A Telling Silence: Spectrums of Dutch Remembrance of World War II
"A Telling Silence: Spectrums of Dutch Remembrance" is a book that examines the varied impacts World War II had on 38 citizens and the approaches they have developed to commemorating it. It was published in Dutch in 2000 as a collaborative project of the Anne Frank House, the National Institute for the Victims of War and the National May 4th and 5th Committee. In 2001 an abridged English version was issued.
One of the 38 voices featured is disability movement leader Yolan Koster-Dreese and following is her contribution. "I was born seven years after the liberation, but all through my childhood the war was still a living reality in our home. My mother, my grandfather and my grandmother were all confirmed communists. My mother served as a messenger during the war and Grandpa-my hero-was part of a Resistance group.
"During my adolescence, I became more curious about the grandfather on my father's side, whom I had never known. As it turns out, he was a Jew married to a Roman Catholic Bavarian girl. This grandfather was sterilized because as the non-Aryan husband of an Aryan woman, he wasn't allowed to conceive any more children with my grandmother.
"I was only slightly drawn to communism and I've never felt Jewish. But I have suffered from a physical infirmity all my life and now I can't do anything without a wheelchair. When I was around 30, I learned that Hitler and his cronies had little respect for people like me. They sterilized those who were mentally or physically impaired to make sure they didn't produce any offspring. The most gruesome medical experiments were carried out on handicapped people, and many were murdered. I realized that I and others with handicaps similar to mine will always be vulnerable. Even though things seem peaceful rights now, the tide can turn and we'd be in the danger zone. World War II was the apex of everything you can do to people because of their abnormalities.
"Most Dutch people still feel a certain aversion to people who are different in terms of skin color, sexual preference, physical limitations. This last issue is especially prevalent in current debates, such as the discussions about euthanasia. At what point is someone considered a full-fledged ember of society, and at what point is he or she better off dead? It's a highly risky area. It touches on the question of eugenics and getting rid of people with handicaps.
"I often feel very threatened when these discussions come up. I don't want to pull back in fear so I strike out instead. Then I bring up the story of World War II. I 'm very forceful, saying, 'Look what happens when you follow this line of reasoning.'
"I use the war to feed my anger, to more strongly convince others of the consequences of evil developments. As an active member of the Council for Social Development, which advises the government on these kinds of issues, I'm fully involved in the struggle."
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