Page 95 - Centrum Dialogu im. Marka Edelmana w Łodzi. "Fragmenty pamięci".

Wielka Szpera 5-12 września 1942 The Great Szpera, 5-12 September 1942

The Germans took away the old, the sick, the infirm and, first and foremost, children under the age
of 10, whom they deemed “unproductive” as they could not work. Around 600 people were killed while
escaping or trying to rescue their loved ones. At least 15,681 Jews had been deported from the ghetto
by 12 September – these are the official figures. However, it is likely that the number was as high as
20,000. They were all murdered in the extermination camp in Chełmno. On 14 September, by order of
the German ghetto administrator Hans Biebow, total production in all workplaces had already begun.
The ghetto was transformed into a massive labour camp, and life seemingly returned to normal.
Those who survived still remember the tragic eight days of the Great Szpera. And they remember the
silence that fell upon the ghetto.

Już latem 1942 roku w resortach były zatrudniane małe dzieci, by je chronić przed deportacją.
As early as the summer of 1942, young children were employed in the resorts to protect them from deportation
The panic in the city is beyond description. No work anywhere, everyone is running to get
work placements for those who are not yet working, parents of unfortunate children are
trying to save them by all means. The registration office, once the lists have been drawn
up, has been sealed. It was done in order for any attempts at the rescue (in the form of
falsification of metrics, registration books and other documents and the drafting of death
certificates, and the like) to fail. Today at our Arbeitseinsatz, some bizarre scenes were
happening until two o’clock. Work placements were issued on the spur of the moment.
However, it is already being said that it doesn’t matter, as there is going to be a general
”szpera” (prohibition on leaving houses), during which medical committees will examine
and decide on fitness for work.

The Diary of Dawid Sierakowiak, 4 September 1942

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