"On Auschwitz" (13): The fate of Sonderkommando prisoners

One of the darkest chapters of the history of Auschwitz is undoubtedly the story of the Sonderkommando - a group of prisoners, mainly Jews - forced by the Germans to work in gas chambers and crematoria of the camp. Prisoners assigned to this unit, employed in places of mass extermination, could not refuse to do their work or ask to be transferred to perform other tasks in the camp. Failure to carry out the instructions of the SS would result in immediate death. Dr. Igor Bartosik from the Research Center of the Memorial talks about the fate of Sonderkommando prisoners. --- Listen also to our podcast about the first crematorium and the beginnings of the Sonderkommando: https://anchor.fm/auschwitz-memorial/episodes/On-Auschwitz-6-the-first-crematorium-and-the-Sonderkommando-in-Auschwitz-e14rnsj

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The official podcast of the Auschwitz Memorial. The history of Auschwitz is exceptionally complex. It combined two functions: a concentration camp and an extermination center. Nazi Germany persecuted various groups of people there, and the camp complex continually expanded and transformed itself. In the podcast "On Auschwitz," we discuss the details of the history of the camp as well as our contemporary memory of this important and special place. We kindly ask you to support our mission and share our podcast in social media. Online lessons: http://lesson.auschwitz.org