Jozef Sowa’s parents were nine years old when they were killed. After they were massacred, he and his three siblings were taken from their home in Poland and transferred to Germany. Now 86, Sowa tearfully recalls a childhood trauma that still haunts him. When the Nazis invaded Poland, he was one of countless victims of the Nazis, taking part in a series of horrific murders and mayhem, and kidnapping young children to reform. He is one of three personal tragedies told in the haunting documentary Stolen Children: Abductions in Nazi Germany.
These stories draw from a largely unreported story in the annals of this shameful history. Beginning in 1939, Nazi Germany invaded Poland and terrorized much of Eastern Europe. As many as 20,000 children were abducted from Poland on the orders of NSDAP leader Heinrich Himmler. They were raised in Nazi families, their identities were altered and attempts were made to mold them into members of the Aryan race. These efforts are considered crucial to maintaining its popularity in the region and beyond.
Hermann Lüdeking knew nothing about his biological parents. He was placed with a German family when he was six years old and has spent years trying to find traces of his early family life. He combed through birth certificates but found them unreliable. He wasn’t even sure what year he was born.
When Alodia Witaszek was five years old, her life changed forever. The filmmaker followed her as she visited the camp, where she spent eight grueling weeks. She remembered the inevitable death and the stench of despair.
These unimaginable horrors echoed throughout their lives. Even after the war they were cursed for their involuntary association with the Nazis. Now, as they approach their final years, they are more determined than ever to trace the origins of their travels.
Stolen Children: The Kidnapping Campaign in Nazi Germany is an immersive experience that sheds invaluable light on a forgotten chapter of history.
Directed by: Elisabeth Lehmann, Monika Sieradzka
