A Reason To Remember:

ROTH, GERMANY 1933-1942

The 28-panel exhibit and eight-minute video tells the story of five Jewish families in this small village.  The themes by which the exhibit is organized are:

                        Life Before the Nazi Regime

                        The Rise of Racism

                        Loss of Human Rights

                        Machinery of Destruction

                        Attempts to Flee

                        The Fate of Roth

                        The Final Solution

                        Why Remember the Holocaust

                        Memory and Action in Roth Today

Prior to 1933, the Jews of Roth (pronounced “Rōt) lived, worked and played happily with their neighbors for over 300 years. In each of the families, the men had served in the German army during World War I.

This powerful exhibit tells the true story of the Jewish families of Roth – neighbors, friends, and business owners – whose ordinary lives were gradually dismantled under Nazi rule.  What happened to the Jews of Roth occurred in much the same way throughout Nazi-occupied Europe. The exhibit places their story within the overall context of the events of the Holocaust.

As visitors move through the exhibit, they are continually confronted by the choices made by the victims as well as those made by the perpetrators, collaborators, resisters, and bystanders. In addition, there is information about what happened to non-Jewish victims including political prisoners in general, Roma and Sinti (gypsies) and homosexuals.

We remember Roth and we remember the Holocaust to honor the victims, to learn from history, and to combat prejudice and hatred in today’s world.

To quote Sir Edmund Burke: “All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing.”

To schedule a free docent led youth group tour, click here.