Descendants of Survivors of Nazi Persecution
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Preface
Adina Dymczyk, Thorsten Fehlberg
Introduction and Initiation into the Subject Area
Continuities and Discrimination
Jelena Wachowski
The Second Generation in the Restitution Process for Cultural Assets confiscated due to Nazi Persecution, in accordance with the Washington Principles on Nazi-confiscated Art
Julia Bernstein, Florian Diddens
Echoes of the Nazi Era: Jews in Germany amid routine Trivialisation of the Holocaust and antisemitic Attacks
Silvio Peritore
The Nazi Genocide of the Sinti and Roma and its Consequences for the Second Generation
Alexander Bakalejnik
Second Generation – Socialisation in real Socialism
Transgenerational Transmission
Miriam Victory Spiegel
The Emotional Conflicts of the Second Generation
Susanne Guski-Leinwand
Activating Resources for the Second Generation – understanding and counteracting Transgenerational Transmission of Trauma
Natan P.F. Kellermann
Epigenetic Transgenerational Transmission of Trauma (TTT)
Marina Chernivsky
(Hi)stories in a Room
Traditions, Narratives, and Biographies
Dani Kranz
“It took me a few years until I understood that I am, as a matter of fact, Jewish”: The third generation writ small going large as a generaction
Friedhelm Boll
The Second Generation learn about themselves
Anita Haviv-Horiner
“Home is where?” – Children of Holocaust Survivors between Germany and Israel
Anita Haviv-Horiner
The Tribe of the Second Generation
Petra Hörig
The Effects of Nazi Persecution and Imprisonment on Family Members after 1945
Micha Brumlik
Postmemory and Transgenerational Trauma
Practice and Processing
Stella Shcherbatova
Survivors of the Nazi Regime and their Descendants between the Soviet Union and Germany
Christa Bröcher, Klara Tuchscherer
Insight into the Work of the Group Children of the Resistance – Antifascism as a Duty
Treatment and the Future
Oliver von Wrochem
Memorial Sites working with Descendants of the Victims of National Socialism
Maggie Gad
“We are also Victims – because of the Memories” The Second Generation of the Holocaust – Theory and Practice
Anne Klein
Descendants of the Victims of Nazi Persecution: political Intervention, biographical Practice, and the Transformation of Remembrance Culture
Jost Rebentisch
Epilogue
Biographies of the Authors and Editors
The work of the Bundesverband Information & Beratung für NS-Verfolgte e.V. [Federal Association for Information & Advice for Survivors of Nazi Persecution] was originally oriented towards advising survivors themselves. In recent years, however, the needs of the descendants of victims of Nazi persecution have come to our attention. This is why we now focus upon survivors and descendants, and upon combining our efforts for both groups.
In June 2015, we held a conference in Berlin named Konferenz “Zweite Generation” [Conference “Second Generation”]. It was centred upon the results of meetings on the same topic in 2009 and 2011, from which the mission emerged to make the issue of both the Second Generation and the subsequent generations known to a wider public. The conference in 2015 was attended by descendants of victims of National Socialist persecution and also by individuals with professional or private interests in the subject. It was of the utmost importance for us to involve descendants of members of various persecuted groups at the conference, in order to increase the understanding of the “other” respective groups. The event, organised in cooperation with Action Reconciliation Service for Peace, and a related publication, was realised with financial support from the foundation Erinnerung, Verantwortung und Zukunft (German acronym EVZ) [Remembrance, Responsibilty and Future], the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women, and Youth, the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, and the Hans Böckler Foundation.
