VII: ROLES OF PHYSICIANS AND NURSES IN THE MEDICAL EXPERIMENTS RELATED TO RACIAL HYGIENE

1 VII: ROLES OF PHYSICIANS AND NURSES IN THE MEDICAL EXPERIMENTS RELATED TO RACIAL HYGIENE Professor Susan Benedict UT Health Science Center Houston, Texas, USA 77030 Susan.C.Benedict@uth.tmc.edu 001-713- 500-2039 Purpose of the Module: To describe the role of physicians and nurses in experiments that were based upon the notion of furthering the science of racial hygiene. Suggested Readings: Strzelecka, I. (2000). Experiments. In Auschwitz 1940-1945, vol. II, eds. Ditugoborski, W. and Piper, F., Oświᶒcim: Auschwitz- Birkenau State Museum, p. 347-369. Shelley, L. (1991). Block 10. In Crimnal Experiments on Human Beings in Auschwitz and War Research Laboratories: Twenty Women Prisoners Accounts. San Francisco: Mellen Research University Press, p. 22. Benedict, S. and Georges, J. (2006). Nurses and the sterilization experiments of Auschwitz. Nursing Inquiry, 13: 277-288. Suggested Videos: Healing by Killing, part 2. Objectives: 1. Discuss the evolution of the sterilization laws into the sterilization experiments. 2. Analyze why the researchers obtained written consent from the women in Block 3. Discuss the effects of the sterilization experiments on the population had the outcome of the war been different. Discussion Questions: 1. Why did the Prussian Directive of 1931, mentioned in Module 1, not prevent unethical experimentation? 2. If the physicians who conducted these medical experiments had been brought to trial, what would have been the likely charges and the likely sentences? Synopsis: Among the horrific experiments perpetrated upon concentration camp prisoners were the sterilization experiments. These experiments not only were based upon racial hygiene principles but also had the quasi- military goal of creating a cadre of slave laborers

2 who were to rebuild post- war Germany but who, because they were deemed inferior, would not be allowed to reproduce. Pokorny, stated: In a letter written to Himmler in October 1941, the Nazi physician Dr. Adolf If on the basis of this research we managed to produce as fast- acting as possible a medication that caused infertility quickly and imperceptibly, we would find ourselves in possession of an effective new weapon. The very thought of being able instantaneously to sterilize the three million Bolsheviks in German captivity, in such a way that they could work but would be incapable of multiplying, would open vast new perspectives. 1 In June 1942, Victor Brack, director of Hitler s Chancellery, pointed out to Himmler that some Jews would be worth saving for the same fate: Among the 10 million European Jews there are, according to my estimates, at least two to three million men and women fully capable of working. In view of our enormous problems with the shortage of labor, I am of the opinion that these 2-3 millions [should] by all means be selected and preserved. However, this can only happen if they are simultaneously made infertile. 2 In July 1942, Himmler s personal advisor, General Rudolf Brandt, contacted Dr. Carl Clauberg, a well- known gynecologist with this question: [how long would it take] to sterilize 1000 Jewesses? The Jewesses themselves should not know anything about it. As the SS Reich Leader [Himmler] understands it, you could give the appropriate injection during a general examination. Thorough experiments should be conducted to investigate the effect of sterilization [and to find] perhaps by X- rays what kinds of changes have taken place. In some cases, a practical experiment might be arranged by locking up a Jewess and a Jew for a certain period and then seeing what results are achieved. 3 Clauberg proposed using a chemical method to induce sterility and in July 1942, he was given permission to use the female prisoners for his experiments. 4 Within less than a year, Clauberg was able to report that he could sterilize hundreds of women, or even a thousand, per day. 5

