Yes, as wise doctors said it once

The far right tries to make it about guilt, though, and wants to erase history, akin to American exceptionalism.

Is it really that common? In my generation at least (born 1980) most people are very aware of the importance of remembrance culture

Wear a musk and get v4c1neted, or you aren't allowed to do this and that and the other... People have very obviously learned nothing, have they? Once again, mindlessly obeying a lying government.

This is also extremely valid in the current state of the world. Many Russians claim that "the west" is "russophobic", but the truth is, that most do not hate the common Russian, but the actions carried out by Russian leadership... But we also look at these common Russians with expectation, because it is their obligation to prevent their leaders from turning the entire world into nuclear wastelands. Only they can change the mindset ruling their country. Putin is like Hitler with a 100x more destructive "toolbox" The population of a country will always carry some sort of responsibility for the actions of their government, although they can't be blamed for a leader going insane. If their leader starts striving for violent world domination, it's time to say stop and do whatever it takes to change the fatal course.

Why is it about respect at all? I thought it was about remembering. How can you respect someone for being killed? You can only mourn someone or remember someone who was killed. Respect is so weird in that sense, I honestly don't understand what respect has to do with it. Instead I have respect for the people who finance, put in and maintain the Stolpersteine.

Ato put them on the ground is a bit controversy because you can stand on it and walk over.

@@vomm Respect comes from the latin word respectio means looking back, observing etc. (wikipedia). To pay tribute or respect you bow your head. It has therefore a much deeper meaning than for being killed. And the respecthing came from the guy who started the Stolpersteine. Bowing your head as gratitude is very common in other parts of the world. "Den Diener machen" (to bow like a servant) might not being an american thing but from european traditions it's a huge big deal. We lower our head to gratitude someone else in front of us, we let our guard down, being not in charge to look the opposite in the eyes for a split second.

I agree with Heike. It's of course also a sign of mourning to bow your head in front of a Stolperstein. But think why you should bow your head? It's originated as a sign of respect and trust towards someone who is higher than you. And respect in this case also means respect towards that persons life. Even or especially if that person may not have been respected in life.

@@vomm what a weird thing to say. Respect has different meanings. It doesn't only mean to obey to someone's authority but also to acknowledge someone as a person with the same value and rights . Paying respect to people that our ancestors dehumanised, tortured and killed without reason is the least we can do .

To loose contact with that evil part of you, you need to be able to heal, not remembered time again and again. It only keeps you guilt bound.

@@andreaskonig3767 Sweeping dust under the carpet and turning a blind eye to that kind of horror never solved anything. Remembering allows education and education is the only key to make sure it never happens again. Only people with a very weird state of mind talk about guilt when it comes to being honest about History. That kind of comment says way more about you than you seem to realize.

@@almamater9566 You mean to keep those Germans bound in guilt? Or are you saying that Americans should do the same with their victims? There would not be enough stones on this planet. And if you talk history, please include ALL historical atrocities... for whosoever is without guilt may throw the first stone (ups, they're embedded in Germany's footpaths to keep reminding them for the sake of keeping those Germans fear and guilt bound).... And I am not only talking about America... however, they do it very cleverly. They call it defending their homeland (even though they didn't have to fight on their own ground, but it sounds good) But yes, go ahead and tell me what it is you think you know about me. I can tell you who you are: A person who has a limited view of these things. Go learn! You may be surprised.

@@andreaskonig3767 Once again you are just being extremely dishonest !! Knowledge, education and honesty have nothing to do with guilt. Calling it guilt to try playing the victim just because you're a coward unable to face reality is sad but that's a you problem buddy ! The world doesn't revolve around you and remembering, honoring and respecting those who didn't survive that kind of atrocity is way more important than you self-centered discomfort. Not remembering or discussing these events on the other end would mean silencing the victims once again and in a way validating and normalizing what happened. The fact you can't understand that says a lot about you. Including all atrocities ? Did you even read my first comment ? I talked about France the UK Japan and so on ... That's exactly what i did. Don't lecture anyone on knowledge when you can't even read. Live up to your own standards first. That's clearly not the case yet. What's wrong with you ? And when it comes about learning i think my PhD in History is already enough ... Guess who has a limited view on facts and History now ? All i see here is a butt hurt brainwashed indoctrinated typical basic idiot that left school way too soon for their own good and prefers spending their time whining than facing facts and reality and working on becoming a better person. Can't you just accept once in a while that the conversation is not about you ? ... You are ridiculous and kinda disgusting tbh. Self criticism is hard, i get it but it's unfortunately the only way to grow and improve. But since you talk about the US, considering what the country became in the last few years it is highly recommended and necessary to start doing some kind of self reflection. Open your eyes and face a mirror. It's high time. It's not even a democracy anymore and certainly not a country anybody could look up to.

