Some Were Lost and Some Were Stolen

The photograph above depicts the lost children of Lidice, a group of juveniles that were taken from their Czechoslovak homes and repatriated into German families. This was done in an attempt to “Germanize” them and thus increase the German population without decreasing the feelings of national identity. However, these children were not the only victims that experienced similar fates, countless children  were ripped from their homes, and all that they knew as a result of World War II. What is truly disturbing however is the reasoning behind these abductions, following the war both Allied powers and Germans viewed children as the most ideal resource for replenishing the citizens lost in the bloodshed of war. This is because children “came to be seen as ‘most valuable immigrants’ by virtue of their perceived ability to assimilate” (Zahra “A Human Treasure” 340). For example, when Germany is all a child has ever known they will feel loyal to Germany and not their homeland of Czechoslovakia, which resulted in some children wishing to remain in Germany with their German families as opposed to being sent back to a country they had never even seen. The sentiment that children were blank slates for nationalization, resulted in Germany and France both seeking out children through abduction or the forced integration of displaced persons. Nations began to view children as national collective property as opposed to humans with opinions of their own. Countries after the war were selecting which children they wanted and discarding those they viewed as invaluable (such as the selection of only a few children in Lidice or the rejection of non-European children by the French). Both sides did this in order to keep their Nations “pure” while still gaining the needed citizens to replace those lost in the war. The first article remained very personal throughout and concentrated on the human losses and psychological damage of individuals while the second focused far more on large groups of people and how countries handled the “international responsibility” (“In War’s Wake” 13) of refugees. When one attempts to visualize the bigger picture and how displaced persons affected Post-War Europe one begins to see trends that lead to later conflicts. In a way refugees further emphasized the importance of Nationalism and drew more distinct lines in the sand as to which countries had rights to these displaced persons. However, in perhaps an even more important sense, the way the displaced persons were handled following World War II resulted in increased tensions between the East and the West which contributed to the eventual beginnings of the Cold War. In a more simplistic view, it is important to acknowledge that these were children. Autonomous beings with hopes and dreams; and that the concept of “purity” is an abomination.