Bremen (memorial)
Historical background
In 1943, the slaughterhouse was an assembly point to which the Roma and Sinti were brought before deportation. Of the 275 Gypsies deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau, at least 175 were murdered on arrival.
Description of commemoration
A memorial dedicated to the German Roma and Sinti is located in Bremen, in the area which used to be a former slaughterhouse, and which now houses a cultural centre, right next to the ramp for cyclists and skateboarders. The memorial took the form of a free-standing tablet, made of Corten steel, embedded directly in the ground. The “tablet” resembles a box in which all sides except the front wall are made of solid Corten sheet. The front wall is a Corten steel panel in which carved letters form an inscription in German.
The memorial’s surrounding is paved with grey granite paving stones. Just behind the monument, there are some trees and bushes. Behind them – the former slaughterhouse. Nearby the memorial, there is a recreational ramp for amateur sportsmen.
Inscriptions
In German:
Im März 1943 wurden Sinti und / Roma aus Bremen und Nord- / -deutschland vom Gelände des / Schlachthofes aus in das / Konzentrationslager Auschwitz / deportiert. / Fast alle wurden ermordet. / Mit ihnen fielen über 500.000 / europäische Sinti und Roma / den nationalsozialistischen / Rassenwahn zum Opfer. / Wir gedenken der Ermordeten / und mahnen die Lebenden, / unmenschlichtkeit und / Rassismus entgegenzutreten. // Senat der Freien Hansestadt / Bremen März 1995.
Translation:
In March 1943, Sinti and Roma from Bremen and Northern Germany were deported from the slaughterhouse to the Auschwitz concentration camp. Almost everyone was murdered. With them, over 500,000 European Sinti and Roma became victims of National Socialist racism.
We commemorate the murdered and remind the living about the need to counteract what is inhuman and racist.
Senate of the Free Henseatic City of Bremen 1995.
Date of the unveiling
March 9, 1995
Author
Hawoli (i.e. Hans-Wolfgang Lingemann)
Initiator
Verband Deutscher Sinti und Roma – Bremen
Address
Kulturzentrum Alter Schlachthof (the old slaughterhouse) – Findorffstraße 51, 28215 Bremen, Germany
schlachthof-bremen.de
Location
53°05’17.4″N 8°48’35.4″E
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Materials
Gallery