In 2017 and 2018, we promoted scholarly exchange with the project Working Groups on Descendants of Survivors, focusing particularly on psychosocial issues and on historico-political education in the context of work with and by descendants of Nazi victims. Experts from nine countries met three times in Cologne. At the final meeting, on the 11th October 2018, the results of the working groups were publicly presented and discussed. These international working groups could not have been conducted without financial support from the EVZ foundation and the Federal Foreign Office.1
In our use of the term Second Generation, we refer not only to direct descendants, but also to subsequent generations. In analysing the issues surrounding descendants of victims of National Socialism, terms such as Second Generation or subsequent generations cannot be defined with precision. We speak rather of descendants of victims of National Socialist persecution or, more succinctly, of subsequent generations, and we refer by this to the descendants of all persecuted groups. It is important to emphasise that the Federal Association is concerned with the interests of all descendants of victims of Nazi persecution, even if not all of their voices could be heard within this volume. The Federal Association deals with descendants from a wide variety of persecuted groups, and thus regularly comes into contact with a variety of (sometimes conflicting) interests. We plead for dialogue regarding these possible conflicts of interest.
The texts presented here are, in part, expansions and translations from the proceedings of the aforementioned Conference “Second Generation”. In addition, this volume contains guest contributions from researchers within the field. We would like to thank all of the authors who contributed to this book. The authors are responsible for their own material’s contents, and need not agree with our opinion. With each contribution, another part of this diverse subject is mapped. The editors have opted for an interdisciplinary anthology in order to provide readers with a glimpse into the different fields of research and practice. Activists, researchers, and other practitioners offer insights into their own fields.
We would like to express our thanks to the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women, and Youth for supporting this publication.
Jost Rebentisch, Adina Dymczyk, and Thorsten Fehlberg
1We would also like to thank our cooperation partners for their support in the project Arbeitsgruppen Folgegenerationen: Association of Jewish Refugees, Aktion Sühnezeichen Friedensdienste e. V., AMCHA Deutschland, Arbeitskreis für Intergenerationelle Folgen des Holocaust – ehem. PAKH e.V. ,, Psychosoziales Zentrum ESRA, Fundacji Polsko-Niemieckie Pojednanie, Gegen Vergessen – Für Demokratie e. V., JDC- Israel Eshel, Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial, Neuengamme Concentration Camp Memorial, the University of Cologne, Synagogue Community of Cologne, and Živá paměť.
The consequences of National Socialist persecution are still felt to this day. This should not be forgotten, especially in an age of increasing right-wing populism. The after-effects are clearly visible in the biographies of descendants of the persecuted. Many descendants are politically active or have organised themselves into self-help groups. That persecution in the family has an effect on the lives of descendants has been demonstrated for many years in research on aspects of tradition. The following chapters present various important features of the subject area.
National Socialism, along with other regimes with practices based on ideologies of inequality, defined many people as ‘inferior’ and persecuted them (e.g. forced labourers, the disabled, Jehovah’s Witnesses, homosexuals, (political) opponents of the regime, Roma and Sinti, Jews, maladjusted youths, so-called anti-social people, people of colour, and other groups). The descendants of these persecuted groups are depicted with various descriptions and self-attributions. In this context, the term Second Generation has become more important. Angela Moré (2013) writes:
“Auf den ersten Blick erscheinen Generationenzuordnungen für Ereignisse wie die beiden Weltkriege relativ plausibel. So wird grob zwischen Kriegs- und Nachkriegsgenerationen unterschieden. Jedoch ergeben sich für die Täter/innen im Nationalsozialismus und ihre Nachkommen andere Kriterien der Generationeneinteilung als bei den Holocaust-Überlebenden und ihren Nachkommen. Für letztere gilt, dass alle Überlebenden der Shoah unabhängig vom Alter zum Zeitpunkt ihrer Befreiung als erste Generation gelten. Alle danach in neu gegründeten Familien geborenen Kinder der Überlebenden bilden die zweite Generation.” (p. 6)1
In the notes to his contribution, Kurt Grünberg (1998, p.174) states that, “The first generation are the few that survived the systematic annihilation of Jews in Europe.” In his text, he refers to Jewish survivors and their descendants, but this is certainly not to the exclusion of other descendant groups. Peritore (2009, p. 26 et seq.) also uses the term explicitly for the descendants of persecuted Roma and Sinti.