We also have some dirt sweeped under the carpet. Our colonial history is far from being fully processed.

I would like to add, that if you see such a "stolperstein" on or in the ground and just stop without stepping on it, you show even more respect than to a plaque on a wall

@@Hirndille Yes, that's true. My mother even told me not to step on them when I first encountered them as a child, out of respect for the victims. And that's still in my mind so whenever I see them I avoid stepping on them and I think most people act the same.

we have sooo many people walking around cleaning those stones to keep them in shape not because they have to.. because they want to .

And the name is chosen well: you stumble upon them, during your everyday life, and remember that other people were deprived of their lives. Not like monuments, which are part of "high culture" - you see these while shopping or taking your kids to school. This form of the stones is used solely for this purpose, it makes them unique and even more powerful.

I have seen these walking the streets of Berlin. I think it makes a statement to place them in the ground. I mean isn't that where bodies are laid in the end? In the ground. Further the way they are placed interlocking with the cobblestones is a way of saying the people memories are interlocked in to the place they lived.

AHA. Interesting.

@@andreaskonig3767 Thanks,

You are proud about the past of Germany?

@@cosiek5150 they are proud that Germany deals with its past mistakes, not of the mistakes themselves

I´m from Germany either and I have to admit that the whole dealing with it for not denying it, went a bit to early to far for me. I had to learn throughout a lot of classes every step of Hitler and his biography, I had to analyze his and his fellows speeches and other propaganda, I had to visit Dachau at age 16, where they were showing us real footage of the freeing of Dachau. As a very empathetic person, it nearly killed my soul to have to always be aware of that burden and also to have to see that footage at that age ( I was not grown to this at that point). In my education we had to learn everything about Hitler´s arising at the age of 11/12 and also about the counter movement. We had to write exams about it. We had to read the Diary of Anne Frank which is an ego-perspective on the life under terror and hide and the part where you just losing the battle...I was too young to understand the full gravity of it, but I understood the pure evil. For the following years it would be brought up every now and then in classes, like German class, history class, Ethics and so on....But I always felt torned about it because of the following and please hear me out on that: The Nazi Regime took 6 Million Lives, round about and we are made aware of this til today, the Russian Regime killed under Stalin 30 Million people and no one talks about it (they should!), the US killed through it´s "Go West" movement mostly between 10 to 15 million native Americans (numbers can differ by the source). The US slaved another approximately 10 million Africans and no one talks about it by real, for the torture I had to go to as a child. It was traumatic for me. And I questioned my teachers, because there were so many examples of other cultures and why we had to go over and over and over it all the time, without considering the mistakes from other cultures and countries. And the response I was getting all the time was "because we did it and it is our duty to prevent this ever happen again in our name!" I grew older and understand much more...about myself, about history...but I was feeling like before, it broke me, the thought about what people can do to each other broke my soul...and I was growing up more.... At this point in my life I was aware, that the Nazi´s not only did that to Jewish people but to gay/queer people also...and I was one of them...that came to my 16 year old mind sitting there in Dachau...feeling this creepy feeling when you´re surrounded by fear and death, I saw the footage and thought the whole time, if I was born just a few decades earlier this could have been me, the corpse staked on a pile...I could have been one of them, just because of the person I was and how I was born. And yeah, it´s traumatic for me to this day! But I will never forget the burden we as Germans have to carry. I will never forget where fatalism can lead to and I will do everything I can in my lifespan to prevent this happening again! And yeah, I think there are countries, especially the US that need to step up the plate and do some significant change in their education and recognition. It´s traumatic to face your past sometimes, but it prevents you from going this direction ever again, if you felt just a touch of it what this would mean...

