Faces of the Holocaust: The Upstander

Meet Elsa Holzer, one of 200 non-Jewish women who led the only open protest against the Holocaust in German history. While most intermarried couples divorced, these women protested to save their Jewish husbands from Auschwitz when Goebbels ordered the arrest of their husbands and children. The protest quickly grew to over 1,000 women, who refused to stand down in the face of insurmountable odds against the SS to save their husbands from death. Use the accompanying questions and activities to help students reflect on the power and risk of resistance—and what it takes to stand up in the face of injustice.

How to use this guide
This guide is designed to enhance your students’ engagement with the video. You can explore the video together or utilize a flipped classroom approach, assigning the video (in full or in segments) for students to watch at home, then using class time to unpack ideas together through reflection, discussion, or hands-on activities. Choose the approach that best fits your students and classroom setting.

Discussion Questions

1. Altruistic Personality: The Yad Vashem website describes how “bystanders were the rule, rescuers were the exception.” Historical scholars have analyzed the common characteristics in the righteous to identify what set them apart. One theory was Samuel Oliner and Pearl Oliner’s identification of the altruistic personality, in which rescuers felt empathy and connection to others. Another theory was offered by Nechama Tec, who said the righteous had a commitment to the helpless and a willingness to act independently despite external pressures. What are the character traits you identify among upstanders?
2. Obstacles to Being an Upstander: We often teach or believe that we must not stand by when others are in need and we might be able to intervene. Think of a situation in your community or in the world today where someone needs help or intervention. What might prevent people from stepping in? How do you know when it’s your responsibility to act, and what steps can you take to become an upstander in such situations?
3. The Role of Upstanders: Watch this Ted Talk on how to start a movement. Are upstanders leaders or can they also be followers

Learning Activities

1. Stories of the Righteous: Split the students into groups. Each group should read one Righteous Among the Nations encyclopedia entry from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, including Raoul Wallenberg, Varian Fry, Gino Bartali, and Martha and Waitstill Sharp. Then, lead the class in a Jigsaw activity, so students can learn about several Righteous Among the Nations and discuss the similarities and differences in their stories.
2. Interview with Rosa Parks: A notable upstander during the U.S. civil rights movement was Rosa Parks. Imagine you had an opportunity to interview her. Write down what your conversation would look like and what questions you would ask her.

1. Jack Fairweather, The Auschwitz Volunteer
2. Susannah Heschel, Two Friends, Two Prophets
3. Mordecai Paldiel, The Face of the Other
4. Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum: What is an Upstander? Upstanders in the Holocaust
5. Yad Vashem, The Righteous Among the Nation
6. Jewish Partisan Educational Foundation