Adela_Bay_Tape4

Chapter 1: Shoot The People

• Context and Community Impact

  • In 1996, Adel Abai describes a community with 80,000 Jews.

  • The prison in Nokisky was overfilled with 20,000 inmates, leading to its closure and leaving many outside without confinement.

  • The mood and reality were so intense that traditional languages, including Russian, Polish, or even English, could not adequately convey the situation.

  • The described experience is likened to hell; however, a sense of survival was prevalent among the people.

• Ghetto Formation

  • When the ghetto was built, space had to be cleared, revealing a harsh history with the medieval ghetto existing since the 8th or 9th century.

  • The ghetto was characterized by extreme poverty, lack of necessities like water, and the inhabitants' harsh treatment.

  • Authorities instigated a provocation, leading to the shooting of individuals under the guise of encouraging people to rebel against the Germans.

Chapter 2: Live On Floor

• Living Conditions

  • Abai shares experiences of people forcibly removed from their homes, leaving them cramped and standing rather than living comfortably.

  • Families were divided during this process, such as a family where one daughter was taken while her husband and son were left behind.

  • Abai illustrates personal struggles to secure living space in an apartment where furniture was discarded to make room to lie down.

• Struggling for Survival

  • The survival mindset was crucial; despite deprivation and uncertainty, he notes the persistence of life.

  • Details regarding food and daily sustenance become vague, as living under such duress takes a toll on memory and routine.

Chapter 3: Girl And Sun

• Personal Connection

  • A neighbor described is a woman known to Abai, related to another character, Hersch German, a popular name in Wilno.

  • The woman has a daughter who shared the experience alongside her mother as they coped with their circumstances.

  • The sun sets on their struggles, representing both the end of day and the continuation of suffering in the darkening ghetto.