Imperial War Museum - Holocaust Exhibit

After a visit to the Imperial War Museum, I began thinking about the ways the Holocaust impacted life and culture throughout Europe. The holocaust impacted life and the future of Europe for many decades to come.

For many months during World War II, the rest of the continent was unaware of the terrible and inhumane acts the Germans were performing across their newly acquired lands. The Germans killed millions of Jewish and other perceived enemies of the army, government and Hitler. After conquering each country, they proceeded to eliminate anyone who posed a threat to the Nazi’s goals.

So many people across Europe were affected by the acts of the Germans. Whether they were actual members in a concentration, related to individuals in concentration camps, neighbors of prisoners or the few warm-hearted individuals who risked their own life to take in a Jewish family to save them from the Nazi wrath, everyone in Europe felt the pain and torture that occurred at the various concentration and death camps.

Walking through the Holocaust portion at the Imperial War Museum, I could not think of words to describe the feelings in my head. A group of us went into the portion of the museum together and, after an hour, exited together, not speaking a word to each other the entire hour. We were all awe-struck at the presentation of the museum but, most importantly, it is the first exhibit most of us have seen that genuinely told the stories of Nazi’s and imprisoned people from an emotional point of view, not a grotesque one.

Aside from death, the individuals who were lucky enough to survive Germany’s concentration and death camps had emotions that were impossible to express. The use of this museum allowed many individuals the opportunity to express the emotion of the era and the feelings and surrounded the times.

After reading and learning about the Holocaust from text books, I have also been sobered when I think about the actualities of the events. However, the holocaust can not be told in a textbook. It affected the culture of Europe and England too greatly to be told in pages of a book, pictures or statistics. The section at the Imperial War Museum brought to life the humanity of the Holocaust and how it still impacts the lives of many Europeans today.

Dover and Dunkirk

Currently taking The Second World War with Dr. Gall, I was really looking forward to visiting Dover and getting a hands-on account of the importance the city and castle played during World War II and how the actions of this area impacted the life of everyone in Britain. Most particularly, Dover was central to the attempt to rescue the many English and French troops stranded at Dunkirk with the German army surrounding them. It was at Dunkirk that Hitler ordered the German army to hold off attacking the British and French forces. Because of this choice by Hitler, English and French troops were given the opportunity to escape.

But, their escape would not be easy. There were not enough English naval boats to rescue all the troops. The government called upon civilians with fishing and recreational boats to become an integral part of the war and rescue the thousands of soldiers stranded. Without hesitation, many civilians in Dover and around the country loaded up their boat for the French coast and put themselves in danger to help England.

This aspect of life during World War II tells a great deal about the mindset and culture of the population of England. Even though danger was near and close, fishermen and other boat owners put their lives in danger in order to do an act they knew would boost the morale of the country and of the servicemen losing hope during the hardest time of war.

This action also shows the extent to which civilians were exposed to the war. A total war was around them everyday. From shopkeepers to nurses to stay at home moms, everyone in the country aided in the advancement for victory. The Battle of Dunkirk and the importance of Dover was no exception.

After visiting Dover, I had chills to think about all the underground secret tunnels and of military vehicles and weapons parading around the ancient castle. However, I also gained a better understanding of the depth to which the war impacted everyone in England and the continent of Europe. 

Pub Culture

After being here for over a month, I have finally gained an understanding of British pubs. In the beginning, I pictured English people as having a drinking problem. They go to the pub for lunch, after work, before church, after church, at 8 in the morning, at 11 in the evening. At first glance, it seems that every person in London lives their life drinking at a pub.

However, in the past week, I have gained an appreciation for pub culture. Our internet in the flats has been spontaneously in and out of operation for over two weeks now. The coffee shops have kicked us out for not buying a coffee, McDonald’s kicks us out at 9 pm, and no one is willing to spend 4 pounds to use the internet. Our last resort turned to The Kings Head, our local pub across the street.

Here, we can sit on our laptops all day long, use their free wi-fi, have a pint or not have a pint. It’s here that I have written many papers, spent too much time on facebook and talked to my family on skype.

After this experience, I now know why so many people spend lofty amounts of time in their local pub. I, like them, have met many people hanging out at the pub. Apart from being social and meeting new faces, I think of it as a community center (minus the gym).

People watch the football or rugby games, sit in the corner with their new book, skype with loved ones, talk with the bartenders, or relax from a long day at work.

It is at the pub that one can find a true English culture. It contains normal people going about their everyday ways. It is here that a foreigner can feel like an insider and where a large city can have a small town, almost Midwestern feel. 

Afternoon at London's Central Mosque

Europe, as compared to the United States, has always been influenced more by various cultures and religions that infiltrate the traditional customs and cultures of various countries. In coming to London, I already knew the city and country had a large Muslim population. Today, Islam is the second largest religion in the United Kingdom with around 2.4 million Muslims and the religion and the culture associated with it has become an integral part of English culture. Although I have visited a mosque in Columbia, MO, the experience does not compare to the information and view of the Muslim religion that I gained from visiting the central mosque. The information and background given my the tour leader gave a first hand account of the experiences and prejudices that Muslims face in British culture from the 20th century until present day. When asked about judgments placed on followers of Islam due to the rise in terrorists, the tour guide brushed it off. He acknowledged that he often gets stares and hate looks because of his ethnicity and that many people think he could also be a terrorist. However, he also said that it comes with his culture and that he must become tolerant of the discrimination he faced. This fact alone shows the importance the Muslim culture has on various countries throughout Europe and how the culture has integrated into traditional European culture. Whether Muslims face positive responses or negative responses from their European counterparts, the members of Islam have long been an integral part to European culture and will continue to do so due to the influx of Middle Eastern immigrants into the continent. 

Barack Obama's Inauguration

Being a strong Obama supporter throughout both the primaries and the general election, I was pretty disappointed knowing that I would miss his Inauguration. However, watching the event at the Imperial College Union allowed for a greater understanding of how both the United States and its politics affect the lives of many people around the world. I was very surprised to see how many people in Britain followed the Election and the amount of support they particularly showed Obama. On many occasions before the Inauguration, I would run into people who were excited to be talking to an American about how grateful they are for President Bush to be leaving office and for a new face like Obama to be entering. Many people were surprised that a country with a somewhat racist past could elect an African American to the presidency. 

Living in America, we never notice how much our actions affect the rest of the world. Being in a foreign country during one of the most exciting and historical times for our nation, I became even more proud to call myself an American. At the same time, I was humbled to know that our country is still the most watched nation in the world because the United States really does impact many nations' lives, governments and economies. Prior to my experience of enthusiasm by British individuals as the Inauguration, I was beginning to believe that America had lost it's foot-hole as the strongest country in the world. However, our changing of leadership showed me otherwise. It is often impossible to separate the 20th century politics and culture of Europe with that of American because both affect each other in different ways. Whether the topic is musical artists, actors, politicians, wartime or economy, the countries that make up the continent of Europe affect American just as much as our actions affect the countries on this continent.