Hanno Loewy makes use of the terms ‘first generation’, ‘second generation’, and ‘third generation’ when referring to the persecuted: “There was a First Generation after the Holocaust – in any case, a group of people who had a self-image of being something like a First Generation, those were the survivors who felt that they were alone in the world, that with them the world began anew.” (1998, pp. 117f.) People who speak of a ‘second generation’ or ‘third generation’ express thereby an identification with or at least a “reference to this first generation”. (1998, p. 118). Dani Kranz mainly writes about descendants of the Third Generation in Germany (in this volume). She deals with origins, migration backgrounds, and identity issues. Marina Chernivsky writes that long-lasting emotional inheritances are still “an identity-creating power”. Anita Haviv-Horiner (in this volume) speaks of the “tribe of the Second Generation”, describing, on the basis of her own experiences, generational change within the family in relation to labels of identity in Israel (e.g. Haviv-Horiner 2019). For the purposes of socio-educational interventions, Noemi Staszewski distinguishes, for example, between ‘First Generation’, ‘Second Generation’, and ‘Child Survivor’, with the latter playing a double role if they grew up with their parents after the end of the war (Staszewski 2011, p. 81).
It follows that it is important to be aware of the ambiguity of concepts in respect to the descendants of those persecuted by the Nazis. Moreover, a clear demarcation should here be made: This volume does not deal with the issue of the children of perpetrators, the so-called ‘post-war children’ or ‘war children’, but rather with the descendants of the victims of Nazi persecution.
As a result of the multitude of reasons for persecution during National Socialism, as well as the widely differing social recognition and compensation afforded to persecuted groups after 1945, associations for the persecuted were established. Not all survivors were considered when compensation payments were made. Indeed, some groups must still fight for recognition, both politically and socially. Those survivors whose persecution received little or no societal attention or recognition in the past have found it more difficult to discuss their experiences than those who had been recognised earlier. Examples include the late acknowledgement of forced labourers, homosexuals, and victims of the military justice system.
There are also continuing repercussions from a material point of view due to the massive scale in which property was confiscated by the National Socialists, and the late and incomplete restitution of said assets. Jelena Wachowski identifies difficulties in questions of restitution, discussing critically the effects of the Washington Declaration (in this volume).
The descendants of survivors have been influenced by this story. For example, descendants of Nazi victims approach the Federal Association looking to network with other descendants in Germany, or seeking psychotherapeutic help. Many are politically engaged, justifying their engagement through their ancestors’ history of persecution. Some descendants’ groups have formed; the make-up of these groups is often related to the persecution background of their ancestors.
In conversation with descendants of different persecuted groups, similarities emerge, these characterised by the individual’s experiences, or by familial and social narratives. One similarity is that many parents did not talk about their experiences after their persecution and liberation from fascism. This was done in order to protect their children. In turn, this led to children misinterpreting the silence, relating it back to their own behaviour and subsequently experiencing guilt. For example, Gene Simmons (the founder of the band KISS) once stated an interview: “I’ve tried to talk about it but she just won’t do it. She saw her mother walk into the gas chambers. Her whole family was destroyed” (Graham 2016). The parents’ silence can also be a burden; some report that their parents’ nightmares or the reality of missing grandparents being discussed would weigh upon them as children.
There were also those who heard a great deal about their parents’ persecution experiences. Descendants of Nazi victims have grown up in a specific environment that has had a stressful effect on them, as Sutherland noted in his report on the work of the Association of Jewish Refugees (2018, p. 211). Descendants tell of encounters between traumatised survivors in private homes wherein their time in concentration camps was discussed (Levy 2009, p. 8; Haviv-Horiner 2013, p. 15 et seq.; Lagrene 2018, p. 17f.). Children heard the stories about their parents’ persecution at a very early age, even if survivors did not directly recount the stories to their children. Samson Munn (1998, p. 62 et seq.) describes as to how the Holocaust was addressed in his family, and that he was able to ask lots of questions. Fogelman also describes a wide variety of narratives in families with experiences of persecution; some of these were stories of survival (Fogelman 2002, p. 13) and of the struggle against fascism. Some survivors told their children too much about the persecution, and the children felt burdened by what they had heard because they were unable to process it.
