Anecdotal evidence suggests that tattoos, piercings, and creative hair styles can elicit negative opinions and stereotyping of an individual’s character and lifestyle choices. Midwives now encounter more pregnant women with tattoos and body piercings, some of which may complicate antenatal and postpartum care. Research suggests that up to one-third of people under the age of 40 have a tattoo, and the growing popularity of body art means for women.
Hand tats are trickier but can be well-respected attending doctors. Most branches except Navy do not allow hand tattoos (US), while sleeves are allowed, but they cannot go past the wrist. During the peak of the Iraq war, some branches allowed tattoos.
Tattoos are generally fine in healthcare jobs as long as they are not inappropriate or offensive. Some midwives have hand tattoos on their hands, which doesn’t bother them at all. However, it might stop someone from getting certain positions depending on who is hiring. The Division of Midwifery’s policy requires uniforms to be worn only when undertaking clinical experience in the hospital environment or the community.
There are no official rules or regulations on whether or not nurses in Australia can have tattoos, as regulations are in the hands of the facility. Some midwives have purple hair and a visible tattoo along one wrist, which doesn’t bother them at all. Overall, tattoos and body art should be discreetly covered where possible to avoid negative opinions and stereotyping.
| Article | Description | Site |
|---|---|---|
| Tattooed Midwife? : r/Midwives | I have arm tattoos, finger tattoos, and leg tattoos that are visible when I wear shorter pants. No problems. How prominent are your face tattoos … | reddit.com |
| tattoos and midwifery | One of my midwives had hand and wrist tattoos! Tattoos are nothing to do with your working ability IMO! X. no reactions. 0. | community.babycentre.co.uk |
| Midwifery and tattoos | The general rule regarding tattoos in healthcare jobs is that they’re fine as long as they’re not inappropriate or offensive. You may … | thestudentroom.co.uk |
📹 A Warning to Those Visiting Auschwitz
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What Is The Dress Code For A Midwife?
"Business casual" attire is generally suitable for clinical settings, while scrubs are designated for hospitals and provided when necessary. Attention to grooming standards, including hair and jewelry, is essential. Jeans and revealing tops are usually deemed inappropriate. Midwives follow a specific dress code, wearing a Stuart blue uniform with white piping, while Midwifery Sisters wear navy uniforms. Wristwatches and all jewelry below the elbow must be removed during patient care, allowing only a wedding or plain band ring.
University ID badges should be displayed and presented when requested. Student midwives receive a designated uniform that must be worn during duty at all placements, alongside suitable footwear guidelines. It is important not to travel wearing the provided uniform.
While dress standards apply universally to staff, distinctions exist between those required to wear uniforms and those not. The midwife uniform embodies dedication, compassion, and professionalism, representing the identity of midwives. Clinical settings prohibit face veils to ensure midwives are identifiable for effective patient engagement and communication. Compliance with the Health and Social Care Act 2008 Code of Practice regarding uniforms and workwear supports essential hand hygiene measures. Proper adherence to dress codes enhances identification among healthcare workers and fosters clarity in communication and role recognition.
As Nursing or Midwifery students, uniforms are mandatory during placements, except in specific cases. Neat, clean attire and good personal hygiene are expected, aligning with workplace guidelines. While most settings allow short-sleeved or long-sleeved undershirts beneath scrubs, the visibility of undershirts must be considered. In research roles, specific dress codes are outlined, reinforcing professionalism, which prohibits casual clothing such as jeans and encourages appropriate footwear, collared shirts, and a polished appearance.
Can You Have Hand Tattoos As A Midwife?
Midwives and healthcare workers generally have expectations regarding visible tattoos, which can vary based on location and work setting. In some areas, it is acceptable for midwives to showcase tattoos, while in others, they are expected to cover them for professional appearances. For example, nurses in Texas report having no issues working with visible tattoos, including those with extensive body art.
The landscape is changing; an increasing number of pregnant women are tattooed, which can present specific considerations for midwives during antenatal care. While some nursing programs may have strict rules requiring students to cover tattoos, many experienced nurses have their tattoos visible. Generally, as long as tattoos aren't deemed inappropriate or offensive, their visibility is often tolerated.
There exists an ongoing conversation about the acceptance of tattoos within the healthcare profession. The Nursing and Midwifery Council Code emphasizes treating women as unique individuals and recognizing diversity, advocating for a non-judgmental approach regarding appearance. While different healthcare settings may have specific policies, visible tattoos typically are allowed as long as they are not offensive.
There are instances of midwives displaying visible tattoos, including those on arms or hands, without it causing concern among colleagues or patients. Some hospitals maintain policies against visible tattoos, leading employees to cover them with bandages or clothing. However, many healthcare professionals are finding that tattoos do not hinder their ability to occupy positions in nursing or midwifery fields.
Reports suggest a significant percentage of the population under 40 has tattoos, indicating a shift in societal norms regarding body art. Within the context of midwifery, you might encounter midwives with visible tattoos, colorful hair, and personal styles that reflect contemporary trends, which patients may find relatable or welcoming.
As the speaker shares their journey of becoming a midwife, they reflect a broader acceptance of individuality in the profession. Emphasis is placed on pursuing passion while understanding workplace norms, suggesting that personal expression, including tattoos, can coexist with professional responsibilities in midwifery.
Can Midwife Nurses Have Tattoos?
There are no explicit regulations from the American Nursing Association (ANA) regarding tattoos for nurses. The question of whether nurses can have tattoos generally hinges on the policies of individual healthcare facilities. While many hospitals may allow tattoos, particularly if they are not visible or offensive, some maintain strict rules prohibiting visible body art. As societal attitudes toward tattoos evolve, several institutions have re-evaluated their policies, becoming more accommodating to body art in the workplace.
The Nursing and Midwifery Council Code emphasizes the importance of treating individuals with respect and recognizing diversity, which suggests a need for an understanding of personal choices, including body art. Although tattoos among nurses may vary regionally, notably a high percentage of female nurses—about 90% of those registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)—have adopted tattoos without facing significant stigma.
Current discussions within the nursing profession also explore the clinical implications of tattoos and piercings, particularly during pregnancy and associated care complexities. However, many nurses and midwives, including those in the UK, report having visible tattoos in work settings where this is acceptable. Survey data indicates a generally shifting perspective, with fewer individuals finding visible tattoos on healthcare providers unacceptable.
Ultimately, the ability for nurses to show their tattoos openly is determined by specific hospital policies. Many nurses are advised to cover their tattoos when wearing uniforms if the facility mandates it. While visible tattoos should not carry any offensive connotations, workplaces vary widely in acceptance. Those entering the nursing field should conduct research on their prospective facility's rules and consider having tattoos in less visible areas when working with patients.
The discussion regarding body art—particularly within healthcare settings—remains nuanced, adapting to cultural changes and professional norms, underscoring the importance of communication and understanding within the nursing community.
Can A Gynecologist Have Tattoos?
Doctors are permitted to have tattoos as long as they are not explicit or inappropriate regarding sex, race, religion, violence, hate speech, political beliefs, or nudity. I work for one of the largest medical providers in the U. S., which includes hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies. A few years back, our dress code explicitly prohibited visible tattoos, and to this day, I rarely see anyone with tattoos showing; employees typically cover them. When I wear long sleeves and my white coat, my tattoos remain hidden, but sometimes they become visible when I bend my arms.
According to the AMA Code of Medical Ethics, the only restriction on doctors’ tattoos is that they should not be offensive or interfere with medical procedures. Policies regarding visible tattoos, however, differ among healthcare institutions. Ultimately, tattoos serve as a personal form of self-expression and are acceptable as long as they are tasteful and do not disrupt a professional image or job performance. While some may argue that tattoos could influence perceptions, it’s often possible to conceal them during job interviews. However, when wearing scrubs, visibility may be an issue.
A survey indicates that although 26% of Americans have tattoos, many patients expect physicians to present a clean-cut image, free from body modifications. Therefore, healthcare organizations often enforce policies concerning visible tattoos. As long as tattoos are not offensive or inappropriate for the workplace—unless one has extensive tattoos in visible areas—doctors can have them without issue.
Interestingly, a study of emergency room patients revealed indifference to their doctors having body art or piercings, suggesting that the concern may not be as significant as previously thought. In the end, it really depends on how well a doctor carries their tattoos and their ability to manage visibility based on the situation.
Can Healthcare Workers Have Hand Tattoos?
Yes, healthcare professionals, including nurses, can have tattoos. However, there is no uniform law regarding this; instead, various healthcare facilities have different policies. Some institutions require visible tattoos to be covered, particularly in conservative settings like hospitals and clinics, while others may permit them with particular guidelines. A vital point for nurses with tattoos or those contemplating them is to fully understand their specific workplace's tattoo policy.
Typically, tattoos on the hands, neck, and face can be more challenging to conceal and may not be acceptable in many healthcare environments. Therefore, nurses intending to get tattoos in these areas should anticipate potential restrictions. Despite the increasing percentage of tattooed adults in the U. S. (42% and rising), tattoos are not federally protected in workplaces, which causes some debate among tattoo advocates, as they view tattoos as a form of personal expression that should be safeguarded by the First Amendment.
While most medical facilities generally allow tattoos, this acceptance varies widely. Policies often prohibit visible tattoos with offensive imagery, reflecting the expectations of professionalism in the field. Ultimately, the discretion for what constitutes an appropriate visible tattoo falls to individual employers. Some modern facilities are becoming more lenient, permitting visible tattoos, including wrist tattoos, full sleeves, and neck tattoos, while conservative establishments may only accept small, discreet tattoos.
It’s essential for nurses to recognize that hand tattoos count as visible and, depending on their organization’s stance, may require coverage during work hours. Even though tattoos generally should not disqualify a nurse from employment, they should bear in mind the specific rules of their workplace. Furthermore, poorly maintained hand tattoos could pose a risk of harboring bacteria, enhancing the potential for infection, making proper upkeep vital. Overall, while tattoos are generally accepted in healthcare, the policies governing them can vary significantly from one institution to another.
Can Doctors Have Hand Tattoos?
Doctors are permitted to have tattoos, but there are several factors to consider before getting inked in the healthcare profession. While there is no strict rule against it, policies can vary significantly by institution, meaning it's essential to understand the specific guidelines of the hospital or practice where one works. Generally, tattoos are allowed as long as they are not offensive or unprofessional.
Tattoos must avoid explicit or inappropriate content related to sex, race, religion, violence, hate speech, political beliefs, or nudity. Hand tattoos are viewed as "riskier" because they can be difficult to conceal. Some doctors have visible ink, such as a sleeve extending onto the hand, and can still be respected professionals, indicating that acceptance can depend on the tattoo's nature and placement.
Currently, as a medical student, there are no explicit prohibitions on visible tattoos while in school, provided they remain covered during professional duties. Nevertheless, specific institutions may impose restrictions. For example, the University of Michigan Health System has a strict no-visible-tattoo policy for doctors on their hands and arms.
Many hospitals expect doctors to maintain a clean-cut appearance for hygiene and professional standards, often requiring tattoos above the neckline or beyond the wrist to be covered. Various methods, such as makeup, medical tape, or scrubs, can be employed, along with proper hand hygiene, to prevent contamination.
Interestingly, despite society’s growing acceptance of tattoos—about 26% of Americans have them—some patients still have expectations of a "clean-cut" physician without body modifications. A study published in the Emergency Medicine Journal indicates that patients may not find the presence of visible tattoos or piercings significantly influential in their treatment experiences. However, there remains a divide in opinions among medical professionals regarding the appropriateness of showcasing tattoos in clinical settings.
Some doctors feel that heavily tattooed individuals can create rapport with patients who share similar experiences, helping to break stereotypes about physician appearances. Conversely, potential biases may exist, with some patients automatically forming perceptions about professionalism based on visible tattoos.
In summary, while doctors can have tattoos, the specific acceptance depends on institutional policies and the nature of the tattoos. As a med student considering tattoos on the outer hand and forearm, it is crucial to weigh the implications for future job prospects and patient perceptions. Ultimately, professionalism should guide decisions regarding body art in a clinical setting.
What Type Of Tattoo Is Always Permitted In Healthcare?
If you aspire to a nursing career, it's advisable to get tattoos in non-visible locations when wearing scrubs. Tattoos in visible areas may necessitate removal for employment in healthcare. In general, healthcare settings accept non-visible tattoos, and if a tattoo can be easily covered, upper management typically does not raise concerns, even if they are aware of it. However, extensively visible tattoos, such as full sleeves, might not be outright accepted but can sometimes be tolerated.
While tattoos are more accepted in society, their appropriateness can vary in different healthcare environments. There are currently no federal laws in the U. S. that restrict nurses from having tattoos; however, regulations differ by state. Notably, about 42% of U. S. adults have tattoos, which are increasingly recognized as a form of personal expression. Despite this, there is ongoing discussion about the lack of federal workplace protections for tattoos.
Workplace policies regarding nurses with tattoos differ from one healthcare institution to another. It’s essential for nurses to understand these policies if they already have or are contemplating tattoos. Some facilities impose strict rules regarding visible body art, while others allow such tattoos, provided they are covered. Key considerations before getting a tattoo include researching the dress code policies of your prospective workplaces. If visible tattoos are not allowed, you might consider options like wearing sleeves or using makeup to cover them.
Although no laws prohibit nurses from having tattoos, protocols at various facilities may restrict visible tattoos. In general, tattoos that are decorative, non-offensive, and placed out of sight are usually permitted. The presence of tattoos might influence patient perceptions, as some patients may feel uncomfortable with tattooed caregivers, impacting their willingness to seek care.
