolson and Henrietta Wells later considered it a step forward for civil rights. The team from Wiley College later won the most well known victory when it defeated the National Debate Champion, University of Southern California. Wells herself was instrumental in this victory.

Henrietta Wells had to eventually leave the team after just over a year due to financial problems. She went on to marry and become a teacher and social worker. She later served as the Dean of Women at Dillard University. She eventually retired after teaching for many decades. Henrietta Wells died on February 27, 2008 at the age of 95.

Today Henrietta Wells is considered to be a pioneering debater. She was a woman who grew up in a harsh world at a very harsh time. Yet she made the best of it and used her wits to live her life in the best way she could. Her actions took part in helping to end segregation and step forward for equality. I believe that she is definitely someone to be held in high regard.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/12/us/12wells.html

http://archive.boston.com/bostonglobe/obituaries/articles/2008/03/17/henrietta_bell_wells_96_was_on_great_debate_team/

Hero of the Week 28

Welcome back viewers!

This week's hero is...

Jose Calugas!

Jose Calugas was born on December 29, 1907 in the Philippine Islands. He grew up as a farmer in the Filipino province of Iloilo. On March 15, 1930, Jose enlisted in the Philippine Scouts. The Scouts were a branch of the United States Army that was stationed in the Philippines (the nation had been occupied by American forces since 1904). The Scouts mostly consisted of young Filipino men serving under the command of American officers. For the next ten years Jose served and trained with the Scouts. He eventually rose to the rank of Sergeant and was assigned to the 88th Field Artillery Regiment. In the year 1941, Sgt. Calugas's training and courage would be put to the ultimate test.

On December 7th, 1941, the American Naval Base at Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Japanese Navy. Much of the American Navy was either sunk or severely damaged in the attack. Just days after, the Japanese Army launched a full scale invasion of the Philippines. The American and Filipino forces under General Douglas MacArthur were quickly overwhelmed. By January of 1942, they had pulled back to the Bataan peninsula. There they began a fighting retreat.

On January 16, 1942, Sgt. Calugas was stationed with a small unit near the village of Culis. His job at the time was to prepare the day's meals for the men along the front line. It was called KP (kitchen patrol). However, just after noon, the American and Filipino soldiers came under heavy fire from the Japanese. Calugas quickly organized his unit and began to return fire with their few artillery guns at the Japanese. For the next hour men of the 88th held their ground against the attackers. However just after 2 PM, one of the guns went silent. Fearing the worst, Calugas himself went over to the gun and found that its crew had all been killed by a bomb hit (the gun itself was knocked over but could still fire). 

Sgt. Calugas quickly organized a small group of men to pull the gun up. With his small group of men, Calugas began to personally load, aim, and fire the artillery piece. For the next few hours, Calugas fired the artillery gun at the Japanese and inflicted numerous casualties at them. At one point during the battle, he spotted a small group of Japanese soldiers attempting to cross a footbridge over a creek. He quickly aimed his gun at the bridge and fired. His shot completely obliterated the bridge along with dozens of enemy soldiers. The effect caused the Japanese to momentarily halt their attack on the main line of defense. They then redirected their attack on Sgt. Calugas's position. Calugas quickly ordered his remaining men to pull back while he continued to fire at the Japanese, inflicting even more casualties. It was only when he ran out of ammunition that Sgt. Calugas finally vacated his position and fell back. By sheer luck, he came upon an empty truck which he used to load his gun (and his field kitchen). He eventually reached his unit later that evening. 

Despite the heroism of Jose Calugas, the Japanese Army eventually broke through the American and Filipino lines. For the next two months fierce fighting continued on the Bataan peninsula until it became clear the Americans and Filipinos could no longer hold out. General Douglas MacArthur was ordered to escape from the Philippines to Australia by President Roosevelt. MacArthur reluctantly did so, but upon his arrival he vowed to return to the Philippines. The replacement general of the American and Filipino forces (Gen. Edward King) surrendered to the Japanese on April 9, 1942. As a result more than 60,000 American and Filipino soldiers became prisoners of war. 

