Never Again Is Not a Memorial. It’s a Warning.
In 2013, we took an extended tour of Western Europe and Hungary. One of the places we visited was the Dachau concentration camp—located not on the outskirts of civilization, not hidden deep in the woods, but in the very center of town. The same center of town it occupied in the 1930s. The homes, the streets, the daily routines—largely unchanged. The biggest difference today is the absence of the busy rail lines that once brought human beings into what was described as a “work camp.” When local citizens questioned what was happening there, they were told it was for protection. That the Jews, the Gypsies, the mentally ill were being kept safe. That they were learning skills, contributing to society. That this was the best option for them. The explanation was accepted. No one asked again. That may be the most disturbing part of Dachau—not just what happened inside the camp, but how ordinary life continued all around it. Trains came and went. Smoke rose. Bureaucracy functioned....