The German invasion and conquest of half of Poland in September
1939 put nearly 2 million Jews under Germany’s jurisdiction.
Among them were the more than 233,000 Jews of Lodz, Poland’s
second largest city after Warsaw. Throughout occupied Poland,
the Germans quickly imposed anti-Jewish policies. Why Do They
Separate Us? “One day, little Rysia asked if Jews looked
different before the war from the way they looked now and if
they ever looked like non Jewish people. After hearing that
there is no real difference between non-Jews and Jews, she
contemplated this for a moment and finally asked: ‘So why do
they separate us from them?’” Sara Plagier, age 15 “The yellow
badge was a kind of stamp. A stamp that distinguished me from
the rest of the population. Anyone could approach me, tell me,
do to me whatever they wanted.” Jutta Szmirgeld, age 12 The
order to wear yellow Stars of David made Polish Jews of all ages
targets for humiliation and violence. German-established ghettos
segregated and subjugated Jews to stri