It was then that they began to endure brutal captivity by the victorious Japanese. Calugas along with his fellow prisoners were taken on a long and very brutal march that is now called, the Bataan Death March. As many 18,000 prisoners (mostly Filipinos) were murdered on the road. Calugas and the rest of the POWs eventually arrived at Camp O'Donnell where he would remain for the next year and a half. Calugas was repeatedly beaten while he was being held the prison camp. He also contracted both malaria and dysentery. Despite this, Jose Calugas never gave up. In October 1943, he escaped from the camp and joined a Filipino guerrilla unit. He continued to fight with them until the Liberation of the Philippines by General MacArthur (who fulfilled his promise to return).

About a month after he had left the Philippines, MacArthur had heard of Calugas's heroism during the battle of Bataan and recommended him for the Medal of Honor on February 24, 1942. Sergeant Jose Calugas officially received the medal from General Richard Marshall on April 30, 1945. Calugas would serve in the American Army for another twelve years and became an American citizen. Jose retired from the military in 1957 and moved with his family to Tacoma, Washington where he became a businessman. He lived in the United States for the rest of his life until his death on January 19, 1998. He was 90 years old.

Ever since the United States came to be thousands of brave men and women have served in the military. And many of them were not born in the United States nor were they citizens. And yet they risked their lives to fight for the country they chose to be part of. These are people who represent the best of humanity. Jose Calugas was one of those people. He was undoubtedly one of the bravest men to ever serve in the American military during WWII. He was not a citizen and yet he fought with great courage and intrepidity above and beyond the all of duty. I believe that he should be regarded as a great hero.

http://www.historylink.org/File/10939

http://www.hawaiireporter.com/the-first-filipino-medal-of-honor-cpt-jose-cabalfin-calugas-u-s-army-1907-1998/

https://www.army.mil/article/39797/the_us_armys_philippine_scouts

http://www.us-japandialogueonpows.org/Calugas.htm

Hero of the Week 27

Welcome back viewers!

This week's hero is...

Officer Moira Smith!

Moira Smith was born on February 14, 1963. She became a police officer in the NYPD in the year of 1988 and served for the next 13 years. Her main focus was teaching the people of New York about fire safety emergencies. She was regarded by many as being very dedicated to protecting those around her. However, nothing could have prepared her for September 11, 2001. On that day, Officer Smith's training and dedication would be put to the ultimate test.

September 11, 2001 was a day that began like any other for the United States. The average citizen was up early in the morning and headed to work. In New York City, more than 20,000 people headed to the World Trade Center complex for work and tourism. Few of them could have predicted what would happen after 8 AM. At 8:46 AM, a hijacked plane (American Flight 11) crashed into the upper floors of North Tower. Hundreds of people were killed or severely wounded by the impact and more than a thousand became trapped throughout the tower.

Within minutes of the crash, thousands of rescue personnel (Officer Smith included) rushed to the scene. They immediately began to evacuate the two buildings. Just as minutes after Officer Smith arrived on the scene the situation became even more dire. United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the South Tower. Officer Smith quickly ran into the lobby of the South Tower to evacuate the people inside and direct them to safety.

One of the biggest dangers for the evacuees was falling debris (and bodies). Officer Smith quickly organized a route to an exit that was mostly clear of debris and fire. She kept people moving in a slow but orderly fashion and told them to keep doing so without looking at the scene around them (she wanted to prevent them from seeing the carnage). Smith did this to prevent mass hysteria that could cause a human crush or a bottleneck at the exits of the South Tower. She personally escorted a number of severely injured or disoriented people to ambulances. 

During the evacuation, a photograph was snapped of her escorting a severely wounded man (Ed Nicholls) out of the building. Ed Nicholls was one of only 14 people to escape from the impact zone of the South Tower. Despite his severe wounds, he would survive. This photograph would become an iconic image of 9/11. 

It would also be the last of Officer Moira Smith. Immediately after escorting Nicholls to an ambulance, Smith reentered the South Tower. She was last seen heading up the stair case to help a woman who was suffering an asthma attack. Minutes later at 9:59 AM, the South Tower collapsed. The North Tower would collapse 29 minutes later at 10:28. A total of 2,763 people were killed at the World Trade Center. Officer Moira Smith was one of 71 police officers (and one of two female officers) who died in the collapse of the towers. She was 38 years old.

