On 23 November 1939, seventy-four years ago today, German authorities ordered all Polish Jews to wear a yellow fabric Star of David badge bearing the word Jude (Jew, in German) or a yellow armband bearing the Star of David and the word Jude. This action followed other discriminatory decrees: on 12 October, Jews were forbidden to withdraw more than 200 złotys per week from banks or to have more than 2,000 złotys in cash; on 21 October, Jews were forbidden to deal in textiles or processed leathers; on 22 October, they were forbidden to own radios, go to movie theaters, or teach in Polish schools; on 15 November, Jewish women were forbidden to engage in prostitution; beginning on 17 November a 5 p.m. curfew was imposed on all Jews. More measures would follow, until in late 1940 most Polish Jews were sequestered within ghettoes.
Posted on: Sat, 23 Nov 2013 13:33:47 +0000