Ghetto - what is it? In our time of mass migrations and multicultural states, we often come across this concept. However, many people, intuitively understanding the close connection of this term with national isolations, do not always clearly understand the practical meaning and principles of functioning of such systems.
Historical digression
Historically, a ghetto is a compact settlement of representatives of one culture (religious direction, race, nationality) in another, more global environment. The phenomenon originated in medieval Europe, when separate Jewish quarters began to appear. Actually, globalization in the medieval world was less influential, and the interpenetration of cultures was not so active. However, a proportion of the Jewish population has always been present in European states. Moreover, their non-Christian beliefs, as well as the closeness of the nation within itself and immunity to assimilation processes, turned the Jews into outcasts. For example, at the suggestion of the church, they were forbidden to engage in agriculture (the most profitable business then) and a number of professions. Many rulers ordered them to settle in separate quarters. Thus, in historical terms, the ghetto is specifically a Jewish compactsettlement. By the way, the term itself originated in Italy, where they named the area of Venice on the island of Cannaregio, where the Jews were evicted at the beginning of the 16th century.
Through the prism of the 20th century
With the development of transport links, mutual integration (political, cultural and economic) of the whole world, the concept of mass migrations of the population arose. The concept of a ghetto became popular again in the United States at the beginning of the 20th century. For the United States, ghettos are the quarters of black residents, the descendants of that considerable number of slaves brought in the era of colonialism. With further globalization and rising living standards in different regions of the planet (when some countries developed more and more and grew richer, while others remained raw material appendages with a low level of the elite and a large number of social problems), migration processes also increased. Now the ghetto is not only Jewish settlements or "black" quarters. This refers to any urban area where ethnic minorities live either forcibly or voluntarily. In essence, today's ghettoes are evidence of insufficient government policies that promote socialization and assimilation.
NSDAP and occupation policy during World War II
However, the term acquired its most horrific connotation in the middle of the 20th century and was associated with the activities of the Nazi leadership in the occupied territories. For the Nazis, such forced settlements became a convenient tool for optimizing the distribution of the population into more and less full-fledged ones. The Warsaw Ghetto is perhaps the most famous example. After the fall of Polandall the Jews of the capital were ordered to move to a certain area of the city. Later, Jews from all over the country were brought here. The borders of the ghetto were fortified with a wall, barbed wire and soldier guards, which in fact turned the area into a prison zone. The population of the district was used for heavy physical work and was in significantly worse conditions than even the rest of the Varsovians in the occupied city. The prisoners of the ghetto were the first candidates for being sent to concentration camps (closely located Auschwitz, in the first place). Actually, this happened throughout the entire presence of the Nazis.
Ghetto residents were taken away in an unknown direction, promising them better working conditions in a new place. However, no one ever returned, and nightmarish rumors about their future fate seeped into the ghetto. Under these conditions, for people who were destined for certain death in the gas chamber, the best choice was to declare war on the regime. Although the exhausted and almost unarmed residents had no chance against well-equipped SS units, the uprising took place in mid-April 1944. As a result, the prisoners of the ghetto resisted for almost a month, but were destroyed, having accepted their last battle with dignity.