3 The Radiation Experiments Concurrent with Clauberg s chemical sterilization experiments, Dr. Horst Schumann, an Air Force physician, began in April 1943 to experiment on male and female prisoners of Auschwitz with the use of radiation to produce sterility. Schumann s experiments were based upon a March 1941 plan proposed by Viktor Brack: A practical method of [sterilization] procedure would be to compel people who are to be treated to approach a ticket- window [Schalter], where they would be asked to answer certain questions or to fill out certain forms for a period lasting two or three minutes. The person sitting behind the ticket- window would maneuver the [x- ray] apparatus in such a way that a switch would set in action two lamps simultaneously [radiation must be given from both sides]. With a two- lamp installation, 150 to 200 people could be sterilized each day and consequently, with twenty installations of this type, 3,000 to 4,000 people could be sterilized 6 The radiation experiments at Auschwitz had a more obvious technique. The female subjects were directed to stand in front of the x- ray machine and were irradiated with plates affixed to their abdomens and backs. Men were forced to place their genitals on a ceramic surface and were directly irradiated. 7 Sonja Fritz, a Jewish prisoner, stated: I remember that women were often nauseated and vomited after having undergone irradiation. Once I asked Schumann whether I should help these women and perhaps give them some water, but he refused. 8

4 Auschwitz. Drawing by Renée Duering, former prisoner of One of the prisoners, Wolfgang Silberberg, had the job of escorting the male prisoners to the experimental site for irradiation. He stated: The prisoners were young men aged 20-25 years. They came back after two hours and told everyone that their genitalia were x- rayed for 15 minutes. They did this for 14-21 days except Sundays. After a week, the wounds would be putrid. 9 After these treatments, the subjects had to return to work despite serious burns and subsequent open wounds. Many died as a result. Others, when they became too weak to work, were sent to the gas chamber. Those who lived were subjected to surgery to determine the effects of the experiment. The women had one or both ovaries removed and the men likewise had one or both testicles removed to verify sterility. Between mid- September and mid- December 1943, 106 surgical procedures were done to evaluate the effects of the radiation. 10 In April 1944, Schumann reported on his radiation experiments to Himmler and declared that surgical sterilization was more effective and quicker than that done with

5 radiation. Nonetheless, Schumann continued his radiation experiments, moving to Ravensbrück concentration camp in April 1944. 11 This transfer was necessitated by the approach of the Russian army toward Auschwitz in the winter of 1944-1945. Schumann s x- ray equipment was dismantled and removed to Ravensbrück concentration camp. Chemical Sterilization Dr. Clauberg s experiments began in Block 30 of Birkenau (Auschwitz II) on December 28, 1942. He soon complained that this block was unsuitable and he and his subjects were relocated to Block 10 in Auschwitz I. By April 30, 1943, there were 242 prisoner- subjects housed in Block 10 and 22 female prisoners who worked as nurses, caregivers, and secretaries. 12 By the end of June, the number of prisoner- subjects increased to 300 13 and by December 1943, there were 400 experimental subjects. 14 All prisoner- patients of Block 10 were Jewish except for the prostitutes who were brought there to be screened and treated for sexually transmitted diseases. 15

This is the room in Block 10 in which the sterilization experiments were conducted. The structure is a stove for heating the room. 6

7 Drawing of Block 10 by Renée Duering, former Block 10 prisoner. The women who were to become the victims of these experiments were usually selected directly from the unloading ramp in Birkenau upon their arrival. Many nationalities were represented including the Poles, Dutch, Greeks, Germans, Czechs, Slovaks, Belgians, and French. There was even one woman from the Congo. 16 The Germans were especially interested in women who were married and under the age of 50 years. 17 After the selection, the women were showered, shaved of all hair, tattooed, and given dirty and ragged uniforms. They were then taken to Block 10 where, according to one survivor, they were greeted by the other prisoner- subjects and assured that they were, in fact, fortunate to be selected for the experiments because they would be saved from the gas chambers. 18