It is not just family history influencing the manner in which descendants process their own life stories, but also socialisation and socio-political contexts. In this volume, Stella Shcherbatova and Alexander Bakalejnik address the level of socialisation in the former Soviet Union, also making reference to their own lives. Stella Shcherbatova identifies various defence mechanisms employed by descendants, and presents the situation of Eastern European Jews within its historical context (in this volume). Alexander Bakalejnik highlights Antisemitism and the difficult socio-political aftermath of the Holocaust in the Soviet Union, also discussing case studies from his work as a doctor (in this volume).
Many descendants of victims of racist persecution are still confronted with group focused enmity or with sweeping constructions of rejection because they do not fit into majority-conceived societies. This has been proven by numerous studies on present-day forms of group-related misanthropy (e.g. Decker & Brähler 2018; Zick, Küpper & Hövermann 2011; Zick et al. 2008).
People’s perception of contemporary discrimination changes when they learn about historical persecution, as Krokowski (2001, p. 204) explains in interviews with German Sinti. Studies conducted in Great Britain and Germany, for example, show that although the term race is avoided by right-wing extremists, these individuals clearly connect with racist ideologies (Geulen 2007, pp. 111f.). Although the continuity of discrimination is partly linguistically veiled, the constructions of rejection and disparagement remain the same. Many descendants of victims of Nazi persecution are very much aware of these continuities of discrimination and hostility.
In their contribution (in this volume), Florian Diddens and Julia Bernstein describe recent examples of Antisemitism in Germany; Jewish people encounter both open and disguised references to National Socialism within these hostilities. Dieter Graumann (2012) argues in his book that the past should not be the sole identifier for descendants, but describes very distinctly his own impression of the persecution of his parents, his name being changed from David to Dieter for fear of discrimination at school. Such experiences, founded in the persecution of the parents, are described by numerous individuals with differing familial backgrounds within their autobiographical reports. In books such as those by Dotschy Reinhardt (2014) or Ricardo Lenzi Laubinger (2018), the connections between family persecution and contemporary confrontation with stereotypes and even discrimination become clear. Silvio Peritore sheds light (in this volume) on the impact of the National Socialist genocide upon the Sinti and Roma and discusses the impact on the people concerned in “socio-political, legal, and material terms”. He further describes as to how “ideological continuity lines” determine racist stereotypes.
People with mental illnesses, people with mental disabilities, maladjusted individuals, and the subjects of forced sterilisation were among the first victims of the National Socialist extermination policy. They fell into obscurity after 1945 as a result of their families remaining silent, either out of shame or because the fate of their relatives was unclear. Furthermore, the continuity of personnel in the judiciary and in politics meant that information had few opportunities. There are not many reports about the effects upon families of these murders of the sick. Andreas Hechler (2017) undertakes this task, writing about the consequences of the murder of his great-grandmother, his grandmother’s struggle for recognition for ‘forgotten victims’, and the consequences of this for the family.
Another group of stigmatised victims were homosexual men. Homosexuality among men was still a crime after 1945. It was only following the criminal law reforms of 1969 and 1973 that sexual acts committed between men over the age of 18 became legal. Forms of discrimination continue to exist. In Spain, same-sex couples only received the right to marry in 2005, in Germany it took until 2017, and in Italy registered partnership is still the only legal mechanism available (a comparison of European laws can be found in Kohler 2017). Petra Hörig (in this volume) gives an impression of what effect the unexplained grief in her family had on her as a descendant. She further exposes continuities in the discrimination of homosexual men in Germany.
