Propaganda and Deception: Terezín as a “Model Ghetto” and the Red Cross Visit

SOCIAL STUDIES II

In this two-part module, students will study the story of Jewish conductor Rafael Schächter and a group of prisoners in the Terezín ghetto who learned to sing Giuseppe Verdi’s Requiem as an act of creative resistance. Students will study the complex nature of Terezín, exploring the harsh reality of daily life there and how, at the same time, the Germans used it as an effective propaganda tool. They will learn about the visit of the International Red Cross on June 23, 1944 and the “beautification” efforts the Germans undertook to conceal the reality of conditions in the ghetto and its role in their genocidal plans. Students will also consider the final performance of the Verdi Requiem in Terezín and its meaning in this context.

DEFIANTREQUIEM.ORG/EDUCATION

The Story of Defiant Requiem: The Holocaust and Creative Resistance

Propaganda and Deception: Terezín as a “Model Ghetto” and the Red Cross Visit

The Rhetoric of Verdi’s Requiem: Reading the Libretto in Three Contexts

Resisting Oppression: Music, Art, and Creativity in Terezín

SOCIAL STUDIES I SOCIAL STUDIES II ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS MUSIC AND ART

LESSON OVERVIEW LESSON MATERIALS ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND PART I PART II PART III

Lesson overviewEssential Questions

• How did the Nazis use Terezín as a propaganda tool to achieve their goals?• What is the significance of the International Red Cross visit to Terezín?• What meaning did creative efforts, specifically the singing of Verdi’s Requiem, hold for the

prisoners in Terezín?

ObjectiveStudents will examine the unique characteristics of Terezín and the International Red Cross’ visit there in order to develop an understanding of how the Nazis used it as a propaganda tool to deceive the world about their treatment of Jewish prisoners and the larger effort to murder all the Jews of Europe.

Standards Alignment• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH9-10.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary

and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the informa-tion.

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH9-10.2: Determine central ideas or information of a primary or sec-ondary source; provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.

Teacher Notes• Preview all instructional materials prior to beginning this lesson.• The following resources can be used to build your own and/or your students’ general

knowledge of the Holocaust and forms of resistance. Please note that the names Terezín and Theresienstadt refer to the same ghetto and can be used interchangeably.

• Introduction to the Holocaust from the USHMM• Jewish Resistance During the Holocaust module produced by Yad Vashem, the

Holocaust museum and education center in Jerusalem, Israel.

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Lesson materials• “Ghettos,” Holocaust Encyclopedia, USHMM

For Gallery Walk• Interview with Marianka Zadikow May: Arrival in Terezín• Diary of Eva Ginzova (three entries): Arrival in Terezín, deportation of her brother;

forced labor• Unknown photographer: Theresienstadt Barracks• “Theresienstadt” (from Holocaust Encyclopedia)

• Terezín Ghetto Note Catcher (attached)

• Defiant Requiem on Vimeo (use password: survivingevil)

• Embellishment and the Visit of the International Committee of the Red Cross to Terezín, 23 June 1944 Holocaust.cz

• Red Cross Visit Note Catcher (attached)

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The Story of Defiant Requiem: The Holocaust and Creative Resistance

Propaganda and Deception: Terezín as a “Model Ghetto” and the Red Cross Visit

The Rhetoric of Verdi’s Requiem: Reading the Libretto in Three Contexts

Resisting Oppression: Music, Art, and Creativity in Terezín

SOCIAL STUDIES I SOCIAL STUDIES II ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS MUSIC AND ART

LESSON OVERVIEW LESSON MATERIALS ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND PART I PART II PART III

TerezínGhettoNoteCatcher

Typical/UniqueCharacteristicsofTerezín(fromGalleryWalk)

Evidence/detailsprovidedindocumentaryfilmDefiantRequiem

AdditionalInformationaboutTerezín:

VisitoftheInternationalRedCrosstoTerezínNoteCatcher

WhatdidtheGermansdotobeautifyTerezín?WhatmeasuresdidtheytaketochangeitsappearanceandcreateanimpressionofatownwhereJewswerelivingcomfortablyandsafely?WhatmeasuresdidtheGermanstaketobesuretheInternationalRedCrossdidnotfindoutthetruthofTerezín?

WhydoyousupposetheJewishprisonerscompliedwiththisdeception?Whatweretherisksinvolved?Whatweretheiralternatives,ifany?

WhatwastheoutcomeoftheInternationalRedCrossvisit?WhatweretheconsequencesoftheNazissuccessfuldeceptionaboutwhatwashappeninginTerezínandtotheJewishcommunitiesacrossEurope?

Additional background for teachers• On June 23, 1944, a delegation from the International Red Cross visited Terezín to ensure

that prisoners were being treated humanely as stipulated in the Geneva Convention of 1929.

• In advance of the Red Cross visit, the Germans undertook a massive effort to beautify the camp, hide evidence of hunger, mistreatment and suffering, and present Terezín as a “model ghetto” where prisoners were well-treated and engaged in intellectual, physical, and creative activities.

• Rafael Schächter and his chorus performed the Verdi Requiem before an audience of German officers and members of the International Red Cross delegation.

• The Germans were successful in convincing the International Red Cross that there was nothing amiss in Terezín.

• The day after the visit, the Germans resumed deportations to the killing centers. Schäch-ter and most of his chorus were deported from Terezín to Auschwitz-Birkenau. Schächter perished, as did the majority of the chorus.