The morning of September 11, 2001 was probably the saddest in American history. However it is important to acknowledge and remember the heroism of those who came to rescue. Numerous men and women like put their lives on the line to help their fellow citizens. As a result of their heroism, more than 20,000 people were saved from the World Trade Center before the towers collapsed. Officer Moira Smith was one of those people. She truly was a remarkable woman who was dedicated to helping as many people as she could. I believe that she should be regarded as one of the greatest heroes in American history.

https://www.investors.com/news/management/leaders-and-success/nypd-moira-smith-rescued-hundreds-911/

http://www.moirasmith.com

http://womenyoushouldknow.net/remember-911-story-nypd-officer-moira-smith/

http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.1034730.1331146509!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_750/hamill8n-1-web.jpg

Hero of the Week 26

Welcome back viewers!

This week we will honor two heroes who share a connection.

Let me introduce:

Armin T. Wegner and Iris Chang!

 

These two people were born on different continents and at different times. Although they grew up in the same century, they never met once in either of their lifetimes. And yet, they both share a major connection. They bore witness to some of the most terrible atrocities that were committed in the 20th Century. They both dedicated their lives to shedding light on these atrocities. And both of them paid a heavy price for doing so. 

Part 1

Armin Theophil Wegner was born on October 16, 1886 in Wupertal, Germany. At the outbreak of World War I, he enlisted in the German Army as a medic. He fought in Poland during the winter of 1914-1915 and received the Iron Cross for valor on the battlefield. In April of 1915, Wegner became part of the German Sanitary Corps and was transferred to the Middle East to give aide to Germany's ally, Ottoman Turkey. For a while, he provided medical aid to wounded Turkish soldiers. However, everything changed when he went on leave. 

Armin Wegner had heard rumors of massacres committed by the Turks against the people of Armenia. He decided to personally investigate these rumors to see if they were true. To his horror, he found that they were.

The German command had given orders for German soldiers to not interfere with the Turks. This included what they were doing to the Armenians. Despite these orders, Wegner decided to secretly document the Armenian genocide. For nearly a year, he secretly collected notes, documents, letters, and annotations. He also took hundreds of photographs of massacres, mass deportations, and even concentration camps.

Eventually the Turks became aware of Wegner's documentation of their crimes and complained to the German high command. Armin Wegner was then recalled to Germany and much of his of photographs were destroyed. However, he still managed to hide and smuggle many of them back. Wegner remained in Germany until the end of World War I. In 1919, he sent a letter addressed to President Woodrow Wilson. In this letter, he asked the president to give support to the Armenian people who had survived the genocide. Despite Wegner's efforts, neither President Wilson nor any other political figures addressed or even acknowledged the Armenian genocide. 

Part II

Iris Chang was born on March 28, 1968 in Princeton, New Jersey. While growing up, she became interested in Chinese history. After she graduated from college with a bachelor's degree in journalism, Chang began to make monthly visits to China. One field she primarily focused on was the Chinese experience in World War II. It was here that she learned of a terrible act of genocide that took place just a few years before the start of the Second World War. This was the massacre of thousands of people within the city of Nanking at the hands of Japanese soldiers. This act was known as, "The Rape of Nanking".

Chang had heard stories from her grandparents of Japanese atrocities against the people of China before and during World War II. When she visited China, Chang decided to investigate the massacre. She was able to locate numerous survivors (and even some Japanese soldiers) and interview them. She also found thousands of pictures and rare documents that gave astonishing details about the Nanking Massacre. It was then that Iris Chang also discovered that most people around the world (mainly the United States and Europe) knew almost nothing about it. She realized that the massacre would most likely be completely forgotten unless someone forced the world to remember. In 1994, she decided to write a book about the atrocities that were committed at Nanking.