Continuing discrimination is a significant obstacle in coping with the past. Competition between people who are discriminated against for different reasons must be addressed and overcome. The Federal Association aims to combat prejudice through regional self-help groups, wherein descendants of different backgrounds can meet.
It is important that we deepen our understanding of concepts permitting us to examine transgenerational transmission in a theoretical manner. We need to understand the impact of traumatic experiences on previous generations in order to prevent the transmission of trauma to the next. Social and political processes and contexts potentially shaping the understanding of trauma must also be kept in mind. We must also augment our remembrance culture, so that it is interdisciplinary, participatory, and politically committed. At this juncture, we would like to stress that outlining requirements and demands for subsequent generations should not be taken to imply abnormalities in these groups as a whole, and should not lead to the pathologising of them.
Transgenerational transmission of trauma in the context of work with descendants of survivors and victims of armed conflicts as well as ethnic, racial, and political persecution and genocidal violence is increasingly being discussed internationally. It is proven that traumatic experiences can be passed on to future generations (Danieli 1998). A number of studies have dealt with the effects of the Holocaust on subsequent generations (Barel et al. 2010; Abraham Sagi-Schwartz 2015; for an overview, see also Freyberger et al. 2015), with the needs of older people in particular being taken into consideration (Shrira 2016). In recent years, studies on epigenetic transmission (Yehuda 2015; Kellermann 2011) have also been increasingly prominent.
In Germany, this political relevance is demonstrated by research commissioned by the Federal Government in 2017, and also by an inquiry submitted to the government in 2015 by politicians including Volker Beck on the psychosocial care of survivors and subsequent generations. They queried to what extent the Federal Government will further support survivors of National Socialist extermination, calling for this support to be made available to subsequent generations (Beck 2015). Among other things, this query made reference to modern research in epigenetics indicating transgenerational transmission of traumata, referring particularly to the work of Natan Kellermann (2011). Following a number of papers focussing on historical and social factors, Natan Kellermann’s contribution in this volume provides an overview of important findings from epigenetics. It suggests that traumatisations are passed on from Holocaust survivors to their descendants through epigenetic markers and presents examples of this type of transmission (in this volume).
In this context, the psychosocial needs of descendants are clearly identified, and the possibility of adapting existing therapies or researching new ones is investigated. Research on ‘transgenerational transmission of traumata’ is received differently by different descendants. It is demanded by some, but rejected by others. Individuals viewing themselves as descendants often also see themselves as political actors. The term trauma, for example, is adopted here as an important denominator for group-building processes, but it also carries with it the risk of pathologising people. This brings with it a special responsibility for researchers, especially within the field of epigenetics (Meloni & Müller 2018). At the individual level, Miriam Victory Spiegel (in this volume) refers to a dilemma regarding as to how relatives and descendants can identify as members of the Second Generation without having to represent themselves as victims. This can become a problem for individuals who identify themselves with the history of their ancestors and wish to express this, but who do not feel any psychological strain, and are socially and professionally very successful.
It should not be assumed that all descendants are necessarily affected by transgenerational transmission of trauma. However, it is important to take seriously the specific needs of those who are burdened by the persecution of their ancestors.
These different approaches give rise to the question as to how findings from scientific research and social science can be combined. In our work, we face the challenge of bringing together these different approaches. It is vital to create a common language by ‘translating’ the terms and the terminology used in these different specialist fields. This is an important task for the future, towards which this volume makes a contribution.
There is a demonstrable need for psychosocial projects with a focus on the descendants of Nazi victims. Many descendants of survivors and victims of Nazi persecution have sociopsychological needs, and there are different ways by which to support them.
Descendants’ own specific resources can also be employed. Susanne Guski-Leinwand (in this volume) highlights empathy as an important resource for Second Generation descendants, but, at the same time, stresses that, should it be sought to support the descendants, then ‘meta-resources’ are needed to relieve their burden and to avoid the exhaustion of compassion.