Thank you for the explanation :)

They also draw attention because when you step on them, you notice the difference immediately and look down...basically bowing your head for the victims in the process.

I think they are made of brass from the color. I once was in a city, maybe Saarbrücken?, where the stones were set in upside down. Means the brass was without inscriptions. Which I find strange if not ridiculous. Nobody is able to read the names as you cannot dig them out and turn them. It might have a symbolic reference of the fact that there were so many people affected. But it makes it less personal and more like a statistic. At least I have not understood what the purpose is and why it should be better than laying them in the more conventional way. But perhaps those were placeholders for names to come? I really don't know because we were told that by a tourist guide.

Some homeowners were against it at the beginning because of the stumbling blocks. It would reduce the value of the house. Not all homeowners, but some. The Stolpersteine have a high value for me. Especially that the victims of this regime are remembered and . . . that the Germans today are still reminded of what happened in their name. Because there are still the eternals of yesterday. They still don't see themselves as guilty today. 3 miles from where I live, I saw Stolpersteine in Goethestraße in Ottweiler and I was very touched. Some were liberated, were able to escape to a foreign country and unfortunately some died in the camps. Berta Maas was a strong woman and I think She was a heroine. Berta Maas fought and survived.

@@user-sm3xq5ob5d Maybe they did just know that people where taken from that house but no one did know who it was so they set the brass blank.

Before Corona each years 12th grade advanced history class went to the place where the synagoge stood and the students from certain parts of town reread the names of departured jews who lived there...

Die Stolpersteine hat Gunter Demnig entwickelt. Er mein Jugendfreund seit 1958. War mein Nachbar und Schulkamerad am Gymnasium. Anfangs wurde er für diese Idee angefeindet. Inzwischen ist er hoch geachtet.

@@winfriedmeier3699 Ich habe nicht von Gunter Demnig etwas gehört, aber jetzt werde ich zusehen das ich etwaa über ihn erfahren. Danke.

Starship beautiful !

@@winfriedmeier3699 Danke Winfried.

Love for our very neutral brother and sisters in switzerland 😂🇩🇪❤️🇨🇭

@@katii1997 Merci ❤

Thanks, love from the beautiful Saarland to the beautiful Switzerland

What? A Swiss, liking Germans? Are you sick? Na….. just kidding, I like Germans too, and we Swiss peeps can learn a lot of them. 😊 Didn’t know about the Stolpersteine until now, but in my opinion it’s an amazing way of remembering. We should always remember our past, in order to not repeat mistakes from the past, and repeat great things that have been done. If only, other, more powerful countries would do the same. And yes, I‘m looking at you, Russia, China and America!

@@The_real_Arovor We are not that far apart...in fact, internationally swiss people are portraied as more "spiessig" than we are ;)

I heard very often that children and people in the US also don't go visit plantation homes and learn about slavery. I couldn't believe it bc it is such a major part of the history of that country. Everything they have today was built on the back of slaves!

Yes, germany does take it seriously. Other seem to cover it up and strike it from their history. Also all of this is important and helps to remember what facism does. And that shows also on a political scale.

My son was two years old when he first asked me about the Stolpersteine in our street. It's a great way to teach children about our history and also how to treat them with respect.

Your story made me cry.

In my hometown there's a plaque commemorating the place if the former synagogue, and they even managed to put a grammatical error into six words.

@@ThePixel1983 pictures or it didn't happen

Are we talking the bankers "Rotschild"?

@@SenpaiSchuda The bankers come from Frankfurt and our town is 2h away from Frankfurt. So some far relationship could be.

I learned that from my relatives in Germany. It sometimes happens over here in Austria to. My school didn't do that, I know others did and I'm kind of jealous. Mainly because, while I'll never be able to fully understand what the people who these memorials were built for went through, I want to at least give them my respect and learn more about what the victims went through. I know from visiting museums that it's very different to learn about history while your surroundings showcase parts of what happened, than just learning about it in school or at home.