It’s important to note that offensive or inappropriate tattoos are often banned in healthcare settings. The American Nurses Association does not have specific regulations on tattoos, leaving it to individual institutions to determine their policies. Taking these factors into account helps navigate the relationship between tattoos and the nursing profession while considering their impact on career development and patient interactions.
Can You Have Hand Tattoos In Nursing School?
Yes, nursing students can have tattoos, but they may be required to cover them if they are visible. Nursing schools often implement strict tattoo policies, particularly against visible tattoos, as they tend to micro-manage students regarding such personal expressions, which aren’t reflective of real floor nursing. The enforcement of these policies can vary; for instance, while some institutions might not strictly enforce them during clinicals, students with neck and hand tattoos often need to find ways to conceal them, such as wearing turtlenecks or using cover-up gloves.
The acceptability of tattoos also depends on the employer’s policies; generally, hospitals or healthcare facilities may not permit tattoos on hands, neck, or face as they are harder to cover. To successfully navigate this, nurses with tattoos can research specific policies, communicate openly with employers, and use cover-up options or makeup as needed.
Many nursing programs have policies that may prohibit visible tattoos or require them to be concealed—although requirements can vary, and many tattoos aren’t disqualifying factors for employment as long as they’re not offensive. While it’s common for nursing schools to have strict policies regarding tattoos and piercings, particularly at more visible locations, hand tattoos might be acceptable at more tattoo-friendly facilities. The American Nursing Association (ANA) does not have a definitive rule against tattoos for nurses, indicating that policies will depend on individual institutions.
So, while tattoos can be a concern in nursing school and professional settings, many nurses manage to incorporate their personal expression within the confines of professional guidelines, provided the tattoos are not deemed offensive or vulgar.
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i went to the Death Camp Bergen-Belsen with my class in middle school. Even the greatest bully did not bring a single word out.. it was so silent there.. there was just trees, a huge path and thick fog. I will certainly never forget this day in my life and i am incredibly thankful that my teacher did this with us.
My husband and I visited there in April. I am pleased to say that I did not witness any inappropriate behavior. Multiple tour groups move through the barracks. There was very little conversation, most just pointing something out to someone on the tour. The mood was reverential and somber. It was very moving. Our tour guide told us where we could and could not take pictures and everyone complied. My visit to Auschwitz was not a bucket list item, but was a pilgrimage of sorts. Although I do not have any Jewish heritage, I felt compelled to visit this sacred place. It is an experience that will stay with me for the rest of my life.
I visited Dachau when I was 17 on a school trip. I will never forget it. The overwhelming feeling of sadness and horror. There were no birds within the fenced camp. The museum was difficult. Many students could not handle it. It changed me. We must never forget and continue to educate younger generations. I’m 70 now.
From personal experience, the perfect time to go is in the middle of winter. Not only does the cold just about kill any humor that may exist, but standing in your winterclothes and STILL freezing while knowing how little the inmates had makes it much easier to understand just how horrible it must have been.
Great sobering message you created. I’m 62 yrs old, in 1970 my Dad was stationed at Hahn AFB in the Rhineland west of Frankfurt. We toured Dauchau, it was 25 years after the end of WWII, and it was quite an somber moment in my young life, 4-5th grade boy. I didn’t entirely understand everything about the Holocaust, but every single person there was reverent, respectful. Over half were even crying, sobbing, perhaps family of the victims. I can recall the morning we arrived at Dauchau it was cold, it drizzle all day long. I remember the smell of the fields, vegetation, the dirt, the wood of the barracks. It’s seared into my mind. God bless.
I was fortunate that the tour I was on was extremely reverential and somber throughout. No one smiled; no one took pictures when asked not to; no one took selfies. Everyone was quiet and totally respectful. We had a tour guide who was firm and no-nonsense and I cannot vaguely imagine her permitting any unruly behavior. I’m grateful to have experienced the camp with the sorrow and respect it deserves.
I visited both camps during a school trip when I was fifteen. We were privileged enough to have a survivor come along for the trip, sharing his stories. One quote in particular is something I will remember til the day I die. After talking about the inhumane conditions he lived in, he told us: “You guys have never been hungry. You have craved food. But you have never been hungry.”
I went to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (we can’t fly a bunch of 13 year olds out of the country), and everyone- even the loudest and most obnoxious kids that giggled during bullying assemblies- were silent. We didn’t take any photos. No selfies or jokes. We just sat in awe and absorbed the sadness and horror of what happened. If a bunch of kids can respect and understand the impact of the Holocaust, then there is no reason for an adult to not be able to.
I can’t understand this. I visited with my school when we were all 14-15 and I honestly expected a bunch of teenagers to be messing around not taking it seriously. Every single one of us was absolutely silent the entire way around. Even the class clowns didn’t say a single word since stepping through the gates. We all felt it.
I had the honour of visiting both Auschwitz I and Auschwitz Birkenau in February of this year 2024. It was both one of the most depressing and (respectfully) incredible experiences of my life. Seeing the sign at Auschwitz I ‘Arbeit Macht Frei’, looking around the piles upon piles of human hair beyond imagination, the shoes and gas canisters used, first setting eyes on the infamous train tracks at Birkenau. It was so so emotional to stand where millions stood for the last time. My group stayed at Birkenau until it got dark. It was freezing, raining, and utterly pitch black and we were stood at the very end of the camp, at the end of the train tracks. We had a ceremony, lit candles in respect and I even had the honour of hearing a Jewish song. At the very end of the ceremony, my tour guide said “now you get to walk back out those gates, you will go home to your families, to warmth, love and safety. No one else who reached the end of these train tracks got to do that. I was utterly heartbroken and it’s weighed on me ever since and most likely will do forever. So please, if you decide to visit these incredible places in history, be respectful, be quiet, and think about how lucky you are. I saw people running out of the different museum barracks in Auschwitz I, there were people crying and I didn’t see anyone smiling for the entire time I was there. You don’t have to cry, but you most definitely shouldn’t laugh or joke around. Never take selfies, not even under the famous sign or in front of the train tracks.
It’s common (or used to be at least) for tenth graders (15-16 year olds) in parts of my country to spend an entire school year collecting funds for a trip to Poland and the camps. My trip was just about half my lifetime ago now and nothing I’ve experienced since has made such a powerful impression on me. I was crying and I was trying not to make a scene, but the weight of what had happened hit me very hard and very suddenly after walking around and listening to our guide. I wasn’t the only one. It was sickening and sad. The thought of people treating it as a fun day out, kissing and taking photos of human remains, makes me feel ill. If 60+ teenagers can behave and treat these places with respect you’d think anyone could…
I am 51 now and i can still remember when i was about 8, My grandfather was crying in a back room . I walked in and he jumped when i asked if he was ok. He rushed me off to play outside. Years passed before I was told that my Grandfather was a British soldier During WWII and helped Jewish survivors find clothes and food days after they had been saved from one of the camps. Each year on the day my grandfather saw the men laying on the ground begging for scraps he would do nothing but cry remembering that day.. Was not till after he had passed that I knew he kept a Diary of those days… I was only able to read about 5 pages before having to stop…April 17th was the date my Grandfather could not forget . For the last 3 years now after my Grandfathers death i too now pay my respect on April 17th . 6 days from now ….I wish you all well and may we never forget what happened, and take time to show compassion toward each other ….Love you Grandad
I visited at the age of 17 with a school group from Canada. Half of us cried, a few started smoking that day. A couple joked in an obvious effort to relieve the tension and were quickly shushed. No one took it lightly. This is not an amusement park. This is a place to learn and remember. But it is powerful and makes you a better human.
