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Moments of what we call history and moments of what we call memory

Marian Stefanowski, Tower “A” – Entrance to Sachsenhausen concentration camp, 14 November 2019

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  • Tower “A” – Entrance to Sachsenhausen concentration camp - Marian Stefanowski, Tower “A” – Entrance to Sachsenhausen concentration camp, 14 November 2019
  • Panorama of the concentration camp - Marian Stefanowski, Panorama of the concentration camp, View from the entrance, Tower “A”. Left: Muster ground I, Right: Muster ground II, 12 August 2018.
  • Muster ground I - Marian Stefanowski, Muster ground I, 12 August 2018
  • Area with outlines of barracks - Marian Stefanowski, Area with outlines of barracks, 14 November 2019
  • Area with outlines of barracks - Marian Stefanowski, Area with outlines of barracks, 14 November 2019
  • Barracks 39 and 38 – Concentration Camp Museum - Marian Stefanowski, Barracks 39 and 38 – Concentration Camp Museum, 14 November 2019
  • Barrack 38 – Dormitory for 250 prisoners - Marian Stefanowski, Barrack 38 – Dormitory for 250 prisoners, 14 November 2019
  • Barrack 38 – Washroom - Marian Stefanowski, Barrack 38 – Washroom, 12 August 2018
  • Barrack 38 – “Toilets” - Marian Stefanowski, Barrack 38 – “Toilets”, 12 August 2018
  • Electric fence - Marin Stefanowski, Electric fence, 14 November 2019
  • Execution trenches - Marian Stefanowski, Execution trenches – commemorative plaque – to the first mass murder of 33 Poles on 9 November 1940, 14 November 2019
  • Execution trenches - Marian Stefanowski, Execution trenches – looking towards the crematorium, 12 August 2018
  • Crematorium – bronze sculpture by Waldemar Grzimek - Marin Stefanowski, Crematorium – bronze sculpture by Waldemar Grzimek, 14 November 2019
  • Remains of the crematorium - Marian Stefanowski, Remains of the crematorium after the explosions 1952 and 1953, 12 August 2018
  • Concentration camp grounds looking towards the infirmaries - Marian Stefanowski, Concentration camp grounds looking towards the infirmaries, 12 August 2018
  • Medicine and crime - Marian Stefanowski, Medicine and crime. The sick bay at Sachsenhausen concentration camp 1936-1945, 12 August 2018
  • Medicine and crime - Marian Stefanowski, Medicine and crime. The sick bay at Sachsenhausen concentration camp 1936-1945 – pathology, 12 August 2018
  • Cell construction - Marian Stefanowski,  Cell construction – a mysterious place of gruesome abuse and murder, 4 November 2019
  • Cell construction - Marian Stefanowski,  Cell construction – a mysterious place of gruesome abuse and murder, 14 November 2019
  • Memorial to the memory of the Polish General Stefan Rowecki “GROT” - Marian Stefanowski, Memorial to the memory of the Polish General Stefan Rowecki “GROT”, murdered 1944, 14 November 2019
  • One of the places housing the ashes of those murdered in the concentration camp - Marian Stefanowski, One of the places housing the ashes of those murdered in the concentration camp, 14 November 2019
  • Burial ground with the ashes of those murdered in the concentration camp - Marian Stefanowski, Burial ground with the ashes of those murdered in the concentration camp; commemorative plaques for the 183 Polish professors arrested in Kraków on 6 November 1939 and dragged to the concentration camp, 14 November 2019
  • Commemorative plaques - Marian Stefanowski, Commemorative plaques for the 183 Polish professors arrested in Kraków on 6 November 1939 and dragged to the concentration camp, 12/08/2018
  • Watch tower "E" - Marian Stefanowski, Watch tower "E", next to which is the entrance to the special camp / Zone II, 14 November 2019
  • Concentration camp special camp/Zone II - Marian Stefanowski, Concentration camp special camp/Zone II, 1945-1950 Soviet special camp No. 7, 14 November 2019
  • Central memorial to the murdered prisoners - Marin Stefanowski, Central memorial to the murdered prisoners, 14 November 2019
  • Mass grave for the concentration camp victims - Marian Stefanowski, Mass grave for the concentration camp victims, 12 August 2018
Entrance to Sachsenhausen concentration camp
Marian Stefanowski, Tower “A” – Entrance to Sachsenhausen concentration camp, 14 November 2019

A reminder of the perpetrators understood thus goes beyond the explicit narrative of the camp experience, although it does not in any way diminish the uniqueness and the terror of this experience. It gives an indication of something else relating to the criterion. Of something that one can and should search for in oneself as well as in the structures of one's own world. At the same time, it appears that only the linking of the empathetic reminder of the victim with the cognitive reminder of the perpetrators, or with the social and mental structures that determine it, facilitate an effective, formative realisation which is so different to the tribal perspective, even if this perspective is just as effective and formative in its own way.

In all this, is it possible that memory petrifies as time goes by and, as the great-grandchildren of the witnesses from that time grow up, assumes a form found in museums that does not have any personal relevance anymore? A form which does not bother us any more than do the bloody excesses  of Assyrian monarchs, the atrocities of Tamburlaine or the organisational structure of the prisons on the Latifundia of the Roman Republic? Sachsenhausen? Yes, that is the place that travel guides describe as an interesting place “near Berlin” that they recommend for a day trip. What is correct is that this place documents drastic and bloody stories, evokes strong emotions which trigger simple reflections about the darker sides of human nature, but overall it is too outlandish and too far removed from the everyday to be able recognise such thoughts as a meaningful narrative about oneself and about one’s own world. Perhaps the stereotypical conclusions drawn by the users and reviewers of the travel portals, by the hurried consumers of tourist attractions or by those who want to experience great emotions are proof of this? It is worth taking comfortable footwear and an umbrella in case it should rain and then have a look at the list of recommended restaurants nearby because human beings are known to get hungry after touring around for hours at a time...

All of this embodies the vision that one of my school friends pointed out in a moment of youthful rebellion when weighed down by all the camp literature on the reading lists: they are warning us by reminding us of these horrors. But would it not perhaps be better to forget them? And if mankind should ever get the idea again to do similar things in the future, would they potentially find them too innovative, too avant-garde? At the time, the question made sense but after so many years, particularly today in the context of the photographic narrative by Marian Stefanowski, I feel compelled to deny it. In the continued creation of new forms of enslavement, of degradation, of exploitation and of killing and in the systematic justification of such things, mankind is characterised by an inventiveness which is not restricted by tradition and, if it is ever impeded then, it is usually due to technological hurdles. For this reason, and not as a result of moral decay, the intensity of the horror reached its peak in modern times. Even if there is no evidence that earlier collective experiences have ever stopped a community from committing crimes, I am advocating quite decidedly for a vigilant, sensitive, empathetic and dedicated nurturing of the memory. You have to be able to back something. Ultimately, it is a moral decision for each of us.