The Hague – A Dutch right-wing senator said that Jews during the Holocaust were driven to gas chambers “like meek little lambs.”
Subscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
Toine Beukering, who on Tuesday joined the Eerste Kamer — the upper chamber of the Dutch parliament — made the assertion in an interview published Saturday by the Telegraaf daily.
A lawmaker for the Forum for Democracy Party, Beukering drifted into the subject during a talk about his candidacy for speaker of the Dutch Senate.
Recalling his long years of service in the armed forces, he said that the Holocaust was one of the reasons he enlisted.
“As a young child, I read a whole cabinet of books about the Holocaust. I was always interested in finding out how it was at all possible. That the Jews, such a courageous and combative people, were driven to the gas chambers just like meek little lambs. It has always fascinated me. I never really found an answer for it. But to me it did mean one thing: Never again. That’s why I wore a uniform for 40 years and have been all over the world,” Beukering said.
Pressed to explain his reference to lambs, he said: “Well, there was little resistance by Jews. Escapes and such. There were many reasons for this, but it’s a sad story that should never be allowed to be repeated.”
He added his assertion was not meant to offend, but that he stands by it.
On Facebook, Ronny Naftaniel, vice chairman of the Central Jewish Organization of Dutch Jews, set out to correct Beukering.
“Jews did mount considerable resistance. Often in hopeless situations. ‘meek lambs’ is a myth,” Naftaniel wrote.
Blame those killed but not the killers.
Not meant to offend, but does so quite well. What an innovator.
His reference to sheep is correct. So has the Bobbover Rebbe written in his Kinah on the Holocaust. “כצאן לטבח יובלו”
let him ask his own government and the French with the weapons they did have why did they not resist against the Germans and went down like pussy cats
He is corrected. The holocaust was a fulfillment of the tochacha. No Zionist ‘never again’ slogan or ideology could have changed it. The Torah says under certain circumstances such will be klal Yisroel’s fate, and that’s what it was.
because gjermans got help from locals to snd jews to gas chambers.
נִגַּשׂ וְהוּא נַעֲנֶה, וְלֹא יִפְתַּח-פִּיו, כַּשֶּׂה לַטֶּבַח יוּבָל, וּכְרָחֵל לִפְנֵי גֹזְזֶיהָ נֶאֱלָמָה; וְלֹא יִפְתַּח, פִּיו.
תִּתְּנֵנוּ, כְּצֹאן מַאֲכָל; וּבַגּוֹיִם, זֵרִיתָנוּ.
כִּי-עָלֶיךָ, הֹרַגְנוּ כָל-הַיּוֹם; נֶחְשַׁבְנוּ, כְּצֹאן טִבְחָה.
Zionist Israel knows how to defend itself and fight back. Zionist muscular Jews fought back and joined the resistance in every nazi occupied country. One reason certain ‘frum’ groups hate haEretz is not for religious reasons but out of SHAME that they didn’t resist.
Even today when a group of Jewish men are attacked by one lone teenager, do they fight back or run? They’re quick to spit on an ‘immodest’ woman or have 1000 of them riot in the streets against being drafted in Israel, but will they defend themselves when attacked???
I am not the student of history I wish I were. One thing is obvious; starve and systematically beat down the hordes in every way possible and the behavior will become easier to control. Lying to the public and telling them they were getting showers was also a control attempt.
My forefathers in the Shoah were far from cowards, they actually had an incredible will to live on. Whole books can be written about the shoah and how this statement is wrong.
It might be that this fool of a gentile should study this field before speaking or, better yet, he should ultimately shut his mouth.
In a world where arms were restricted, and psychological measures were employed, “going along” was an seen as an effective means of survival. “Surviving the day” was paramount. Help from gentile neighbors was rare, and could not be counted on as a viable choice. Immediate death and extreme cruel punishments were inflicted to paralyze resistance. Glad this Dutch minister has the courage to speak from the safety of the Hague. Let him take a little trip to Malmo Sweden, put on a yarmulke, and take a little walk without police escort. I dare him!
NEVER AGAIN! Thats why my Glock 40cal & 2 passports are always with me. Yidden there is no prohibition about self defense. Learn to defend oneself! no matter what your age. There should be a group of trained armed mispalim inside every shul every day, especially every shabbos & YomTov. That way in Pittsburg & Poway there would have been a dead shooter, not some left wing prostitute of an attorney pleading these pieces of drek innocent!
I wish he were the “ meek lamb” hes talking about. My zeidas were strong heroes, physically and mentally and like a lions they entered the chambers with Shema Yisrael on their lips.
This despicable guy isnt even a meek lamb. Hes a filthy pig. He wouldnt even make it to the chambers. Hed fall like a “meek lamb” before anything.
Let him read about Hannah Senesh or the Bielski Bros or the many who resisted only to be shot on the spot. When faced with Tanks and mausers what would he have done?
Lets see how brave you would be with a gun pointed at you. the Nazis used all sorts of Psychological Warfare to soften the population up and weaken them. There were also spies,informants,surveillance and total control of the population using IBM punch card tech. Add a few guns and beatings and resistance becomes futile and only a means of revenge but not of saving anyone.
He’s not incorrect. It’s a different situation to mount a resistance with guns pointed st your children. This wasnt like other situations when the occupier only went after the members of the resistance. You couldn’t leave your family to join a militia and expect to find them alive when you returned.
On the very eve of the Shoah many so called ”gedolim’ were screaming to their followers that they should not try to escape to the ‘traife medinat’ – America. This is a fact. I’ve seen film of it. The frum leadership failed us! Stop making excuses. A handful ended up resisting but only a handful compared to the numbers of able bodied men who did NOTHING. Even today- do you defend yourself or get beaten in the street- like a sheep?