In Germany it’s common to visit a concentration camp once with your school class in 9th or 10th grade ( 14-16 years old) and I tell you, the behavior of the kids is very diverse. Some cry, some are making jokes, not necessarily out of disrespect but because they just can’t emotionally open themselves to the tragic especially in company of their classmates. When I did this trip a kid pulled out their e-cigarette in the crematorium. I think everyone remembers the day they visit a former concentration camp, but everyone reacts different to the atmosphere.
As someone who has spent most of my life in Australia, I have never had the ability to visit any of these places to pay respects, which is a bit sad for me as my mother’s side of the family were Ashkenazi from Hungary, and not a lot of them survived the war. I still remember, in Year 11 or 12, when we went into depth on the subject of the Holocaust and the Nazi regime. The level of blatant disrespect from many of the other students in the classroom, especially during the lessons where we discussed the camps and the death tolls of different groups, and all of that, was genuinely horrific to me. Some of them were even laughing, making jokes or talking over the teacher. It got to a point where we had to actually stop the lesson a few times. I still remember some of them asking why we even needed to learn about these things, and how it didn’t matter that much to them since it hadn’t happened to them, because that day I got up, and I turned around to look at the other students (I sat front row) and absolutely lost it at them. No yelling or anything, but I very much told them off. I will never forget the look on those teens faces when they realised that not only did their words have impact, but that there were people in their own class whose families were in fact affected by those horrific tragedies. I also doubt I will forget how proud my teacher (who was equally disgusted by their behaviour) was. I truly hope that people will stop with this kind of awful behaviour, because it’s disrespectful, cruel and in many ways making a mockery out of the terrible things people went through.
My niece went there for the first time when she was 14 years old for a tour. When asked about it, and if she found it difficult. She said the most difficult part of the tour she found was walking out of the gas chamber. When asked why was that she said, “because they didn’t get to.” Right there we knew she understood.
I visited this place a few years ago. Never in my life have i felt a more eerie presance, the air was heavy and everything was completely quiet. Much like in a funeral as a coffin is lowered into the dirt, just never ending. Everyone around me back then did act appropriatly, i can’t imagine how anyone wouldn’t.
In 1976 I was in the British Army stationed at Bergen-Hohne, just over a mile up the road from Bergen-Belsen. I walked around the site for over an hour. Even though the place has been sort of sanitised there was an eerie atmosphere. Low mounds surrounded by low walls bearing plaques stating the number of dead in each mound. You leave such a place with so many thoughts spinning around your head.
My senior year of high school 26 students (including myself) are selected for an educational WW2 trip to europe. On that trip we visit 2 separate concentration camps. I distinctly remember how the energy instantly changed as soon as we got off the bus. Every student almost immediately assumed a respectful quietness. there was little conversation about anything other than how truly awful this must have been for all involved. I cannot imagine how insensitive and disconnected you have to be to treat a place like this with such disrespect.
Im Polish. I went to that camp before COVID. There was no hustle or bustle like in other places you might visit. Eerie silence. Just the sound of wind and birds flying by, or cars in the distance. It was really something you have to see to belive. The complex is massive, and split into two parts. Auschwitz and Birkenau. There is a wall that was lined with so many bullet holes that you could see the lead acumulating in some spots from the bullets striking the previous ones that got stuck in the concrete. Our tour was really well behaved unlike the one youre talking abaout today. I do not have a single photo from that trip, and yet the images of the wall, the gas chambers and crematoriums where you imagine the days where the camp was still operational stay in your mind, forever.
Here in Austria, there’s a concentration camp called Mauthausen. A couple classes went there on a school trip. My grandfather, whom I have never met before, survived a concentration camp in Germany, and my father often told me the stories about how his father survived such a terrible place. Just knowing that a family member of mine had to go through such horror pains me. When we arrived there the first thing our guide told us was to respect Mauthausen and the victims it had taken. A couple of my classmates and I brought some candles to light at the memorial placed in the middle of a park. However, some of my other classmates made antisemitic jokes, some raised their right arm as the Nazis did, and some just laughed throughout the whole trip. When I confronted some about it they looked at me with such confusion, it baffled me. I asked my teacher to do something about it but in the end, nothing was done. Looking back at it I feel really bad for those kids. Nobody ever taught them to respect such places. We must educate others on how to treat topics like that. Great article Patrick! This message must be spread!
When I was a sophomore high school, my history teacher was a football coach. Since I really didn’t like sports, I didn’t feel much respect for him. However, he decided to show us evidence films from the Nuremberg trials, not some fictional but the real stuff, for two weeks of class. I remember perusal football players coming out of that class crying. I have never forgotten how perusal those felt. I can never forget, and I’m glad. Such monstrosity, carried out by fellow human beings on their fellow human beings, is too terrible to forget. Now that I’m old, I still haven’t forgotten. I am grateful for having to watch those. I almost went to Matthausen once, but knew my wife at the time could not take that. Never forget.
My sister and I went to Dachau int eh 80’s with my sister. From the moment we entered the camp, we were silent and did not speak until we were outside again, and had walked away from the camp. It was an overwhelming experience and one we will never forget. Unfortunately, we too experienced tourists and bad behavior in a place that is a memorial to the suffering of millions.
If you’re asked not to photograph certain things, it’s just common courtesy to do as you’re told. I was 15 when I visited Auschwitz, and it was right after that viral thing on Twitter with the girl who had taken a smiling selfie at Auschwitz and posted it online. Some of my classmates took some pictures with me in them, but more as a result of me just walking by, or that we were all going somewhere. I wasn’t posing for a photo or anything. More just to show our parents that we were there.
I went thru a display here in NZ which is a tribute to the ANZAC soldiers at Gallipoli. It’s quite harrowing, emotional and confronting. I was disgusting to see some teenagers treating it like a fun tour. One of the guides spoke to them quite harshly and reminded them this represented many fallen men and women.
For those who weren’t there. In the gaschambers you can see deep nail scratches in the walls. You can see the agony the victims went through as they knew they were dying and panic overcame them in their desperate fight. Making out in this chamber is most disgusting. I also saw girls pushing their ass against fences and taking photos of each other and like he said that made me feel angry and ashamed that I didn’t say anything.
