Norman Finkelstein's Life In The Warsaw Ghetto

concentration camps. Apart from my parents, every family member on both sides was

exterminated by the Nazis.” (Finkelstein, “The Business of Death”). This quote is from

Norman Finkelstein, an American political scientist. While Finkelstein wasn’t born

during the Holocaust, his parents were people who lived through the mass murders of

Nazi extermination and resided in the well-known Warsaw Ghetto. From the beginning

of the infamous Warsaw ghetto to its final days, this capital city in Poland endured heavy

losses. Before being taken to the death camps, but after being ripped from their homes,

the Jews were made to live in these Ghettos. The early history, the Jew's life in the

Ghetto, and the closing history, which gives us the aftermath of

On November 23, 1939, Germany

issues the law of requiring Jewish to identify themselves through custom-made ID’s. A

year passes and on October 12 th , Germany establishes the Warsaw Ghetto officially

(USHMM, “Warsaw”). With this, it can be proven that Nazi Germany inflicted much

pain on the people of Warsaw. More pain was to come as the ghetto was very cruel to

their prisoners.

cruelty from living quarters to food rationing. This can be proven with the historical

information of the ghetto, the living conditions of the ghetto, and the food rationing that

occurred during the lifetime of the ghetto. The ghetto had ten-foot walls around the area

of the ghetto. The ghetto was a total area of 1.3 square miles and held 400,000 Jews as

prisoners. The living conditions were as well very harsh. A bit above seven people were

confined to a single room, although, education and cultural activities were allowed,

which did show some decency compared to an internment camp. Although, disease and

illness occurred due to the living conditions. Along with this, an underground network of

Jewish activity was installed as a result of the harsh conditions and food rationing.