In 1997, Iris Chang published the book, The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II. Her book detailed the horrific massacre that was committed by Japanese soldiers. These atrocities ranged from mass executions, killing contests, gang rape, and mutilation. The details of the six week massacre that began on December 13, 1937 were told from the point of view of both Chinese survivors, Japanese soldiers, and numerous foreigners (mainly people from Europe and the US) who bore whiteness. In her book, Chang estimated that as many as 300,000 people were murdered in Nanking. 

Her book also told the story of the brave foreign journalists, missionaries, doctors, and diplomats who established an International Safety Zone within the city. This zone (which Japanese soldiers were ordered not to enter) was used to shelter thousands of Chinese civilians and fleeing soldiers from the Japanese. These foreigners not only saved thousands of people, it was they who secretly filmed and documented the massacres that were being committed by the Japanese (this was where Iris got much of her references). 

Chang's book became a New York Times best seller and sold more than half a million copies within the United States. It also received critical claim by historians for its accuracy and its graphic depictions of the Nanking Massacre. Iris immediately became a national celebrity and was repeatedly asked to give lectures by numerous news agencies. In a single year, she visited at least 65 cities to give interviews about her book. The Rape of Nanking, is still regarded by many historians as one of the best books ever written. However there was at least one nation was not pleased with Iris Chang's book. Within the country of Japan, the book caused an uproar among Japanese critics and historians who called it completely fictitious and full of fabrications. Although the book was eventually published in Japan (in 2007) most Japanese citizens remain ignorant of the Nanking Massacre and deny that it ever happened.

Epilogue

In the aftermath of World War I, Armin Wegner continued to advocate for the people of Armenia. He wrote numerous papers about what he had whitenessed and documented. Unfortunately most of his pleas fell on deaf ears. When Adolf Hitler and the Nazis rose to power in 1933, Wegner's horrific experiences were reawakened. He began to see the persecution of Jews within Germany. Hoping to prevent history from repeating itself, Wegner sent a letter to Hitler openly denouncing the latter's persecution of the Jews. Within days, Armin Wegner was arrested by the Gestapo and imprisoned in a concentration camp near Lichtenberg. He was released after a year in captivity and fled to Italy where he lived under an assumed name for the whole of World War II. Although Wegner was honored by Israel (he received Righteous among the Nations) and the survivors of the Armenian genocide, he was virtually forgotten by the rest of the world. He died in Rome on May 17, 1978. He was 91 years old.

Despite Iris's fame and recognition, it came at a bitter cost for her. Most of her friends and family did not know it, but Iris Chang suffered from severe depression. As a result, she became victimized by her own research (which greatly disturbed and traumatized her). Hearing the graphics stories of torture killings and repeated raping of women took a terrible toll on her. Although she did her best to hide it, her depression only continued to get worse as she got older. Ultimately it became unbearable. On November 9, 2004, Iris Chang committed suicide. She was only 36 years old. She is regarded by many as the, "final victim" of the Nanking Massacre.

Throughout history, many acts of genocide have been committed. The identities of the perpetrators and the victims might be different but the end result is always the same (thousands or millions of people being killed). Sadly, genocide has continued to be committed across the globe and it likely to repeat itself in the future. However, there are those who have shown that genocide can be stopped from ever happening again. These people are the ones who witness it and speak out. Armin Wegner and Iris Chang were among those people. They both bore witness to acts of genocide and decided to make sure that these tragedies would never be forgotten. Ranging from documentation and publishing books, they epitomize the true value of what it means to be a historian, a journalist, and someone who cares about making a better future. 

Although Armin T. Wegner and Iris Chang are now gone, their work remains. Because of them, the voices of the victims of Armenia and Nanking will always be remembered. I believe that if people today could learn about who they were, what they did, and why they did it, the world could become a much better place and prevention of the next genocide will be possible. All it takes is one person, to give a voice to the many who cannot speak. Can you do it?

http://www.yadvashem.org/righteous/stories/wegner.html

http://www.armenian-genocide.org/wegnerbio.html

http://www.armin-t-wegner.us/biography/

http://100years100facts.com/facts/armin-wegner-took-pictures-saw-1915/

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/armin-wegner-the-german-who-stood-up-to-genocide-of-both-armenians-and-jews-1.2201998

http://www.irischang.net/about/

http://www.scmp.com/culture/books/article/2096452/how-rape-nanking-author-iris-chang-honoured-chinese-museum-newly

Chang, Iris (1998). The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II

http://www.sfgate.com/health/article/Historian-Iris-Chang-won-many-battles-The-war-2679354.php

Hero of the Week 25

Welcome back viewers!

