How did the people react to the tragedy?

The Holocaust is very difficult to understand. It tested human nature and led to extreme reactions.

Some writers today, when they consider the Holocaust, categorise the people affected in the following ways: as victims, as perpetrators, as bystanders and as rescuers.

This section gives examples from each category and explains how people across the world responded to the events in Nazi controlled Europe. This includes the treatment of communities and peoples by the Nazis and their accomplices.

More importantly, the section seeks to question why some people acted in a way that enabled or allowed the Nazis to carry out their inhumane polices and why others acted to protect and save lives.