Raum 262
The atrocities of the National Socialist dictatorship are not forgotten in Monheim am Rhein. Between 1933 and 1945, 13 Jewish citizens from Monheim fell victim to the Holocaust. At least fifty people were persecuted for political, religious or racial reasons or had to flee to escape death.
Some 1200 forced laborers were put to work in Monheim and Baumberg in the industrial sector, in agriculture, trade and commerce. At least 44 of them died. The town of Monheim am Rhein commemorates these personal tragedies in numerous ways. There are monuments, events to commemorate Kristallnacht (the night of November 9, 1938, during which a pogrom against Jews took place) and the Stolpersteine. Literally meaning "stumbling stones", these plaques are embedded in the sidewalk and serve as metaphorical "stumbling blocks" to remind us of the past.
The City of Monheim am Rhein and local schools cooperate closely to make sure the lessons we have learned from the past are never forgotten, and racism and discrimination are firmly opposed.
Brochure: "Remembrance instead of forgetting"
The brochure "Remembrance instead of forgetting" was published in spring 2020 in a third, revised and extended edition. It provides information about the Stolpersteine laid in Monheim am Rhein and the tragic stories of the people behind them. The 72-page brochure is available free of charge from the Town Hall and a number of the town’s cultural institutions. You can also download it in English here:
Raum 262
Rathaus, Raum K 21–25