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30 5 Watching the Betrayal InFebruary1939,therewerechangesinthepoliticalatmosphere.Assaults by Germany against the Czechs were renewed in speeches and newspapers . The Czech papers seemed to be rather defensive, inappropriately it seemed, since the newly created “Second Republic” had already made overtures toward a friendly coexistence with Germany. We of the Czech and Jewish populations became more nervous and frightened. Something was in the air; if we had been able to be more honest with each other and ourselves we might have known what to expect. In the late afternoon on March 14, I was walking slowly down one of the main boulevards of Prague, Na Prikopy, from Andre’s, my favorite bookstore, to the tramway that brought me home. In front of the German House, the social center for Germans living in Prague, there was a scuffle. I heard noisy insults in German and Czech, similar to the old free days of political clashes between German and Czech nationalistic groups. This was certainly untimely and could have only one meaning. It was a forerunner, an incident staged as a provocation to support the increased boisterous militancy that we now heard on German radio and read about in their newspapers. The small and harmless residue of what had been Czechoslovakia was being blamed in a propaganda campaign for mistreating the German population. It was for the world’s benefit, a preparation for Hitler’s next breach of his word. Heavy snow was falling on March 15, rather late for that time of the year. Around the corner from my home was one of the main roads leading to the center of Prague. It was early in the morning. I left for work with an uneasy feeling. I turned the corner on my way to the tramway station and saw a steady caravan of German motorized military equipment moving toward the inner city. I was not prepared for this. People were standing around crying and swearing, but the Germans ignored all 31 of us and moved steadily on. I joined the others. We stood motionless. Soon we all looked alike, snow covered figures, our eyes on the ground. A neighbor took my hand. The German vehicles moved in an uninterrupted rhythm behind a curtain of snow. The scene felt unreal. Silently and smoothly we had become part of the German domain. There had been preparation for the takeover. The fifth column of the Gestapo and the propaganda department had done their jobs. The next day we heard of numerous arrests of important Czech political and religious personalities. The arrests of Jews started soon after. Petschek Banking House was taken over as headquarters for the Gestapo. To be called for interrogation to the “Petschek Palace” made one stiffen with panic. Many were never seen again, especially those who left in the notorious gray buses. During the next few days the weather had changed. As if to spite us the heavy cloud of depression all over the city lifted and the skies were now blue and clear. The Germans had taken control of the press, the radio and, as it seemed, the weather. The headlines on the first page of the now-censored papers read “Herman birds on Hitler sky,” meaning Herman Goering, the head of the German air force, German airplanes and the weather were all apparently favoring Hitler.The military vehicles, including some outdated tanks, would have been relatively harmless if any well-armed world power had confronted them. The invasion was effective only because there was no resistance. Although Czech borders were dead, Czech humor was alive and well; the demonstration of power was labeled “the German metal circus.” Hitler behaved as if no power, East or West, would interfere with this move. And so it was. We could not understand what the rest of Europe was waiting for. The takeover of Czech heavy industry was a substantial addition to Hitler’s military machine. Could the Nazi regime have been stopped there or was it already too late? We sat discussing the situation through nights that seemed endless, wondering what further developments would come. I, as the others, was nearly convinced that Hitler would never be peacefully restrained from progressing in his conquest nor did we think that there was a strong enough internal German resistance to do this. The Jewish Community Center continued to gain in importance since all emigration had to go through its offices. The Nazis did not Watching the Betrayal [3.14.253.221] Project MUSE (2024-04...

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