Absolutely agree with you. My strongest memory ofAuschwitz is the poor behaviour of some visitors. I saw people posing for photos with their heads in the opening of the ovens, and some taking selfies of themselves posing with their fingers in the bullet holes in the wall of an execution yard. Truly appalling behaviour.
I went to Sachsenhausen on a school trip a few years back. I’m glad to say none of my 15/16 year old classmates acted in the ways you mentioned. When our guide told us not to take photos we didn’t, when she was explaining the kinds of activity that went on in the camp everyone was very respectful. I can’t imagine how people could act like that in such a place
I came in this place with my class when I was in high school, the way they behaved was digusting to me. Shouting and laughing, while I was standing there, where my grandfather was before me and was tortured because he helped people who needed it and hid them … it was mortifying to see that people didn’t care at all
One thing that always sticks in my mind when I visited Auschwitz, was the eerie feeling of standing in the footsteps of all those innocent people who died in that camp. To be standing right where they stepped off the trains and then standing next to the places where they were gassed and then burned in the ovens leaves a strange feeling of, under different circumstances and at a different time, I or anyone else that has lived before or since, could have been in their place.
in middle school, our teacher played a article like this for the class. if i remember correctly, some of my classmates were simply talking and laughing with each other. i used to have many jewish kids in my class and they were among them. weeks later, there was a school assembly honoring people that died in war. after it had ended, i heard my classmate say that “it was so boring”. these people revolt me and have done so for as long as i have known them and i hope they just grow up if they havent already.
my religious education teacher was telling us about her trip, and she said she was angry and upset because they weren’t allowed in the gas chambers as they were being cleaned because school children had written all over the walls and that really broke my heart that they had so little respect edit: when i say school children i mean comprehensive children, as in ages 15-16 and maybe older they definitely knew what they were doing
As a 9th grader my entire class went on a school trip to visit historic places from WW2. Auschwitz was one of the stops. I still remember the feeling I had in Auschwitz to this day more than 12 years later. It is a hard feeling to describe. You know you are standing on the grave of a million people. The horrific things they were put through. There was just an aura over the entire place. A feeling of dread. Of respect for the dead. And the honor of remembering them. It was a powerful thing for a young man like myself to experience but I still carry it with me to this day. And it saddens me deeply that people would disrespect Auschwitz and the horrors that took place there like this.
I was there in 1985…we had a private tour. I came out emotionally shell shocked and drained…even though I knew what Auschwitz was it was still an overwhelming experience. How sad that so many who visit don’t understand what they are seeing and are so callous and thoughtless, so ignorant. Let us all resolve to find the courage to speak up against this kind of behavior when visiting concentration camps. To remind people to show respect. Thank you for posting this…I agree it should be played to everyone before they enter a camp…. Thank you.
I’ve actually been to Auschwitz twice, since half my family is from Poland. I don’t have any articles or photos of it. Just memories of seeing the horrible things that happened to the people. When I was there, I actually ran into a kind lady who told my mom and I about her experience as a twin there. There’s actually a documentary about her on YouTube now. Just horrible things that happened, and she was so very nice to us.
Amen I had a similar experience when I went to Dachau. After the first stop when people were acting a fool I didn’t do or say a thing. When we got to the next facility I did ask the tour guide if I could speak, he said yes so I simply spoke in a very direct relatively loud voice that if cannot respect the thousands of innocent lives taken by the Nazis and honor them with reverence you should leave. NO PHOTOS, NO TALKING! I pointed at a sign, I ended with Be quiet and be respectful of those lost! The rest of the visit no one spoke nor took photos!
I’ve been to Bergen-Belsen and Sachsenhausen and they are truly humbling places to visit. Standing in a room or open area where you know tens of thousands of people were inhumanely tortured and killed is an experience like nothing else. Both places were eerily quiet despite the number of tourists there. I’ll never forget them.
It’s just like this at the 911 memorial. I’m a New Yorker and every time I’m at the memorial people are talking on phones, taking selfies, laughing and acting very oblivious to the horrible event. My parents watched what happened and my dad took a photo. If you ever go to the 911 memorial in New York don’t do this.
We visited Auschwitz on my school trip to Krakow begin 2017. My classmates normally behave quite childish and make jokes throughout the classes all the time. It truly was a shock to me how respectful they all were. No one looked on their phones, nobody talked loud etc. Just looking arround, thinking and talking with eachother about the events that had taken place in a very mature way.
I went to both Audchwitz and Auschwitz-Birkenau on the last day of an erasmus when I was 12. It was me, two history teachers of my school and 5 of my classmates. I remember walking behind the group we were right beside the train tracks, and while me, my best friend and another boy walked quietly and honestly we were just terrified, the other two boys started to play on top of the train tracks, running and trying to keep balance as they laughed and made silly noises. My teacher got furious but waited to scold them until we were on the bus while me and my best friend cried to our parents on the phone. I will never forget how heavy the air felt as you got closer to the camp.
My English teacher in High school almost cried when she heard a lot of us say we would be excited to visit a concentration camp. Instead of reading a book about something we didn’t care about she spent the next week educating us on the horrors of the camps and made us write papers about the individual camps and got the whole high-school (which was about 120 students) packed into a room the size of a boxcar. She made a week of high-school depressing as hell but I thank her for doing that.
Absolutely agree. I remember visiting Notre Dame on a Sunday morning. People were lining up for mass and I thought I’d try to attend. It was wonderful. Very moving. But in the back of the church was a continuously moving line of tourists taking pictures. The mass meant nothing to them. They just wanted the photo and to move along. Never been to Auschwitz. Probably never will. But your admonition is absolutely appropriate. If you can’t find the time to understand what you’re looking at and where you are, don’t go.
Thank you for raising your voice. I thought I was the only who saw that kind of behaviour disrespectful. I remember that I told my friends to be polite, respectful and to follow the rules of the place. When we entered the crematorium of Auswitchz I, a group of teenagers entered with us and started yelling, laughing and taking pictures even though at the entrance there was a sign that said to please not take photos. I felt so embarrased of being part of a generation that can’t understand what they are seeing. My experience there was of suffering, pain and fear. You could literally feel those emotions getting out from the walls. I couldn’t do anything but pray.
I remember in 9th grade, my teacher showed us a documentary with Ellie Wiesel talking about the camps. I was barely holding it together; but when they mentioned how they used the shaved hair as stuffing for pillow cases and sold them to German citizens during the war, I lost it. I don’t even know how long I cried, it was easily for hours. We must never forget what happened, it’s our duty to never let their memory fade. I can’t even fathom how people could act like that, especially on the site.
when i was abt 8 years old, i visited Dachau with my mom and when we were in the courtyard where they took attendance, i looked down at the rocks, looked back up at my mom and said “we’re standing on the same rocks as those prisoners” and i don’t think i’ve said anything more eerie, but it was true. it was probably one of the most eye opening experiences i have ever had visiting a place.