My class wanted to do this but unfortunaly Corona started so it fell out and we didn't went ☹️

Not true, only a few do it. Not many and absolutely not almost every. Thats why the Zentralrat der Juden in Germany always asks every now and then about making it mandatory for every school.

@@goodbye5299 Maybe Austrians should learn about their past and their participation in the extinction of jewish people as well. It was NOT Germany alone, that just like that started the herassment and killing of jewish people. It was common all over Europe. Germany of course took it further than most other countries and made a killing machinerie out of it. But other countries participated. And nobody talks about that. It's a shame!

Same...

I don't think any german is patriotic. We might not hate our country but we're definetely indifferent. The only time some might be patriotic is during the football/soccer season. And really only those few.

Also Germany pre ww2 and post ww2 can’t really be called evil. It had a strong military culture thanks to Prussia but in and of itself that isn’t evil. And ww1 wasn’t caused by Germany, all of Europe at the time was a powder keg waiting for a spark. Hell, Germany can’t even exclusively be blamed for ww2. If it weren’t for the Allies (specifically France) wanting to blame Germany for everything that happened in ww1 and wanting to punish them as much as possible, the resentment and anger that allowed the NSDAP to rise would probably not have been there to such an extent.

@@MaticTheProto Thank you for this comment. I feel like most people just get taught that it was only the germans fault. I'm not denying that they did horrible things and were not innocent at all. I'm just happy that some people do know that there was already a small fire across all of europe that needed a small push to become uncontrollable-

@@platinum_ink yeah, sadly that part of history is mostly left out in history class.

When he mentioned that there are about 70000 of these stones around I imagined how many of them there needed to be if the real number of victims were to be represented. Your comment gives a good idea of that.

I understand that. A good chance to practice forgiveness.

"Haller" from Schwäbisch Hall. Just People from Schwäbisch Hall. Schwäbisch Hall translates in Swabian Hall, the Residents are often called "Haller".

@@SvenMl78 ah, okay, thanks! 😊

The city is Schwäbisch Hall, and the people from Hall are called: Haller

Kristallnacht is a Nazi euphemism and should'nt be used. The PC-term is "Reichsprogromnacht".

@@twinmama42 It's still the same thing. Political correctness is overestimated.

where is the respect when you step on their names??? ....p.s. und was soll dein Nickname, war der Gäfgen nicht irgendsoein gestörter Kindermörder??

@@grundgesetzart.1463 Respect is a function of the brain, not the feet. Nicht jeder versteckt sich hinter einem Nicknamen.

Totally agree. What's even more crazy is the fact that the number of Stolpersteine does not even come close to the number of victims: 90,000 Stolpersteine (in 2022) vs. 6 million death victims of the holocaust - that's approximately 67 times more. And Stolpersteine are not exclusive to death victims but include all persons that have been deported by the nazis, so the rate is even higher.

@@pooky3672 Well, a lot of the Stolpersteine lists multiple victims usually whole families. Plus, they naturally only lists the victims which were deported from Germany, not the ones from the other countries. A huge chunk of the Jews which died were Polish, not German, and naturally they were also deported from France, the Netherlands, Belgium aso (not so much from Denmark, because there the German ambassador warned the locals and most of them were able to flee to Sweden in time). Reinard May did a wonderful song about the children of Izieu, which is a particularly sad story. Though I think they actually got four Stolpersteine (which still leaves fourty victims without one, but naturally there is a memorial for all of them).

Even if you accidentally step onto them, that shouldn't be taken as an insult, but as an accident. The intention makes the insult and if stepping onto them makes you realise the story of the people, who lived there and makes you empathise with them, this accident did more than most plaques on the wall do and should not be taken as an insult. And if someone wants to insult them, they will do so anyway wether the names are inscribed on the ground or on the wall. The only thing the wall achieves it, is making it easier to ignore.

my school just had a day every year where the studends volunteered to clean them

step on them to show that the dark history is a thing of the past that you move away from. But now and read them to show respect to those they are dedicated to.

