Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Auschwitz Museum Upset at Scene in Amazon Series 'Hunters'
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
February 24, 2020

Share

WARSAW, Poland — The museum of the Nazi German Auschwitz death camp is objecting to a scene in a new Amazon TV series that shows a murderous game of human chess being played there, insisting that no such thing took place at the camp.

“If anyone wants to show human tragedy in Auschwitz it is enough to reach for the thousands of sources (survivors’ testimonies) that are deeply shocking, but creating fiction that distorts the history of this real place is disrespectful of the people who suffered here.”museum spokesman Pawel Sawicki 
The museumand memorial that guard the Auschwitz-Birkenau site in southern Poland, its historic facts and the memory of the victims tweeted about the scene in Amazon’s series “Hunters.” It said inventing fake scenes is “dangerous foolishness and caricature,” encourages Holocaust deniers and is disrespectful of the camp’s some 1.1 million victims, including women and children.
The series’ creator, David Weil stressed in a statement it was not a documentary but a narrative with largely fictional characters. As a grandson of Holocaust survivors, Weil said he was careful not to “misrepresent a real person or borrow from a specific moment in an actual person’s life.”
Most of the victims were Jews, but there were also Poles, Roma, Russian prisoners of war and others.They died in the camp’s gas chambers or from starvation, disease and forced labor, or shot by the guards.
Museum spokesman Pawel Sawicki said Monday that authors and artists have a special obligation to tell the truth about Auschwitz, and that the “Hunters” authors did not contact the museum for facts.
“If anyone wants to show human tragedy in Auschwitz it is enough to reach for the thousands of sources (survivors’ testimonies) that are deeply shocking, but creating fiction that distorts the history of this real place is disrespectful of the people who suffered here,” Sawicki told The Associated Press.
Photo of Auschwitz Nazi death camp in Oswiecim, Poland
People arrive for commemorations at the Auschwitz Nazi death camp in Oswiecim, Poland, Monday, Jan. 27, 2020. Survivors of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp gathered for commemorations marking the 75th anniversary of the Soviet army’s liberation of the camp, using the testimony of survivors to warn about the signs of rising anti-Semitism and hatred in the world today.(AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

‘Hunters’ Is About a Postwar Hunt in New York for Nazi War Criminals

He said the museum is always willing to provide factual advice to anyone studying or working on Auschwitz history. More than 2 million people a year visit the site with its historic barracks, the ruins of the gas chambers and a monument to the victims.
“Hunters” is about a postwar hunt in New York for Nazi war criminals. It includes a scene where Auschwitz inmates are figures in a chess game and are killed when they are taken off the chessboard.
“This is false. There was no such thing,” Sawicki said.
Weil, who is also the “Hunters” executive producer, said he used this “fictionalized event” to showcase the “most extreme … sadism and violence that the Nazis perpetrated against the Jews and other victims.”
In his statement he thanked the Auschwitz Memorial for “keeping the memory of victims and survivors like my grandmother, Sara Weil, alive,” and expressed hope for a further dialogue to that purpose.
Nazi Germany operated Auschwitz-Birkenau between 1940 and 1945 when it occupied Poland. Emotional, international observances with the participation of survivors were held last month in Oswiecim to mark 75 years since the Soviet army liberated the camp.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Trump Says Putin May Not Want Peace and May Need to Be ‘Dealt With Differently’

DON'T MISS

Is It Bad to Chew Gum All Day?

DON'T MISS

Dollar Doubts Dominate Gathering of Global Economic Leaders

DON'T MISS

US Judge Temporarily Stops West Texas Immigrant Deportations Under Alien Enemies Act

DON'T MISS

Shedeur Sanders’ Long Wait Ends When Browns Take Him in the 5th Round of the NFL Draft

DON'T MISS

Only About Half of Republicans Say Trump Has Focused on the Right Priorities

DON'T MISS

ICE Deports the Mother of an Infant and a 2-Year-Old Who Is a US Citizen

DON'T MISS

Israeli Airstrike Kills 10 People, Half of Them Children

DON'T MISS

Shedeur Sanders Is Still Waiting for a Call as the NFL Draft Enters the Final Day

DON'T MISS

Israel’s AI Experiments in the War in Gaza Raise Ethical Concerns

UP NEXT

Fresno Ranks Fourth in US for an Affordable Night Out

UP NEXT

Top Producer at ’60 Minutes’ Quits Amid Trump Lawsuit Pressure

UP NEXT

Is a ‘Friend-Apist’ What We Really Want From Therapy?

UP NEXT

Universal Studios Fan Fest 2025 to Feature Immersive D&D Attraction and More

UP NEXT

Americans Haven’t Found a Satisfying Alternative to Religion

UP NEXT

Thousands of Pilgrims Trek Through New Mexico Desert to Historic Adobe Church for Good Friday

UP NEXT

Katy Perry Gears Up for Sci-Fi Inspired World Tour

UP NEXT

Easter Desserts Anyone Can Make

UP NEXT

How Trump Might Unwittingly Cut Emissions From Online Shopping

UP NEXT

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Seeks Two-Month Delay of May 5 Trial

US Judge Temporarily Stops West Texas Immigrant Deportations Under Alien Enemies Act

13 hours ago

Shedeur Sanders’ Long Wait Ends When Browns Take Him in the 5th Round of the NFL Draft

13 hours ago

Only About Half of Republicans Say Trump Has Focused on the Right Priorities

16 hours ago

ICE Deports the Mother of an Infant and a 2-Year-Old Who Is a US Citizen

16 hours ago

Israeli Airstrike Kills 10 People, Half of Them Children

16 hours ago

Shedeur Sanders Is Still Waiting for a Call as the NFL Draft Enters the Final Day

16 hours ago

Israel’s AI Experiments in the War in Gaza Raise Ethical Concerns

16 hours ago

Paul Skenes Strikes Out 9, Wins Duel With Yamamoto in Pirates’ Victory Over Dodgers

17 hours ago

Eovaldi Outlasts Verlander as Rangers Beat Giants

17 hours ago

Rams Take Oregon Tight End Terrance Ferguson in Second Round After Trading Out of First

17 hours ago

Trump Says Putin May Not Want Peace and May Need to Be ‘Dealt With Differently’

President Donald Trump said Saturday that Russia’s escalating bombardment of Ukraine had left him concerned that Russia did not want to end ...

11 hours ago

11 hours ago

Trump Says Putin May Not Want Peace and May Need to Be ‘Dealt With Differently’

11 hours ago

Is It Bad to Chew Gum All Day?

12 hours ago

Dollar Doubts Dominate Gathering of Global Economic Leaders

13 hours ago

US Judge Temporarily Stops West Texas Immigrant Deportations Under Alien Enemies Act

13 hours ago

Shedeur Sanders’ Long Wait Ends When Browns Take Him in the 5th Round of the NFL Draft

16 hours ago

Only About Half of Republicans Say Trump Has Focused on the Right Priorities

16 hours ago

ICE Deports the Mother of an Infant and a 2-Year-Old Who Is a US Citizen

16 hours ago

Israeli Airstrike Kills 10 People, Half of Them Children

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend