The infamous “Arbeit Macht Frei” slogan that was put on the gates into some of the concentration camps during World War II has now become an icon of the Holocaust — even though this motto had nothing whatsoever to do with the genocide of the Jews. The slogan is in the news again because the Swedish guy who confessed to instigating the theft of the sign at Auschwitz last year was sentenced on Dec. 30, 2010 to 32 months in a Swedish prison.
Here is a quote from one of the news articles about the case:
“For Holocaust survivors, the theft at Auschwitz was not just about stealing a sign but about stealing our collective memory and pain,” the American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors and their Descendants said in an e-mailed statement. (more…)