Never ever I step on them. Better cleaning them from time to time.

Soon it's November 9th again - perhaps the perfect day to clean some of them in our neighborhood.

Just go out and clean some...

Germany is not built on these unfortunate 12 years of our history. Do you know who financed Hitler in the beginning? Hint: it was not Germans. So there is that little fact, which some don't like to hear about.

Sorry, but your first "explanation" sounds really terrible if you think about it! " For one, they can be seen as a symbolic part of what Germany is built on, its foundation" Can also be read/interpreted as Germany is built on fascism, WWII and the profits it generated with the holocaust.

@@usbxg3474 Yes, and that is a fact, at least for some part. The truth is not always pretty.

Yes. There is not much on the ground to look at, that would distract u from looking at this specific ones

Okay, this is nice. I live in Germany, but I didn’t know this.

Damn o.0 We have 0 here and i don't miss them in any way if i imagine that all the paople that aren't able to go fast b.c. they read stuff on the smartphone, would stand still to also read this stuff. There is no need for those things b.c. i can remember things without reading about them everywhere.

@@friendlyreptile9931 yeah, your opinion. Just accept you’re pretty alone with that opinion though.

@@marcd6897 I guess i'm not but even if, i'm totaly fine with that.

Also when kids see something on the wall, but they can't yet read (or read very well), they usually won't ask anyone, because a lot of things is written on walls. But some weird thing on the ground, that doesn't look or feel the same as the rest of ground is more likely to catch their attention and thus might lead them to ask their parents and depending on the parents learn a bit about our history (of course not the horrible details if they are still very young). And a stumbling stone on the ground literally makes you stumble over it and thus is far more likely to make you recognise it, while a plate on the wall, unless you are actively looking for information, will almost always be ignored. The entire stepping on debate just seems weird to me, as it is also the intention of your action that is relevant. And if someone absolutely wants to step onto the name of a holocaust victim they will kick the wall to step on the name anyway, so it doesn't stop people from being assholes.

@@buecherdrache1 There's also the Hollywood Walk of Fame to be noted in that context, not to mention religious or generally symbolic cobblestone mosaics. Time will tell where the connotation will be headed.

And the USA are the first nation which used the atomic bomb against zivil people - twice.

WatsApp now for more explanations, tips, advice and suggestions 👆👆 Thanks for the comments!!

Diese Geschichte darf nicht vergessen werden, sie ist allerdings manchmal extrem traurig, oft hilft nur eine Folge der Comedy 'Black Books' um mich wieder aufzumuntern 😑

You need to grow a pair of stones man

So far so good Ryan, but that is exactly the problem. It's ramming it down our throats as Germans. Ask yourself this question: How many of those, who were also in the concentration camps that were not yous got a Stolperstein? How many of those incarcerated during the war have been commemorated apart from yous? I tell you: NONE! The idea to have it made a Stolperstein is a complete different one: LEST WE FORGET! Nobody shall ever forget. Everyone should always be bound in guilt. Ever looked at it this way? Might be time to open up to a different view.

@@andreaskonig3767 the pure existence of these stones is not "ramming it down your throat".

@@gonzo2495 If you can't see it, I can't help you.

But it has not changed ANY thing. Americans still get their soldiers primed for war. They are still killing willy nilly without ever thinking about it or flinching if their leader calls them to their 'duty'. Funny that. Wouldn't you rather have a society that says NO to war and not following orders or else? People that can see that war is futile and brings nothing but pain, in the shot as well as in the shooter. Both suffer. So whats the point? The men that call them into war are nothing but morons who want their agendas met. They don't care if we suffer this way or that. Otherwise we would have no more wars. And THAT would be commendable, but not a stone on the path. That is just to keep people guilt bound. And I have never found a guilty person a healthy person. They have to see shrinks and have phobias and other psychological ailments. Don't you agree?