If it is possible to strengthen the resources of descendants of victims of Nazi persecution, then we should strive to develop them through various projects. Some descendants see it as their duty not only to preserve the memory of their parents, but also to actively participate in the political discourse on remembrance. The further needs of descendants should also be examined.
Eva Fogelman writes that after a process of mourning, and going through phases of shock, denial, confrontation, and a search for meaning, some people utilise their creativity to overcome mourning. The last phase of the process – the search for meaning – can involve a creative process which the Psychoanalyst George Pollock integrates into therapy: “Indeed, among the children of survivors there is a flourishing second generation genre of literature and film.” Eva Fogelman notes that this search is “best accomplished through group efforts” (Fogelman 1998).
Still, the question as to how to support people without the necessary resources or otherwise unable to realise creative projects remains open. Maggie Gad (in this volume) provides an example of this: She presents various projects in Israel, focusing in particular on Testimony Theatre, which has proven its worth in working with survivors and their descendants. Their personal experience is an important resource. Anne Klein sums up the need for this personal commitment: Biographical self-location in a solidarity network creates the possibility that descendants of the Nazi persecuted can envision themselves as bearers of memory, and also empowers them to take a public stand. (p.223).
Since at least the late 1960’s, descendants of victims have made significant contributions to the social and political reappraisal of National Socialist tyranny. The descendants of the survivors fought together with their parents either for recognition or for a reckoning with Nazi crimes. The achievements of these descendants are hardly noticed by the public. In her chapter, Anne Klein casts the subsequent generations at the centre of historico-political education as actors of remembrance culture. (p.220).
Eva Fogelman (2002, p. 5f.) writes about descendants who feel obliged to speak out against discrimination because of their parents, providing numerous examples:
“Today, Third-Generation individuals whose professional lives have been shaped by their grandparent’s ordeals are found in the creative arts, in helping professions, human rights work and in Jewish studies and communal work.” (Fogelman 2008); “I found that children of survivors were raising their voices at different Jewish and secular institutions […]” (Fogelman 2002, p. 6).
There are many different examples of the commitment of descendants since the 1970’s. For example, Fogelman wrote in 2008 regarding descendants of Nazi victims in the USA as follows:
“The Second-Generation became a visible group in America in the mid-1970s, a time when a large cadre, in their twenties, was searching for an identity, along with others of their generation of the ‘roots’ movement’”
Fogelman further continues:
“Third-Generation members are no different from those in the Second-Generation, who gravitated towards the creative arts in order to remember the barbarity committed against the Jews living in German-occupied countries and, the Jewish life that was destroyed, and to raise consciousness about present-day racism, human-rights violations, and genocides. Every day one hears of new projects – a musical to commemorate the courageous deeds of Raoul Wallenberg and, a film on the American eugenics movement and how it influenced Hitler’s Final Solution” (Fogelman 2008).
In Germany, descendants have also been involved in the past, for example in the civil rights movement of Sinti and Roma, having held public events since the end of the 1970’s so as to draw attention to the discrimination of this ‘minority’ (see Krokowski 2001, p. 154). Descendants were also involved in the hunger strike at the concentration camp memorial at Dachau.2
The political engagement of descendants in the establishment of concentration camp memorials has hardly been researched, but their current work, e.g. as guides for visitors, cannot be overlooked. At many memorial sites, they are involved in educational work. International descendants of former prisoners of the Langenstein-Zwieberge Concentration Camp have joined forces as the 2nd Generation Group, hailing from France, Italy, Latvia, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine. The group came together in 1998, and has been well supported by the memorial.3 They are committed to the remembrance of the persecuted, and engage in dialogue with young people.
