I stumbled upon the film Pokłosie (Aftermath) after reading
an article about the new Polish Government pushing for a law change, making it
punishable by 5 years of jail when suggesting that Poles actively took part in
exterminating Jews during WWII. No, it's not a joke, although the good Yiddish
word gotspe is well in place here.
That article, by the way, led to another article informing
us that the Polish Government plans to take Jan T. Gross's knighthood away from
him for expressing his views on Poles' roles during the Shoah. Gross, of
course, being one of the leading and most respected Polish historians on the
Holocaust.
What is it with Poland; this incapability to acknowledge it’s
past and move forward instead? Considering the Polish (Government and popular)
stance of immigration and refugees, it seems not much has changed over the
decades…
Alas, a few berets in Pokłosie. Not role-models exactly, but
a great movie in all the awfulness it portrays.
The Nazis could never have been so successful in the Shoah had it not been for the assistance of the population of the occupied countries. The Nazi's found an alliance based on the deep antisemitism of the Poles (and other nationalities). Today, added to the insult of the Holocaust deniers is the nationalistic refusal to admit any complicity by countrymen and women with the Nazis. Poland is a prime example. I guess they don't want to be associated with the losing side. Now, look at American with the rise of white, Christian supremacist groups. Gotspe? Not a harsh enough word for this arrogance.
ReplyDelete