8 Two survivors described how they were given a choice between staying in Block 10 or going to Birkenau. The first, Margaretha Dantowitz, stated: I chose to remain in Block 10 along with 10 other women and 3 younger doctors. Goebel and Schumann did these experiments. They injected liquid into the uterus while they were on the x- ray table and were x- rayed while the injection went on. A doctor from Holland, Dr. de Loeuv, told me what it all meant sterilization. Some of the other prisoners had already received this experiment 3 times. Many young girls were treated this way and were burned by the radiation and suffered very much. Some died after the operation. Others in Block 10 didn t receive x- ray but had hysterectomies. They were cared for by Dr. Brewda. One pregnant patient was aborted. They tried to get others pregnant with artificial insemination or, it was discussed, by making them get together with male prisoners. 19 The second survivor who described being given a choice was Elisabeth de Jong who arrived in Auschwitz on a transport from Amsterdam along with her sister- in- law. According to de Jong, upon arrival at Block 10, they were told to sign a consent to be subjects in the experiments or get on the waiting truck to go to Birkenau. Both signed the consent which did not describe the experiments. After seeing the suffering of the victims of the experiments including the pain and open draining wounds, the next morning de Jong and her sister- in- law went to the Block supervisor and told her that they had changed their minds. They would rather go to the gas chamber in Birkenau but they were told that option was no longer available to them. 20

9 Drawing on Block 10 consent form by RenéeDuering, former prisoner. On the days of the experiments, the prisoners were called by number to report to Dr. Clauberg s office where he was accompanied by 2 prisoner- assistants. Without being told what was going to happen to them, the subjects were positioned for a gynecological examination. Clauberg injected approximately 50 ccs of a liquid through the cervix, into the uterus, and Fallopian tubes. 21 The injections were so excruciatingly painful that the nurses would sit on the woman s arms during the process. 22 The injections were repeated every few weeks with x- rays to determine if the Fallopian tubes were sufficiently scarred to prevent fertilization. After we had to lie down on a table, Dr. Clauberg began an injection while taking an x- ray at the same time. The injection was done inside the uterus. The fluid seemed colorless. I felt a horrible pain as soon as he began to inject. Dr. Clauberg couldn t have cared less. He just told us to clear the table for the next one. I left and tried to get to my straw bed as quickly as possible where I remained for 4-5 days. My genital area was burning. It was hard to urinate, no menstrual cycle, distended and hard abdomen.

10 Slowly the burning would cease and using the bathroom became easier and the abdomen returned to normal after about 14 days. 23 Dr. Erwin Valentin, a prisoner- surgeon, described the sterilization experiments: Sterilizations were done by SS people, by nurses, and by people who didn t even know how to put an instrument into the vagina to see what they were doing. The follow- up was an x- ray control, two or three times, and repetition of the injections if the desired adhesions had not occurred. If they had occurred, artificial insemination was taking place. The sperm was taken from Jewish prisoners by masturbation or prostate massage. Sterilizations of men were done by young SS doctors and SS Oberscharführern. Personally, I know that a large number of those who had been operated on ended up in Block 9 [surgical block] recovering from infections, fistulas, and abscesses. 24 Drawing of the sterilization experiments by Renée Duering, former prisoner of Block 10.

11 Like Horst Schumann, Clauberg fled the advancing Russian army and continued his experiments in Ravensbrück concentration camp. He is estimated to have done his sterilization experiments on at least 700 women. 25 Less than 100 of the more than 1,000 prisoners who were victims of the sterilization experiments of Schumann and Clauberg survived. Those who perished died of complications or were murdered by lethal injection or gassing. 26 Some of these victims were only 14 years old. 27 The Experiments of Dr. Josef Mengele Dr. Josef Mengele s name has become almost synonymous with Auschwitz. He was both a physician and an anthropologist and was particularly interested in twins, dwarfism, physical abnormalities, and noma faciei which was a necrotizing infection of the cheek occurring in Gypsy children and adolescents. Prior to arriving at Auschwitz, Mengele was appointed as a research assistant at the Third Reich Institute for Heredity, Biology and Racial Purity at the University of Frankfurt, joining the staff of Professor Otmar Freiherr von Verschuer. Together they shared an interest in twins and wrote judicial reports for cases of Rassenschande [race defilement: sexual intercourse between Jews and non- Jews]. Mengele joined the army in 1940 and was sent to Auschwitz in May 1943. 28 The first victims of Mengele s experiments were Gypsy children. He also began searching the arriving transports for twins, dwarves, and people with unusual physical anomalies.

12 Two hypotheses have been proposed about Mengele s interest in twins. In the first, Mengele was interested in identical twins as a basis for developing a theory about the superiority of the Nordic race, showing nature over nurture. In the second hypothesis, Mengele was interested in why twins occurred in order to increase the German population. 29 Twins designated for Mengele s experiments were initially housed in Barrack 14 of Camp F in Birkenau. There they were given good food, beds, clean clothing, and lived in hygienic conditions. These extraordinary measures were necessary to keep the twins healthy for the comparative experiments. After the health- building phase, they were moved to the hospital for the in vivo state. Jewish children, adult twins, dwarfs, and people with physical anomalies were transferred to the hospital beginning in July 1944. 30 These subjects were extensively measured, had blood tests, and x- rays. Most of the twins were undernourished, terrified, and in pain as they endured hours of testing and retesting. The anthropometric examinations began with the children being stripped naked. For hours (two to five hours), there were measured with angles, protractors and calipers. Pairs of twins were checked to see if the measurements were identical. Extensive notes were taken Frightened, tired, hungry and chilled, they had to get up at six o clock in the morning and walk one- and- a- half kilometers from their block to the clinic. The x- rays and examining room were unheated. The children had to stand in front of the x- ray apparatus for five to fifteen minutes, since each picture was discussed after it was taken. The results of such examinations quickly became apparent. After returning, the children develop fevers, sore throats, bad coughs, sinus infections and sometimes pneumonia The morphological examinations were particularly stressful. Blood was taken first from the children s fingers, and then from their veins. Sometimes, two or three samples were drawn from the same child. The children screamed, fought to defend themselves, and would not allow themselves to be touched. They were very frightened of needles They also had drops put into their eyes. I did not see this procedure, since the children were taken to another room. Some of them had the drops put into one eye, others into both eyes Then they would have severe swelling of the eyelids, itching and intense production of tears The children suffered a great deal. 31

13 If a twin became ill and died or was killed, its twin sibling was immediately killed so that comparative autopsies could be done. The Hungarian Jewish pathologist that assisted Mengele noted that nowhere else on Earth could simultaneous deaths of twins occur and then be examined. 32 In addition to the exhaustive measurements, crude surgery and other painful tests were performed, often without anesthetics. There were needless amputations, lumbar punctures, typhus injections and wounds deliberated infected to compare how each twin reacted. 33 In a particular bizarre and cruel experiment, Mengele sewed a set of twins together, back- to- back and wrist- to- wrist. 34 Many of Mengele s subjects died, including a number who were subjected to blood transfusions: Each woman was given a blood transfusion from another set of twins so that Mengele could observe the reaction. We two each received 350cc of blood from a pair of male twins, which brought on a reaction of severe headache and high fever. 35 Mengele established a ward for several dozen Gypsies who had noma faciei. There they received a nourishing diet and treatment with various experimental medications. As the disease progressed, the victims cheeks eroded, exposing their teeth, gums, and jawbones. Mengele had a Czech prisoner make drawings of the victims. Mengele then ordered them all to be killed but specific organs, in some cases the entire heads, were preserved for later study. 36 Mengele s notion of preserving Aryan features was the basis for his attempt to create the ideal Nordic look by changing the color of some of the children s eyes by injecting different color dyes. Thirty- six children were subjected to these injections which resulted in horrible infections and even blindness. After the experiment, the children were gassed. This