This week's hero is...

Freddie Stowers!

Freddie Stowers was born on January 26, 1896 in Sandy Springs, South Carolina. He enlisted in the military on October 4, 1917 when the United States entered World War I. Much of his early life is not known. But in the Great World War I, Freddie Stowers would display some of the most courageous and valiant conduct in the history of the US military.

On September 28, 1918, Corporal Stowers was serving as the leader of a squad from Company C of the 371st Infantry regiment (a segregated unit). They were among a large force that was assaulting Cote (hill) 188 in the Champagne Marne Sector of France. As they began their attack, Stowers and his men came under heavy fire from the German defenders. For a while the attackers and defenders traded fire until some of the Germans put up their hands as if to surrender. This caused the men of Company C (Stowers included) to believe that the fight was over. As a result they left their trench and ventured out into no man's land to capture the surrendering Germans. Almost immediately the Germans picked up their guns and fired into the advancing Americans.

The men of Company C were quickly decimated by this volume of fire and found themselves caught in the open with no cover. Amid the carnage, Cpl. Freddie Stowers quickly rallied a handful of men and launched a counter-attack on the Germans. He personally led the charge to the German trenches. It was then that he was struck by machine gun fire. Even then, Stowers continued to charge and lead his men until he was hit a second time. Although he was unable to move he continued to shout encouragement to his comrades who continued to press their attack on Cote 188. The men of Company C eventually advanced up the hill and pierced the German trenches. After a long and brutal fight, the Germans retreated and Cote 188 was captured.

The battle of Cote 188 was a victory for the Americans. But they had won it at a terrible cost. More than half of Company C had been annihilated in the assault. Cpl. Freddie Stowers was among the dead. He succumbed to his wounds during the final assault on Cote 188. He was buried in France with 133 of his comrades. He was recommended for the Medal of Honor along with three other African-Americans for valor in World War I. Instead however, he (along with the others) posthumously received the Distinguished Service Cross (the second-highest award in the US military). The decision for this was done due to new criteria for receiving the Medal of Honor (it is very likely that racism was also a major factor).

For more than 70 years, the heroism of Freddie Stowers was largely forgotten. Until 1990, when the Department of the Army conducted a review of the service of black soldiers in World Wars I and II. It was then that the department decided to upgrade Stowers's Distinguished Service Cross to the Medal of Honor. On April 21, 1991, President George Bush Sr posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor to Freddie Stowers. His two sisters received it on his behalf. Today he is remembered as one of America's greatest sodiers.

http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/fstowers.htm

https://www.army.mil/article/9075/medal_of_honor_recognition_long_overdue

https://www.abmc.gov/learning-resources/lesson-plans/freddie-stowers-american-hero

https://www.abmc.gov/sites/default/files/curriculum/chapters/materials/Section%205—SC%20House%20Bil%205393.pdf

Hero of the Week 24

Welcome back viewers!

This week's hero is...

Henryk Ross

Henryk Ross was born on May 1, 1910 in Warsaw, Poland. For the early part of his life, Ross worked as a sports photographer for the Warsaw newspaper. Like most people around the world, he lived a normal life and made a decent living for his family. But all of that changed when the Nazis invaded Poland and World War II began.

The Nazis invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. In just over a month, the Polish government surrendered. By the end of the year, they already began passing anti-Jewish ordinances that were meant to strip away the rights of Poland's Jewish citizens (Ross and his family among them). Jews in Poland lost their homes, most of their possessions, and were forced to wear a yellow star in public. Eventually, they were forcefully relocated to "temporary" resettlement camps called, "ghettos". 

