The Anne Frank House conveys the narrative that Holland protected its Jews. To quote the fact checker for the New York Times: this requires context.

Conversos settled in Amsterdam during the 16th and 17th centuries. It’s important to note that Holland was not uniformly welcoming as they were not allowed to settle in other towns and it took a while before they were comfortable living openly as Jews. They also did not know much about being Jewish. Rabbis from other countries – Italy, Morocco, Germany – came over to teach them about Judaism. Ashkenazi Jews came to Amsterdam later and during the 18th century this was the larger of the two communities. Continue reading →

It is called the Anne Frank House but it was not actually her home. The buildings housed her father’s company and Anne, together with her family (father Otto, mother Edith, sister Margot) and 4 other people, hid in the top two floors of the back annex above the warehouse for 2 years.

The entire building is empty. No furniture – the Nazis removed everything and Otto Frank did not want other furniture brought in to recreate the space. Only a few personal items have survived – postcards and magazine photos that Ann glued to her bedroom wall, a shopping list, Edith Frank’s siddur. Continue reading →

Children’s Burial Site, Sillustani Peru

I knew that the Inca practiced human sacrifice. What I didn’t know prior to our recent trip to Peru was that their sacrifices were of children. And not just any children, but the most beautiful children from well-born families.

The ceremony was called capacocha, “solemn sacrifice”. Parents offered what they most prized – their children – to the mountain gods to ensure water for the harvest and protection against earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and other natural phenomena. The children were brought to the palace in Cusco (the principal city of the Inca empire) and treated like royalty over the course of a year or two. Continue reading →