I went there in 2004 and thankfully I was with a private group. I’ve always remembered the almost reverence of our guide who spoke in hushed tones. The whole atmosphere seemed somehow hushed that day, and I remember the horror of actually standing in a gas chamber and thinking about what these people had gone through. How anyone can find it entertaining I can never understand. Thank you for sharing.
I’m from Germany and I visited a concentration camp with my school a few years ago. I actually have to say that I haven’t seen anyone from my school doing things that would have been disrespectful but. I was more shocked to see how other visitors behaved. Some took family pictures (wtf) or started eating snacks in certain places, right after the guide explained that people were murdered right where we were standing. I genuinely couldn’t understand that. I’m glad that some students and also teachers went to these persons and told them to stop.
Thank you for this article, my grandmother was imprisoned at the camp and watched her parents, grandparent’s and siblings murdered by the 3rd Reich. I witnessed the same behavior when I was there several years ago and was asked to leave because I spoke up. My grandmother always said that everyone should see it once in their and maybe it would change the world, unfortunately I think humanity is so desensitized to things that genocide on that scale doesn’t phase them anymore.
When I was in tenth grade, we went on a school trip down to Germany and Poland to visit concentration camps and personally see how horrific it was. I already knew a lot about the horrors of ww2, so I wasn’t surprised by what I saw there but it still had a big impact on me. I think the two toughest things to see were the several thousand shoes, and the inhumane bathrooms. It was when we saw the bathrooms it really hit me how inhumane these people had been treated. One single row of ten holes in the ground in the middle of the room. That was the entire bathroom. Around fifty people at a time had just a few minutes to evacuate their bowels with everyone else perusal and waiting for their chance for the «luxury» of shitting in a «toilet» instead of out where they worked. And it was when we saw all the shoes that I really understood that these were ACTUAL people. I know that sounds stupid but you don’t really get that impression the same way anywhere else. If you read about the holocaust, 6 million lives quickly become numbers on a page, instead of real life people with real life stories. Seeing that gigantic pile of shoes really showcased that every single one of those six million numbers was a life. A living person who arrived st the concentration camp with a suitcase packed to the brim with their most prized possesions and a pair of shoes.
I honestly don’t know how this came up in my recommended but I am so thankful that it did. Nor did I know that I felt as strongly about this as I did. I would have never thought people would be so disrespectful, unthoughtful and inconsiderate. It’s hard to stand up against a crowd. You’ve done it now. Thank you for sharing and posting.
I’m late to the party on this one, but I’ll share a story anyway: My great grandad was a Polish soldier at the time of the Nazi blitzkreig. He was not Jewish, for the record. He was a prisoner at a concentration camp for 2 years (not Aushwitchz, although I don’t know if he ever told anyone which one) before he escaped. He didn’t talk about it much, no one really ever knew the full extent of what happened to him while he was there, not even the woman he ended up marrying in Canada (my great gran.) I met him only when I was very little, and I don’t really remember him. My mother said he was always kind to her and my auntie when they were little kids, in spite of the the fact that he was an alcoholic… he drank vermouth because it was cheap, lots of it, every day. My grandad only ever told my mother one story about his time in the camp. He had a scar on his leg, and one day (when he was wearing shorts) my mom saw the scar and asked him where he got it. He told her flatly that at one point, he and some of the other prisoners were starving in the camp, as the guards were not feeding them. They resorted to cutting small pieces off of their own legs and eating them to survive. My grandad wasn’t even a Jewish person and he went through terrible things in one of those camps. I can’t begin to properly imagine what hell those poor souls went through at Aushwitz. Thank you for honouring the dead, thank you for your message. I am appalled at some people and their disrespect.
My father was one of the liberators of Dachau. We were stationed in Germany in the late 50’s and took us to the camp. It was the only time I ever saw him break down and cry. He couldn’t even bring himself to go inside. He said what he had seen there was just too horrible. He later told us that just sitting in the car he could literally see the faces of the people looking out of from behind the fences & the dead stacked in piles. I can vividly remember the ovens and the showers. That was 1957 and I remember it like it happened yesterday. Unfortunately, I’ve seen similar behavior at other places, the cemeteries at Gettysburg, Arlington, Normandy, etc. People treating literally sacred ground as if it was a family picnic. Its disgusting to me and a reflection on how our current society is filled with narcissists and idiots.
I visited Buchenwald in September 2022. That place was harrowing. I remember just standing and staring at most of the stuff crying bc it’s still so horrible to think that these terrible things were happening while Weimar slept peacefully just a few kilometers away. How can we treat other humans this way?
For me as a German, I think it is a duty to learn about this dark chapter in the history of our country. Some time ago I visited the concentration camp Neuengamme near Hamburg. It was a rainy, cold Monday morning and I was pretty much the only person there. I left my phone and everything in the car on purpose and wandered across the area alone for hours, saying nothing and taking everything in. I think, that’s the only way to experience a place like that. You made a very important article.
Our school organised a trip to go there. But i couldn’t go because i had issues with my traveling permit. I’ve always wanted to go there mainly because of the things victims have left behind. And seeing real photos of people that stayed there gives me a feeling of connection, i want to just sit there and see everyone of their faces. I did visit a jewish museum in France where i saw kids’ names engraved, there were so many of them and some unknown/unidentified. It saddens me how little respect is shown for tragedies that are well known.
I am so glad you made this article and that you at least recognized the sanctity of this historical location. I feel great sadness that there are people who would act in such a disrespectful and inhumane manner. Who ever said that those who do not learn from the past are condemned to repeat it certain knew what they were talking about.
Just visited Auschwitz on Friday. Harrowing is an understatement and as much as you get taught about the Holocaust in school absolutely nothing prepares you for how much of an impact standing on the grounds of Auschwitz I & II has. For those who have been the barrack with the photos hits hard, when you see so many lives which were taken in unspeakable ways. That’s before you’re taken to the many other parts of the camps. That said, everybody must go to Auschwitz at one point in your life. Because once you go and leave, it will humble you to the point your life will never be the same as it was before you went.
It’s the 31k that downvoted this that really makes you wonder as well. So much harder to grow older and look at what some people care and don’t care about. It’s even harder not to just flat give up on people in general and just isolate so you can get through the rest of this life with as little disappointment and disillusionment as one can. Thank you Mr. Ney for the article.
I went in 2019, I was alone as a 20 year old kid from the US, I saw a lot of that behavior you mentioned which was mostly groups of young men in their 30’s joking and acting ‘normally’. I was pleasantly surprised by the end of the tour seeing their demeanors completely changed and they were all moved to tears but the mid part of the tour. It’s a draining experience for sure.
I went there in 2006, and luckily the people in my group showed the proper respect. I found the visit deeply moving, with emotions that are with me to this day. Our English-speaking group rode a bus in from Krakow. On the way there we got to know each other, but on the way back no one said a word . You can’t go there as a thoughtful human and not be changed for life.