The Neuengamme Concentration Camp Memorial Site has involved descendants in its commemoration work for years. According to Oliver von Wrochem, concentration camp memorial sites fulfil three tasks: Remembrance, contemplation, and research. The great interest possessed by descendants in learning more about their family history forms an important basis for the collaboration with them taking place at Neuengamme. Furthermore, memorial sites can be a place for the individual and collective commemoration of relatives. For this reason, memorial sites must be open to the needs of descendants (Wrochem in this volume).
Since the beginning of 2018, descendants of victims of persecution have met regularly at the concentration camp memorial at Dachau. The group is connected by the imprisonment of their parents, grandparents, or great-grandparents in the camp. Their ancestors were persecuted for various reasons; nevertheless, the effects upon the different members of the group bear some similarities. Within the group conversations, there is open and honest exchange about the influence of these family experiences. Some members of the group have a strong commitment to a democratic community. Another example of a group of engaged descendants is the group Children of the Resistance – Antifascism as a Task. In their contribution, Christa Bröcher and Klara Tuchscherer (in this volume) report on the work of the group, emphasising as to how important it is for descendants of resistance fighters to be more conspicuous. They exemplify the historico-political commitment of descendants outside memorial sites. The members of this group publish a book series in which the stories of their forefathers are recorded. Nelles, Nolzen & Sünker (2008) examine different degrees of politicisation of the children of ‘kommunistischen und sozialdemokratischen Familien stammenden Kinder’4 after 1945 in their article, concluding that “[…] die Entwicklungen im Nachkriegsdeutschland waren auch nicht dazu angetan, den Kindern […] das Gefühl zu geben, dass ihre Eltern auf der ‘richtigen Seite’ gestanden hatten und dass sich ihr Widerstand ‘gelohnt’ hätte” (2008, p. 218)5. This is confirmed by many of the descendants of victims of political persecution in discussions with the editors.
In the Czech Republic, Roma survivors and younger Roma activists engaged in an initiative in the 1990’s which created the country’s most important institute for the recognition of the genocide of Sinti and Roma during the German occupation, and also for Roma history and culture. The initiative YAHAD – IN UNUM should also be mentioned here: it investigates the persecution of Roma and Jews in Eastern Europe by the National Socialists.
Many descendants today express the desire to talk about their commitment and motivation. Descendants helped their parents to record the after-effects of the persecution period, bringing children and parents somewhat closer, but also leading to conflicts (Fogelman 2018). Such common activity can be a means by which to overcome transgenerational transmission. The British organisations Second Generation Network and Association of Jewish Refugees are engaged with the descendants of victims of Nazi persecution. Many are concerned with protecting the persecution stories of their ancestors from being forgotten (e.g. Chamberlain 2018, p. 5). The Second Generation Network has published the magazine Voices since 1996; descendants of survivors and the murdered use it to report on the influence of persecution on their own histories, and on those of their relatives (e.g. Soetendorp 1996; Dresner 2018, p. 11f.).
The book Kinder von KZ-Häftlingen – eine vergessene Generation [Children of Concentration Camp Prisoners – a forgotten Generation] by the Lagergemeinschaft Ravensbrück Freundeskreis e.V. [Friends of Ravensbrück Camp Community] (2011, p. 74f.) offers space for numerous descendants of former prisoners to speak about the history of the persecuted and the after-effects upon their own lives. There are recountings of stories from parents (Bejarano 2011) and of impressions which continue to have an effect through the generations (e.g. Marie 2011, p. 171).
In this volume, descendants of victims of Nazi persecution also discuss their own lives. Friedhelm Boll examines testimonies related to him by descendants after a workshop. According to Boll, the examples presented suggest the thesis that a three-stage procedure is employed in this processing: firstly, researching the parents’ lives, then, secondly, the gaining thereby of an understanding of the parents and their silence. This goes together with reflection (the third stage), in which they engage with the exclusion that they have experienced.
