Sean Patrick Maloney: “60 years ago, allied forces entered the scene of the greatest mass murder in history--the concentration camp known as…”

“60 years ago, allied forces entered the scene of the greatest mass murder in history--the concentration camp known as Auschwitz. Auschwitz has become recognized around the world as a symbol of genocide, terror and brutality. The liberation of Auschwitz by the Red Army became a turning point in our understanding of the world and of inhumanity. Auschwitz showed us the face of evil incarnate and to our horror, it was an ordinary face. Auschwitz did not start out as an experiment in death. Established by the Nazis in 1940, it was initially a camp for individuals deemed problematic by the Third Reich--Polish dissidents and Soviet prisoners of war. Soon after its creation, the Germans decided to use prisoners as slave laborers for their large industrial complex. Once Auschwitz became a work camp, the Germans found themselves faced with the question of what to do with prisoners who could not work. At first, they simply shot them. Eventually they began looking for ways to kill prisoners without unduly discomfitting the killers--ultimately discovering the effectiveness of crystallized prussic acid, a pesticide mass produced under the trade name Zyklon B. When the crystals dissolved in air, they created a lethal gas. The Germans first used this deadly gas to kill Soviet POWs. In 1942, the Germans drew up plans for the so-called ``Final Solution,'' which contemplated the murder of every Jew under their control.…”