The Experiences of Those Imprisoned at Auschwitz-Birkenau


The Experiences of Those Imprisoned at Auschwitz-Birkenau

Life at Auschwitz-Birkenau was brutal and dehumanizing. Upon arrival at the camp, prisoners were subjected to a selection process, in which SS doctors decided who was fit to work and who would be sent to the gas chambers.

Those deemed fit for work were tattooed with a serial number and sent to the barracks, where they were given ragged uniforms and subjected to forced labor in a variety of industries, including mining, construction, and manufacturing.


Conditions in the barracks were incredibly harsh, with prisoners given minimal food and water, little or no medical care, and forced to sleep on wooden planks with no bedding. The prisoners were also subjected to regular beatings and torture by the SS guards, who used a variety of methods to maintain control over the population.


Prisoners at Birkenau were also subjected to the horrors of the gas chambers, where they were stripped of their clothes and belongings before being led to their deaths. The gas chambers were disguised as shower rooms, and the victims were told they were going to be deloused before being led inside.

Once the victims were inside, the SS guards would drop pellets of Zyklon B, a poisonous gas, through holes in the ceiling. The victims would die within minutes, and their bodies would be removed and burned in massive crematoria.


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