Ross and his family were among 160,000 Jews who were forced to relocate to a large ghetto (second largest after the one in Warsaw) in the city of Lodz in May of 1940. The conditions inside the Lodz ghetto were deplorable. It was only about four square miles on the inside. It was closed off from the rest of the city and surrounded by barbed wire, walls, and heavily armed guards. The Jews inside the over-crowded ghetto began to starve on a daily basis. 

Like most of prisoners in the ghetto, Ross tried to make the best of his situation. He managed to get a job as one of the official photographers in the ghetto. His job was to produce identity and take propaganda photographs for the Nazi Department of Statistics within the ghetto. This was done for the purpose of convincing the outside world (namely the Red Cross) that people inside the ghetto were being well-treated. In other words, they wanted Ross to help them hide the deplorable true conditions of the ghetto in Lodz. This also meant that Ross had access to film and processing facilities within the ghetto. He took photographs of weddings, happy workers, families, and children playing in the street. All the while being watched by the Nazi guards.

However, what the Nazis did not know was that Henryk Ross was secretly resisting them. Whenever he had the chance, Ross snapped photographs of the atrocities of the Lodz ghetto. He took photographs of starving workers, dying children in the street, public hangings, shootings, and beatings from the guards. Ross was even able to take photos of Jews being forced into cattle cars and taken to death camps. Sometimes he even shot pictures through holes in the walls or cracks in a door. He did this with great risk to himself and his family. If the Nazis found out that Ross was secretly working to expose their atrocities, he and his family would have been executed. 

In the summer of 1944, the Nazis losing the war. It was then that they began to officially liquidate the Lodz ghetto. By this time, Henryk Ross had secretly taken more than 6,000 pictures of life in the ghetto. By now most of the Jews in the Lodz ghetto were either dead or deported to concentration camps. Ross knew that he and his family would eventually be deported or murdered, so he decided it was time to escape. Before leaving however, he decided to bury his pictures just in case he did not survive the war. He later said in an interview, "I buried my negatives in the ground in order to ensure that there should be some record of our tragedy. Namely, the total elimination of the Jews from Lodz by the Nazi executioners. I was anticipating the total destruction of Polish Jewry. I wanted to leave a historical record of our martyrdom." After doing so, Ross and his family escaped from the ghetto and went into hiding. They managed to survive until Lodz was liberated by the Soviet Red Army.

It is estimated that a total of 45,000 Jewish people were murdered in the Lodz ghetto. Tens of thousands more were deported to death camps in Poland like Chelmno, Belzec, and Treblinka. Only around 877 (Henryk Ross included) survived their ordeal inside the ghetto of Lodz. Like many Holocaust survivors, Ross and his family immigrated to Israel and started a new life. A few years later though, he returned to Lodz and dug up the negatives that he had buried. Although many had been damaged over the years, others were still readable. Henryk Ross took them back to Israel and set them aside in his house for a bit. When Adolf Eichmann (one of the main architects of the Holocaust) was put on trial 1961, Ross was one of those to testify against him. It was there that he showed his remarkable photographs to the rest of the world. They were instrumental in getting Eichmann convicted. 

Henryk Ross continued to live in Israel until his death in 1991, at the age of 81. As of today, Ross's photographs can be found in museums all around the world including: Israel's Yad Vashem and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. They have been recognized as some of the most powerful and horrifying images of the Holocaust. 

A genocide is basically the ultimate crime and ultimate tragedy of humanity. It is something that can never be ignored and never be forgotten. The courageous actions of Henryk Ross ensured that the Holocaust will always be remembered. He recognized the horrible reality that he had been thrown into and knew that the outside world needed to know the truth. So he chose to risk his life in order to take pictures and make sure the story of the Lodz ghetto would never be forgotten. His bravery in secretly resisting the Nazis right under their noses gave the victims of the Lodz ghetto a voice. I believe that Henryk Ross was one of the greatest men in history.

https://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2017/03/20/a-jewish-photographers-view-of-a-nazi-controlled-ghetto-henryk-ross/

http://agolodzghetto.com

http://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/education/newsletter/32/henryk_ross.asp

https://www.utata.org/sundaysalon/henryk-ross/