While people were pressed into camps not called concentration

[sovay]

spatch has been relaying me select portions of the conservative protest against the term "concentration camps." I have been quoting To Be or Not to Be (1942) at him: "Yes, we do the concentrating and the Poles do the camping."

I like David Schraub's not-statement on the matter:

But anyone who thinks that litigating the question "is it proper to refer to these detention centers as 'concentration camps'" is more important, or as important, or maybe not quite as important but still within the same order of magnitude of importance, as full and unqualified opposition to Trump's border practices deserves naught but our contempt and scorn. If you want these comparisons to be made cautiously, great, I agree. If you think that investing energy in policing whether this or that comparison was sufficiently "cautious" is a worthy use of your time that can justify departing even for an instant from unflagging opposition to Trump's border policies, then you need to re-examine your priorities.

(In the meantime, I fall within that portion of the American Jewish population that hears "But this comparison is offensive to the Jews!" and says, "Well, actually . . .")

Comments

[poliphilo]

I believe the term "concentration camp" was first used of the detention centres into which the British herded Boer civilians during the South African War. They weren't designed as death camps- but a lot of people died in them.

[sovay]

They weren't designed as death camps- but a lot of people died in them.

Which is precisely what's happening now. You don't need a Holocaust for a crime against humanity.

[tree_and_leaf]

Yes, exactly. The fact that the British did not intend to cause deaths* doesn't mean that they weren't responsible for the large number of deaths resulting from disease caused by over-crowding, inadequate shelter, and insufficient food. (I'm not sure that some of the conditions described in some of the shelters aren't actually worse than many of the British concentration camps, in fact...)

*Though they bloody well should have anticipated them, and they would have if they'd cared enough to think about it.

[sovay]

(I'm not sure that some of the conditions described in some of the shelters aren't actually worse than many of the British concentration camps, in fact...)

As far as I can tell, conditions in the detention centers are so bad, I'm not sure why the International Red Cross hasn't gotten involved.