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" They have asked me to kill the children of my people..." Czerniakow's Diary
Within the ghettos, a governing council of Jewish leaders was formed
and called "The Judenrat". They handled day to day business in the Ghettos
such as a mayor and City board might do, but they were also prisoners and
under the coercion of the Nazis.
The Government of the Ghettos
As soon as the orders went out for most of the ghettos to be established, two things happened: the first was severe restrictions regarding the borders of the ghetto, in which the Jews were not allowed to cross to the aryan side, and the second was the establishment of Nazi control over the ghetto. The Nazis knew that after confiscating businesses and homes, sometimes owned by families for centuries, that the Jews were not going to favorably receive or cooperate with Nazi officials in the ghettos. The local police were often used in conjunction with Nazi officials in local aktions, and the establishment and deportation to the ghettos, but they also did not have the relationship with the Jews nor sufficient resources to also govern the ghettos while maintaining police duties. The Nazis, therefore, set up "Judenrats" or "Jewish Councils" much like a city council which oversaw the day to day business of the Ghettos such as distributing food, the handling of deaths in the ghetto and orphanages and hospitals.. The Judenrat became the mediating council between Nazi officials and the Jewish people illegally detained in the ghetto.The Judenrat
Before the war, there was local Jewish governance over local Jewish communities called kehilla. The agency usually governed things which would become under the auspices of the Judenrat: benevolence, health and welfare, and general civic concerns of the community. The idea therefore of a governing Jewish council was not new as orders were issued for Jewish citizens to report to the Ghettos. Upon deportation only two concerns were forefront: the time limit and living arrangements. Upon the establishment of the ghetto and the oncoming population, the Judenrat was established by Nazi officials to govern the people and attend to budgets, deaths, health and welfare, housing, benevolence, hospitals, orphanages, and labor, although the intervention in labor which was forced was often a point of contention between Nazi officials and the Judenrat. (see Judenrat and Nazi Officials). The men chosen from the Jews to govern the ghetto were often men with business or professional backgrounds with strong ties in the Jewish community. In a few ghettos, pre-existing councils were either kept or re-assembled to rule over local ghettos. Part of the nature of the Judenrat helps to understand their very difficult position: operating as a board, the Judenrat was headed by a 'governor' or magistrate, as in the case of Adam Czerniakow in Warsaw or Rumkowski in Lodz. The main magistrate took orders directly from the Nazi officials overseeing the ghetto, and yet had to maintain a working relationship with the Jews in the ghetto which in addition to civic concerns also included handling disputes ,and trying to balance the concerns and well-being of wealthier Jews over those with less means. Conflicts arose constantly under overcrowded and despairing conditions. The Judenrat was the only 'official' hope of the safety of the Jews, yet they were under the threat of death in the case of disobeying Nazi officials, and yet if they compromised, they were seen as weak, or even traitors by their own. Even more complexity was added in cases such as Rumkowski, who used the war and his position for personal gain and the favoring of certain loyalists, and who was held at the end with contempt by many who feel he could have saved many Jews of Lodz. The Unique role of the Judenrat ran counterpoint to youthful resistance such as ZOB, who lobbied for more radical action and subterranean arming/defense of the community. While history may judge some Judenrat members harshly, it is probably best said that they held impossible positions, confronted impossible situations, and some were able to moderate and some chose personal gain.The Jewish Police
The Ordnungsdienst, or 'order police' were policemen whose appointment was from within: these were selected Jewish officers designated to keep peace in the ghetto. While this is covered elsewhere, (See Jewish Police), the relationship of the Jewish police in the ghetto is worthy of a brief note: most had to answer to the Judenrat, who in turn had to answer to the Nazis. The Jewish police kept general order, often having increased mundane orders, such as building inspection, and keeping allies clean, but also hand to handle crime and death like other officers. They often faired better than thier charges in the ghetto which did not help their acceptance in the community. Like the Judenrat, they
The Judenrat and Nazi Officials
The Ethics of the Absurd
Could the Judenrats have done more?
Jewish Council Decisions
While many decisions and business issues confronting the Judenrat were the mundane ones affecting any city council, the Judenrat faced a unique task of both being charged with the successful running of the ghettos, and were held accountable, and yet they really did not hold more than cursory authority, faced always with Nazi representation overseeing their actions and decisions, such as local non-Jewish police, specially appointed Nazi representatives or other German military personnel. But more than the unusual hierarchy of authority, was the very difficult ethical positioning of carrying out orders of the Nazis which were anathema to traditional Judaism.A premiere example of this was the Nazi order further in the war to cease allowing Jewish women to bear children in a number of ghettos, particularly in the Belo-russia area. While the initial orders were to prevent pregnancies, as time went on, forced abortions were demanded, and the enforcement was to be by the Judenrat. Faced with this intense dissonance, some councils sought means to hide women in their jurisdiction, while others complied with the order, fearing further retribution on the whole community upon discovery of a live birth.4
More overt examples of difficult decisions were ones such as the amount of aid to be dispersed to the greatest in need in the ghettos, or towards, for example hospitals and ghettos. While one would like to think of the whole ghetto wishing benevolence to the ill and young, ghetto conditions presented a new morality: where everyone is vying for mere survival, the normal benevolent attitude is often suspended.
The Judenrat & the Liquidation of the Ghettos
The Judenrats and Leaders of Major Ghettos
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©2003,4; Elizabeth Kirkley Best PhD; Shoah Education Project Web