WOMEN OF VALOR: THE WOMEN OF TEREZIN

Curriculum Developed by:
Michele Hewson, Linden High School, Linden, NJ misshewson@hotmail.com

Grade Level: 11 – 12
Subject Area: History/Social Studies, Women’s Studies

Women constituted a significant proportion among the victims of the Holocaust, yet their experiences are often overlooked. But scholars suggest that women were persecuted even more harshly than men because they were the carriers of culture and of life itself. Women were forced to give up their young children, pushed into abortions, separated from their families, and subjected to many acts designed to rob them of their humanity. Nevertheless, women resisted their oppression in part by engaging in various forms of artistic expression. In the “model” work camp/ghetto Terezin (also known as Theresienstadt), these acts of resistance were well documented, both by the Nazis and by the victims imprisoned there.

The Nazis used Terezin as a model to disguise their program of the destruction of Jewish lives and culture. The Nazis’ goal was to make the camp appear like a successful community. In the camp “population” were Jewish musicians, writers, visual artists and dancers. Even in the circumstances of captivity, these men and women exercised their creative capabilities. Women in Terezin continued to write, paint, draw, cook, sing, play music, and participate in activities that made life worth living.