In the book Beidseits von Auschwitz – Identitäten in Deutschland nach 1945 [On both Sides of Auschwitz – Identities in Germany after 1945] descendants of persecuted persons write about their lives. Eva Nickel describes what the persecution of her forebears meant for her, also describing how she acted as co-plaintiff in a lawsuit against an SS man for the murder of her sister (Nickel 2015, p. 117). Micha Brumlik (in this volume) discusses novels by members of the Second Generation. In so doing, he relates questions of family education about intergenerational relationships to postmemory theory.
There are also an increasing number of autobiographical books from the grandchildren’s generation. In Die Enkelin [The Granddaughter], Channah Trzebiner (2013) very openly describes the effects of her grandfather’s persecution on herself, and as to how this has influenced her daily life. Idioms and seemingly everyday situations can evoke memories of her grandfather’s suffering, and of the repercussions felt by the family. Sabine Kray (2014) has researched her grandfather (Diamond Eddie) and written a novel about his two identities – as a forced labourer before 1945, and as a petty criminal thereafter. During the readings, she found that a lot of people were interested in the diamond thief, but that she had to make a great effort to convey the impression of a broken man who, as a former forced labourer, suffered from severe psychological strain. The psychologist Dan Bar-On, along with his students, “found that it was much easier for the survivors to communicate with their grandchildren than with their own children” (Fogelman 2008).
A large number of scientific papers deal with the issue of the transmission of trauma to subsequent generations, and with the psychological burden on the descendants of victims of National Socialist persecution. This is also documented in this volume.
On account of their personal and familial involvement with National Socialist persecution, many descendants of the persecuted have a particular perspective on anti-democratic trends and dehumanising discourse in the present day. They allow this perspective to influence their daily activities and political engagement. The descendants who become involved are still affected by resentment, and do not always dare to reveal familial reasons for their involvement. Especially in these times of mounting right-wing populism, their perspectives should gain more recognition. This acknowledgement should also be extended to their commitment to the persecuted. It should, therefore, be a matter of importance to support and promote the activities of these people against group-related hostility and ideologies of inequality.
In the same spirit, however, psychologically troubled descendants must also receive recognition. They should be supported with the provision of therapeutic services specialising in the consequences of genocidal persecution on families. The different backgrounds of the victims should be identified and further taken into account.
A large number of scientific papers deal with the issue of the transmission of traumata to subsequent generations, and with the psychological burden on the descendants of victims of National Socialist persecution. However, the transgenerational transmission of trauma is not always separable from other issues ideally to be discussed in connection with descendants. This is why the essays in this book cut across issues of socio-political and psychosocial relevance. The book is divided into five parts: Continuities and Discrimination; Transgenerational Transmission; Tradition, Narratives, and Biographies; Practice and Processing; and Treatment and the Future respectively.
The first chapter contains articles on continuities in Europe rendering dealing with the issue more difficult. Even today, people are affected by antisemitic attacks and discrimination in their everyday lives, clear reference being made to the ideology of discrimination under National Socialism.
The second chapter is devoted to the transgenerational transmission of trauma. The socio-political discourse around the concept of transmission is also examined.
In the chapter Tradition, Narratives, and Biographies, the personal insights and experiences of descendants are collected. Although there are similarities to be found, it also illustrates that the different manners of persecution suffered by the ancestors have made for different effects on the descendants.
The chapter Treatment and the Future provides an insight into remembrance and education work for descendants. The essays demonstrate how this work was shaped by the personal and political commitment of descendants.
In the chapter Processing and the Future, current projects by and with descendants of Nazi victims are examined. In addition, approaches to shaping future democratic and remembrance work are discussed.
Of course, this volume does not claim to be comprehensive, representing rather the type of work currently being undertaken by the Federal Association. Some topics have not been dealt with. This notwithstanding, it ventures to bring together examples from theory and practice in order to motivate further interdisciplinary work and research within this field, already the object of many engaged individuals’ labour.
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