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The Greatest Lies Told in the History of the World
The critical lessons they still teach us
As the tour of Auschwitz-Birkenau in Poland began, the first sign of the Nazi’s cruelty is plain to see. The sign, as featured above, is perhaps one of the cruellest in history.
“Arbeit macht frei” means “Work sets you free.”
That is what the thousands of prisoners saw as they entered, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. They were leaving their freedom behind; most would never claim it back. They swapped names for numbers and their clothes for striped pyjamas.
At university, I studied Holocaust Literature. For months, we went over some horrifying books from survivors as well as disturbing videos. Still, nothing could prepare me for that sign. How can humankind be so cruel?
Even in today’s society, it’s a lie. Work will not set you free. Of course, we all need to do it to exist. But we needn’t sacrifice ourselves to it.
The thing is, lies are everywhere, and they usually aren’t adorning the entrance to a concentration camp. They surround us and have moulded our society. Here are a few more of the most significant lies in history.