@@andreaskonig3767 I can perfectly see where you’re getting at and yes you definitely have a point there. But this isn’t the topic of this vid. I merely stated my opinion upon given topic that stumbling stones are a great invention. Yes, it might evoke a certain sense of guilt in all Germans, no matter what age group. Even if the much younger generation had nothing to do with it, some would still feel addressed/ involved to a certain extent. None of us, normal people, want war. War is invented by the most rapacious and unscrupulous vultures who can’t get enough of power and money! Let’s take these stones as a silent and yet very visible reminder not to let the inhuman atrocities of a genocide to be forgotten, and not as a leverage to stir up feelings of guilt in the innocent/ uninvolved… as an incentive that this will never ever happen again. But that’s probably going to be the greatest fallacy of all… Mankind doesn’t ever learn from the past…

@@inezdebaue4077 thank you. I find these stones offensive. Not for selfish reasons, but simply as there is nobody else that has been remembered but one ethnic group. And all others seem forgotten. It hurts to even look at this, but more so, as my ancestors died during that time too. Grandpa has never been found. Nor are Germans even allowed to remember or march for their losses, but are being called names instead. THAT is the unfairness of it all. It makes one feel insignificant in comparison. Nobody bows for my or other peoples' ancestors to remember their likewise terrible deaths. This is not selfish or narcissistic or anything like that. This topic is deeper than most younger people know or care to know. It's dynamite. Still.

@@andreaskonig3767 I can exactly feel what you’re dealing with and i somewhat agree. Greetings from Germany.

You can find the Stolpersteine everywhere in the Netherland in my own town Heerlen too , I did see a online map with every warmonument on them in Europe . It has the stolpersteine on it too

It is usually on the weekends before the 9th of November. Local clubs and the city councils organise these cleanups, so that the stumbling stones are not damaged while cleaning

Probably on the 9. November. Because of the Reichs Kistallnacht or simply Kristallnacht /"Nacht der langen Messer" (Night of the long knifes) In that Night many Jewish people and political enemies of Hitler very killed and businesses and houses burnd. It's historical and masker wise comparable to the Sait Bartholomews Night in 1572 in Paris.

@@njschnieber definitely for the candles. Commemorative events are held throughout the country on 9th November. The cleaning often takes place the weekend before

A lot of the stumbling stones are around where the Synagogue once stood, east of the Delft. It‘s a humbling amount of names.

It was on the crossing of Neutorstraße/Westerbutvenne. Their were several stones.

Thank you for this video. I am German and always interested what people from other countries notice when in Germany. The Stolpersteine are imo a fantastic reminder. In my small village there are quite some of them sind there is always someone who polishes them, so they look really shiny and golden, not like in the video, so the, really attract attention.

one can't change history. enjoy the positive aspects of your great nation, there are so many to be proud of.

You are not the first one to say that. A friend of mine usually says: "Antisemitism wasn't something unique to in Germany, nor brutality against Jews. There have been many attempts to get rid of Jews throughout European history. Germans are just more efficient than others." It's dark, but somehow it's true. Good to know that we use our efficiency for better things nowadays.

american football, not football

@@P._Nisbroch Fair point.

Coming across a cluster of Stolpersteine, realizing it‘s a family of five, all with „murdered in Theresienstadt“ written down as their fate.. absolutely tears your heart out.

Hey when your father was German and came from Dresden there are organisations which try to help to find information about your family background. Do you know where exactly he was from? With his birthdate you could start in the churches to find information about your father's background

@Belinda Weber There are also the "registry offices" and the police registration offices, as well as the "German Red Cross", which keeps lists of addresses, the church records could also help. Good luck !

I am sorry about your father may he rest in peace do you know the story from 13.02-15.02.1945 there were also air raids on Dresden where thousands died from the phosphorus bombs if you saw the film it was hell the bodys burning from phoshorus also as they jump into the river Elbe the bodys are burning undaneath the old ones people suffered all their lives.

@@blondkatze3547 My mum was two weeks old at the time, and as she had a little lung infection, she and my grandma were sent to a clinic on a mountain to help her recover. My grandma later told my mum that they could see the sky getting all red in the east during the night. They lived in Western Thuringia. It must have been horrifying.

Yes it was horrfying also the bombing of Hamburg(Firestorm) Dresden (Phoshore -bombs) Swinemünde etc. Never ever war again. @@roesi1985