14 research was funded by the German Research Council in September 1943. 37 One inmate- physician reported seeing, in June 1943, a wooden table with a display of eyes. Each had a number and a letter and ranged in color from pale yellow to bright blue, green, and violet. Another inmate described a wall in one of Mengele s laboratories as being covered with eyes, like mounted butterflies. 38 Conclusion The three main physicians involved in these racial hygiene experiments Clauberg, Schumann, and Mengele were never fully accountable for their crimes. Clauberg committed suicide before his trial could commence, Mengele escaped to South America, and Horst Schumann was declared terminally ill and unable to stand trial in 1970. He lived an additional 13 years in a posh Hamburg suburb. 39

15 References 1. Strzelecka, I. (2000). Experiments. In Auschwitz 1940-1945, vol. II, eds. Ditugoborski, W. and Piper, F., Oświᶒcim: Auschwitz- Birkenau State Museum, p. 348. 2. Ibid. 3. Minney, R. (1966). I Shall Fear No Evil: The Story of Dr. Alina Brewda. London: William Kimber, p. 114. 4. Aziz, P. (1976). The Other Experimenters at Work. Doctors of Death, vol. 2. Geneva: Ferni Publishers, p. 160. 5. International Auschwitz Committee (1970). Auschwitz: Inhuman Medicine Anthology, vol. 1, part 1. Warsaw: Przeglad Lekarski. 6. Aziz, p. 152. 7. Minney. 8. Fritz, S. (1991). Beginnings in Block 30 in Birkenau. In Crimnal Experiments on Human Beings in Auschwitz and War Research Laboratories: Twenty Women Prisoners Accounts, ed. Lore Shelley. San Francisco: Mellen Research University Press, p. 22. 9. Silberberg, W. Testimony against Horst Schumann, no date given. Bundesarchiv Ludwigsburg, file B 161/2720. 10. Czech, D. (1989). Auschwitz Chronicle. New York: Henry Holt, Inc., p. 548-549. 11. Strzelecka, I. (1996). Experiments. In Auschwitz: Nazi Death Camp, eds. Piper, F, and Świebocka. Oświᶒcim: Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, p. 94. 12. Czech, p. 386. 13. Ibid, p. 431. 14. Ibid, p. 551. 15. Shelley, p. 7. 16. de Leon, R. (1956). Testimony against Carl Clauberg, December 1956. Hessisches Haupstaatsarchiv, File 631A/556. 17. Pleskoff, L. (1956). Testimony against Carl Clauberg, 24 August 1956. Hessisches Hauptstaatarchiv, file 631A/556R/990. 18. Korn, I. (no date given). Testimony against Carl Clauberg, Hessisches Haupststaatsarchiv, File 631A/556. 19. Dandowitz, M. (no date given). Testimony against Horst Schumann. Bundesarchiv Ludwigsburg, file B/162/2720. 20. Interview with Elisabeth de Jong by Susan Benedict, Toronto, 2005. 21. Korn. 22. de Leon. 23. Preskoff. 24. Valentin, E. Statement. Bundesarchiv Ludwigsburg, file B/162/2752 (Bl. 836-986), 1959. 25. Czech, p. 810. 26. Strezelecka, 2000, p. 356 27. Kubica, H. (2000). Children and Adolescents in Auschwitz. In Auschwitz 1940-1945, vol. II, eds. Ditugoborski, W. and Piper, F., Oświᶒcim: Auschwitz- Birkenau State Museum, p. 267.

28. Posner, G. and Ware, J. (2000). Mengele. New York: Cooper Square Press, p. 29. Strzelecka, p. 358. 30. Posner, p. 36. 31. Strzelecka, p. 359. 32. Ibid, p. 360. 33. Posner, p. 37. 34. Ibid. 35. Ibid. 36. Strzelecka, p. 360. 37. Posner, p. 34. 38. Ibid. 39. Posner, p. 32. 16