• The words of Verdi’s Requiem take on new meaning when considered in the context of Jewish annihilation. Survivors from Terezín who sang in that concert recall that, in their des-peration, they felt singing these words to the Germans was a form of defiance and singing them to the International Red Cross was a plea for understanding and help.

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The Story of Defiant Requiem: The Holocaust and Creative Resistance

Propaganda and Deception: Terezín as a “Model Ghetto” and the Red Cross Visit

The Rhetoric of Verdi’s Requiem: Reading the Libretto in Three Contexts

Resisting Oppression: Music, Art, and Creativity in Terezín

SOCIAL STUDIES I SOCIAL STUDIES II ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS MUSIC AND ART

LESSON OVERVIEW LESSON MATERIALS ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND PART I PART II PART III

Lesson sequence: Part I1. Begin by having students closely examine the article, “Ghettos” from the Holocaust

Encyclopedia, including watching the embedded film and interview clips. Discuss the following questions as a class and create a list or idea web that displays the collective information gathered.

• What was a ghetto in the context of the Holocaust?

• What were the primary functions of the ghettos and how did the Nazis use them to further their goal of murdering all the Jews of Europe?

• What were the living conditions like in the ghettos?

2. Next, in preparation for viewing the film Defiant Requiem, students will participate in a gallery walk to learn more about the Terezín ghetto. They will be looking for ways in which Terezín fits into what they learned about other ghettoes and also for ways that this ghetto served a unique function in the Nazis’ genocidal plans. The following “stations” should be created for the gallery walk. (See above for PDFs of these sources and the Terezín Ghetto Note Catcher.)

• Interview with Marianka Zadikow May: Arrival in Terezín

• Diary of Eva Ginzova (three entries): Arrival in Terezín, deportation of her brother; forced labor

• Unknown photographer: Theresienstadt Barracks

• “Theresienstadt” (from Holocaust Encyclopedia)

Direct students to examine the sources provided in the gallery walk and identify 1-2 facts from each one. They should record one fact in each box in the left column of the chart on their Terezín Ghetto Note Catcher.

3. Once students have had a chance to visit each station and record information on their Terezín Ghetto Note Catcher, debrief to ensure they have identified relevant and accurate information.

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The Story of Defiant Requiem: The Holocaust and Creative Resistance

Propaganda and Deception: Terezín as a “Model Ghetto” and the Red Cross Visit

The Rhetoric of Verdi’s Requiem: Reading the Libretto in Three Contexts

Resisting Oppression: Music, Art, and Creativity in Terezín

SOCIAL STUDIES I SOCIAL STUDIES II ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS MUSIC AND ART

LESSON OVERVIEW LESSON MATERIALS ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND PART I PART II PART III

Lesson sequence: Part II1. Screen Defiant Requiem (link to Vimeo and password above.) Direct students to fill in the

right column of the chart on their Terezín Ghetto Note Catcher with specific evidence/details from the film that support the information they gathered about Terezín in the gallery walk.

2. After viewing the film, allow students to share the notes from their Terezín Ghetto Note Catcher and discuss how the film demonstrates both the typical and unique characteristics of Terezín.

3. If time allows, engage students in a discussion about the propaganda function of Terezín and why they think the Germans created it.

The Story of Defiant Requiem: The Holocaust and Creative Resistance

Propaganda and Deception: Terezín as a “Model Ghetto” and the Red Cross Visit

The Rhetoric of Verdi’s Requiem: Reading the Libretto in Three Contexts

Resisting Oppression: Music, Art, and Creativity in Terezín

SOCIAL STUDIES I SOCIAL STUDIES II ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS MUSIC AND ART

LESSON OVERVIEW LESSON MATERIALS ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND PART I PART II PART III

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Lesson sequence: Part III1. To provide a deeper understanding of the visit of the International Red Cross to Terezín,

have students read Embellishment and the Visit of the International Committee of the Red Cross to Terezin, 23 June 1944 and complete the Red Cross Visit Note Catcher using information gathered both from the film and the article.

ASSESSMENTAllow students to choose from one of the following prompts and write a reflection about it, using information they learned from the module.

1. In the film Defiant Requiem, Marianka May described the Germans’ cover-up of the reality of Terezín during the Red Cross visit saying, “Deception is not the right word. There must be worse words for that.” What does she mean by this? How would you describe the significance of the deception that the Germans used to cover up the reality of Terezín?

2. Eva Rocek, a survivor who sang the Verdi Requiem before the International Red Cross said, “We were hoping that the Red Cross will see that something is wrong, that this is not a group of people entertaining [them], but I think our feeling was that they didn’t get it. They saw what the Nazis wanted them to see.” Historians and others now believe that the Red Cross should have known the truth, especially since it was so late in the war and information about the genocide of Europe’s Jews had reached official circles. Reflect on the consequences of the International Red Cross’ failure to recognize what was happening in Terezín. Can you think of other instances in which societies have failed to recognize human rights abuses?

The Story of Defiant Requiem: The Holocaust and Creative Resistance

Propaganda and Deception: Terezín as a “Model Ghetto” and the Red Cross Visit

The Rhetoric of Verdi’s Requiem: Reading the Libretto in Three Contexts

Resisting Oppression: Music, Art, and Creativity in Terezín

SOCIAL STUDIES I SOCIAL STUDIES II ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS MUSIC AND ART

LESSON OVERVIEW LESSON MATERIALS ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND PART I PART II PART III

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