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Camilla Wade-West, Grade 8 Simple Superwoman How would you feel if your home, children, spouse and freedom were snatched away from you in an instant because of your religion? A person is often labeled and judged by his or her religion, skin color, race, sex, language and appearance. We are all human beings. One should not be treated differently from his neighbor because he looks or acts differently. “It is intolerable that the world’s religions—founded on the values of love and compassion—should provide a pretext for the expression of hatred and violence.” As Federico Mayor describes, people have been separated into groups based on their religions, yet we are all equal under the eyes of God. Many ordinary people became heroes of the Holocaust as they fought to save the Jewish people from devastating persecution. Irene Gut Opdyke was a heroine of the Holocaust who went through a great deal of adversity to help free Jews from Adolf Hitler and the Germans. Irene Gut Opdyke was born on May 5, 1922 in eastern Poland, a child who would one day show the courage of a lion as she risked her life to bring Jews to freedom. Irene describes how her mother taught her the most important lesson a mother can teach her child: how to love and care for other human beings. At the tender age of sixteen she was sent to a Polish nursing school. When the Germans began to attack she volunteered to join the Polish army as a nurse. Irene was raped and beaten and left to die by Russian soldiers. Later on she was sent by the Germans to work in an ammunition factory. It was there where she would start her journey in saving the Jews. Irene was working near a Jewish ghetto where she witnessed appalling things: people being kicked, babies being thrown and shot in the air, even people buried alive. It was from then on that she vowed she would do something, whatever it might be, to change the lives for some of these terrified victims of the German attacks. When Irene was asked to be the German major’s housekeeper she jumped at the chance. At last, she had a place to hide the twelve Jews who were in her care. She had also developed a system where she would warm the Jews of planned attacks set by the Germans and the news would be easily spread around so the areas could be evacuated. Through this she saved hundreds of lives. While doing this, Irene knew that at anytime, if found out, she would be killed. She would take the risk time and time again to protect the Jews. Irene once said to herself, “I knew I could be killed once, and as the saying went, I might as well be hanged for a sheep as for a lamb.” She knew that if the Germans uncovered her secrets then she would be murdered, but one might as well be killed for a major crime as for a petty one. Throughout the Holocaust, millions of people died. People like Irene were courageous and saved many precious lives. If only there were more people like her, willing to give up her own life for the good of mankind. She was determined to be like Florence Nightingale, saving people from death and torture. Irene was a very independent woman who never relied on anyone to get her through life. She is known for her bravery in saving people’s lives, but she also changed people by having such an admirable presence. I look up to Irene for her selfless courage. Often when difficult choices must be made we ask, what is in it for me? Will that interfere with what I want to do? When I consider that an ordinary girl from Poland turned herself into a fierce rescuer, it makes me stop and wonder about life. The human race is so concerned with what people think of them, how much money they have, what they are good at and other materialistic things. Irene spent time thinking about how to hide the Jews, how she could save them and how she could stop the Germans. Now that I have the inspiration of her story I will act differently upon difficult situations. I will remember that Irene fought for others; she never fought to protect herself and was rewarded with the knowledge that she saved hundreds of lives. Maybe I will not save another’s life, but I can still brighten someone’s day or stop them from making a bad decision. I will put others before me and try to encourage my peers to do the same. If I see someone being teased for their color or religion, I can step in and remind them of Irene and the Holocaust. One does not have to have superpower or be physically strong to be a moral hero. The Holocaust was a constant dark night, struggling to find light at the end of the tunnel. Millions were killed and it left the world with a constant reminder that people are cruelly separated by their labels. Even in today’s world we have political issues that may cause a certain race, religion or skin color to be hated. Will we ever change? We must endeavor to erase this kind of prejudice against one race. May we all act courageously in the face of racial discrimination and become like Irene Gut Opdyke, a simple superwoman.
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