I went to a concentration camp with my school class a few years ago. When we got there everybody became silent and I truly think that that’s the absolute right thing to do. We were still kind of children and children do not always behave in a way that is respectful to some people and definitely not respectful to the people who died at those concentration camps but everybody just kind of knew that you should be respectful and part of being respectful was remaining silent. Of course we talked but nobody joked, nobody said anything funny and we all took that really serious. We were still relatively young at the age of 14 to 15 and me and my friends were actually talking about “beating somebody up” after the visit if they didn’t behave respectfully. Those things were of course said a bit sarcastically but that just showed the scale at which we at least are my friends and me thought of this camp. Living in Germany I’ve of course always been connected to the things that happen in the third Reich and the history of that is still quite obvious. I live in an old house and just a few days ago when I was cleaning out an old cupboard and I found books from 1944 even a list of songs that were played In the church on Christmas Eve 1944. Then seeing somebody being so disrespectful of the people that died under the reign of the Nazis it’s just sick to me.this is still connected to me so directly just through my family.I don’t know if my grandparents were Nazis, but Hitler had really high approval rates in the part of Germany where I live.
I’ve been to see Anne Frank’s house in Amsterdam in 1996 and the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin in 2019 and everyone in both of these places was very respectful. No laughing or giggling or selfie taking. In fact myself and another lady were crying in Anne Frank’s house. I had read her diary but standing in the house just made the horror so real.
Me and my family visited Dachau. It was so heavy. After a few hours, I felt emotionally exhausted, I couldn’t wait to leave, once we were in the parking lot we could talk and laugh again but it still felt a little wrong. Because I knew I could leave and go back to the hotel, and stop thinking about that horrible place, but the people who were held there, for them it was not a memorial, it was their life and death.
The same thing happened in 1974 when I visited Dachau with my dad, who was a liberator, my mom and my sister. We saw children running around and playing tag, laughing all the while. We saw young couples holding hands and whispering to each other, oblivious to the history of the grounds they were walking. Dad was understandably very withdrawn that day and we left him to his thoughts but I watched him walk and watched his eyes. He was reliving the day he and his men were the first American soldiers to enter the camp. We stayed only a little over three hours and had to take a bus to catch a train to take us back to Munich. That night Dad asked us if we’d noticed the kids playing tag and we said yes. He didn’t say anything else about Dachau…
I remember visiting Auschwitz on a school trip when we were between 10 and 12 years old. We were probably not very respectful to the place because, as small kids, we simply couldn’t understand the solemnity of the place we were visiting. Fortunately, we were not allowed to see the full exhibition. After decades, and having revisited Auschwitz as an adult, I cannot understand how a teacher could come up with such a twisted and thoughtless idea to take us there as children.
While I didn’t visit Auschwitz, one of our school trips in 9th or 10th grade was to a concentration camp in Dachau. When I’m nervous I tend to laugh or smile or something like that and being there made me nervous but knowing how disrespectful my habit would be I repressed it. I would feel ashamed if I showed a positive reaction at anything there as there wasn’t anything positive. At some point, we went into one of the gas chambers and I don’t know why but I cried a few steps in. It seemed illogical to me as I have no personal connection to that place. And I even feel a bit ashamed for crying as I was the only one in my class and I just feel bad for it. I can’t even imagine how someone thinks joking about anything there, is okay. These places showcase one of the cruellest acts in human history. Something that shouldn’t be joked about or taken lightly.
I am old and want to go to Auschwitz. Not as a bucket list tick off, but because of memories as a young child meeting a survivor and her blind mother (blinded by medical experiments). They were the only survivors of their family. They sat in our home, strong and humble. Not victims, but survivors. It changed my whole life. My way of seeing the world. The good and bad. When things got hard in my life, I remembered them and just kept going. We can not forget Edit: I remember her telling us a week before liberation of their hopes and fears, as it had been decided that there would be no survivors and they didn’t know what would happen 1st. Death or liberation. She talked about her liberation also, one would think it was joyous, but they were left to walk to nearby towns and were very weak and the towns couldn’t accommodate or feed them all. The young-looking survivors would lie about being minors so they could go to adoptive families.
I completely understand and agree with you. I visited Dachau concentration camp in 1964. There were a few other people there too, but they were respectful. My attention was focused on what I was seeing and feeling: the brutal pain and suffering and imagining that I was one of the prisoners. How would I be able to live each day with constant hunger, terror, brutality that was meted out without thought…. And when would the death blow come? It is a place that you visit with wanting to get a glimpse of what people had to endure and the horror that they were subjected to. You want to let them know, in some way, that you are aware of their misery in this place and your soul cries for them. It was so despicable.
Fortunately during my visit everyone in my group behaved well, showing respect for the memory of those who perished. It was profoundly disturbing but I am grateful to have seen it. There is a film out now called “The Zone of Interest” which can be found on Prime and this is about Rudolph Höss the Kommandant and his family. It is a very powerful depiction especially as the wife stated that her happiest time was when they were at Auschwitz. The gallows where Höss was hanged is there.
Thank you! My parents and I visited quite some years ago and we also noticed this behavior, people were only interested is showing their friends that they visited Auschwitz and treated it like some sort of accomplishment that they were there. Everyone solemnly did the tour and some even seemed to listen to what the guide had to say but as soon as they went back out the gate, it was all smiles and happiness like it hadn’t affected them and like they didn’t even realize where they were – more like they were there for the thrill. I’ll never forget one specific thing. There was an old man there, he’d been in multiple concentration camps and spent quite some time in Auschwitz; it was there that he was liberated. He was there that day to tell his story (or at least the parts that he could, some things were understandably still too emotional to talk about) but so many people just walked past or took maybe 2 or 3 minutes to listen only to continue their way. I mean, this is someone that you should listen to when given the chance. I was also annoyed by a group of Israeli people; they were only there to pose for pictures with a flag that they’d brought. They walked around like they owned the place but seemed to not really respect the place, the people that did the guided tour or the people that were on it. I get their message but their behavior was just pure arrogance. That place and its history demand more respect that what it’s getting from most visitors.
I visited the Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor and the sailor running the launch gave a five minute speech on how to act once we arrived at the memorial itself. I’m pleased to report that absolutely everyone maintained the proper demeanor of respect and reverence. Thankfully these sites are not always ruined by clueless tourists.
When I was there, we cried and hugged each other. We were quiet, and sad. Nobody took pictures. We also had a 98 year old Jew with us who had actually been there, whose brother had been killed there. It was surreal and terrible. But also very interesting. Those people who were with you should be ashamed of themselves. Such disrespect.
I totally understand. I went to a location where atrocities were committed and became very somber. My “friends” repeatedly put me down calling me “negative”. I tried to explain my empathy and started to feel totally crazy in doing so– why should I have to explain this to them? I realize now that these people are not my friends and never were.
When I was on a school field trip to Belgium, we visited a place where prisoners of war were held and executed, and we saw the firing post. Some people from my class thought it would be a funny to strip dance around it. Yeah long story short the teachers sent them back home on the ferry and they got suspended from school.
I remember going to the 9/11 museum in high school a few years back and a teenager from another tour group stuck his trash in one of the engraved names on the waterfall memorial. I don’t think I’ve ever been more angry in my life, I walked over and pulled it out and looked him in the eyes as I threw it in the trash can. The nerve of some people.
I’m half polish Jew, many of my grandfathers friends and family were murdered at auschwitz. I have been there once, and seen the shoes, suitcases and human hair, and thought that there’s a good chance someone related to me had something on display there. It made me cry. Hearing that people disrespect those items makes me want to cry more. I can’t believe that people do this. It sickens me.
When I went to the US holocaust museum, I saw the floor-mounted TV’s with walls around them so kids couldn’t see the more graphic images. Every single parent lifted their kid over the wall and sat them on it so they could watch images of people being tortured, mutilated, and killed. The entire visit, there was a woman letting her two sons run around and make jokes about “the skinny funny people.” And pretend to be “like the strong soldiers” near them. Simply put, all I have to say is, don’t bring kids that aren’t in the high school range to such places.
Two years ago, I took my husband to Auschwitz. It was my third visit (Poland is my birth-country and my paternal grandfather was a Holocaust survivour) and, while I warned hubby that, no matter how many war movies and documentaries he’d seen, he wasn’t prepared for seeing the reality in person, he was absolutely overwhelmed by the experience and it made him very emotional. We were in one of the barracks in the Birkenau camp and hubby was just trying to get his head around the conditions that the people were living in but there was a school group of teenagers who were making noise, mucking around and laughing. No teacher in sight. Hubby absolutely cracked the shits at them. I’m not sure how much the kids understood of someone with a broad Australian accent telling them off in English, but he’s a big fellow and the tone of his voice was more than enough to shut them up.
My great grandma escaped a concentration camp at 16, with a boy, they got married, sadly he died she’s pushing 96! Edit: everyone wants a longer story so here it goes! ( I don’t really know the story because she doesn’t like talking about it) My great grandma was 16 when she was brought to a concentration camp, she spent a year or so there. She had made friends with a bunch of young people about her age one of those people was my great grandpa ( who we’ll call Dave) Dave and my grandma ( who we’ll call, hmmm let’s say cally ) Dave and cally got along really well, ( I don’t know this middle part that much) they made a plan to escape, in the middle of the night, cally and Dave made their great escape, my grandma recalls hearing a bunch of guard dogs. They took a train to France I believe, so now they are in France, no money, no family, no relatives of any kind, cally got a job at a rich family’s house they felt terrible and paid more than usual. They managed to get back up on their feet, the family provided money, food and a place to live, the plan was: at the end of the war, they move to Poland ( my grandma’s birth place ) FASTFORWARD TO THE END OF THE WAR: They move to Poland, they have enough money to buy a small apartment and live for a few months, so that’s what they do! They bought a small apartment, found jobs and had a family. She still lives in that apartment to this day. In 2003 I believe my great grandpa died. EDIT 2!!: SHE GOT DOSE 1 OF THE COVID VACCINE SHE WILL BE GETTING DOES 2 IN A FEW WEEKS EDIT 3: My grandma made COVID her bitch.
Absolutely 100%! Unfortunately there is a tsunami of narcissism where people can’t comprehend a world that isn’t about themselves. This breeds a true lack of empathy and reverence for life. Thank you for being in touch with your humanity. This is what’s needed to prevent the horrendous past repeating.
I agree with everything you have said. My husband and I visited a few years ago. I’m glad to say everyone in our group were very respectful. In fact all around people were all very quiet and shocked, as we all were on what we were seeing and hearing. I can’t believe people were actually taking photos. As someone commented here, your article should be shown to all on entering Auschwitz .
Thank you for this important article. I visited Dachau in Germany some years ago and completely agree that it is very important for visitors to be respectful and contemplative of the unspeakable cruelty of such a place. And to learn from the history these places are intended to help teach, so these acts are never normalized or accepted anywhere on Earth.
When I was 17 my entire grade had a “field trip” to Auschwitz. It hit everyone especially hard because we are Jewish. We learn about the holocast a lot in our schools, every year we have a Memorial Day to pay our respect for both those who passed and the few that survived to this day. And we will never forget. And yet seeing that horrible place with our own eyes, the atmosphere…it just smothers you with despair and a numb feeling in your chest when you leave. If you’ve been there you’ll know what I mean. The fact that people disrespect the dead like this both disgusts me and makes me disappointed with humanity.
Thank you for making this article. I Visited that place in 2018 and was forever changed. There were as you say tourists taking photos where photography isn’t allowed, I nudged an American tourist for taking photos in the gas chamber. My wife wants to visit Auschwitz because she’s into her history, we live in Australia so it’s a long way to travel but I’m so happy someone has made a article to demonstrate the negative side. We visit places like this so humanity is aware of how bad humans can be towards each other and it’s gives you a whole new outlook on life and appreciation for what you have.
My class went to Auschwitz in like 8th grade or so. At the end of the trip we had to take a photo (the teachers were obligated to take photos to prove that they actually took us to all the places on the trip plan) and I remember everyone was so uncomfortably and awkward because how do you act when someone asks you to pose for a photo in front of a concentration camp.
I know I’m about 2 years late, but thank you. This means so much. I am sick and tired of people treating g the mass extermination of my people as a cute little trip to Disneyland. As if there will be a cute little souvenir shop at the end of their tours. 6 million of my people died, and all you think about is a cute selfie? Despicable.
When I went to Auschwitz, I didn’t took any “selfie”, I didn’t felt to smile at all, in fact, I cried a lot, almost in every place we visited. I went with a group where none of us were jews, but we were always respecting everything, and also almost all of us were teens. (I say this because you don’t have to be jew, or be an adult to be respectful, that’s the example I want to give) It was summer, a really sunny and hot one, but I swear when we arrived to the camps, there was a big cloud, it felt cold and was cold, something that was very strange for me, later it rained. I also took some pictures in places that I felt were necessary to remember and also respectful in some way, later when I saw them, almost all looked very foggy. If you go to a place that has history, specifically this type of history, you always have to be respectful, and have empathy.
gives me chills every time to see any documentary on this horror. Your presentation was so good, and the setting, snow and fade away at end with who will bear witness. It was excellent. That such lack of respect exhibited so blatantly is appalling. Who could do anything but walk in stunned silence, wiping tears?
Thank you for this. My husband and I visited the Scottish National War Memorial in Edinburgh Castle in the early 90’s. Everyone was very quiet and respectful. Then two women walked in laughing loudly. The docents were on them in seconds and told them to leave, which they did. If disrespectful people would be escorted out of these places, I think everyone would benefit.