It was irrational for Anna Essinger to move her entire school out of Nazi Germany and into England, but the hideous metamorphosis taking place in her country left her no choice but to do right and plot and plan an escape. Her bravery is the stuff of legend.
Essinger’s story is told in the book, “The School that Escaped the Nazis,” by Deborah Cadbury. I was continually stunned by her audacity. Not only did she thwart evil by rescuing children and defying Hitler, but she also bravely took on the care and keeping of youngsters who'd already experienced terrible things. Things like little girls whose fathers had permanently disappeared. Or young boys who watched as their mothers, sisters, and aunts were taken to Nazi headquarters, brutalized, and then returned home in time for dinner.
Even worse, kids endured stories about their fallen brethren, both young and old, who were forced to dig trenches one day, their dead bodies filling them the next after being shot. There aren't words for what Essinger's students saw, but that’s why she had to get them out and help them start over.
It took Essinger six months to plan the escape of her whole school from Nazi Germany, Cadbury writes in “Smithsonian Magazine.” Early in October 1933, “the 54-year-old headmistress’ most trusted staff members spread out in a network of three teams across Germany. Parents and children quietly made their way to preassigned railway stations along the three key rail routes out of the country.”
Not only did Essinger recreate an incredible school in England, but she also received other children, new arrivals to England, fresh from Kindertransports. Those transports were trains that left Germany and eventually other locales, filled with Jewish children traveling alone, for their parents weren’t allowed to leave. Essinger went on to receive 10,000 German Kindertransport children at a camp she established.
We won't live through what Essinger did, but we are dealing with increasingly terrifying situations that demand courage and decisive action.
Take abortion. This is our death squad for the unplanned and unwanted, who take up space in their mothers’ wombs.
We don't have Kindertransports, though. We aren't gathering children off trains and resettling them … unless you're a parent trying to adopt, and you've said that you disagree with the transgender agenda. Then the powers that be reserve the right to take your children, of course.
Even if you aren't adopting, a war is waged everywhere on young minds and their bodies. Can you fathom that we live in a time when confused kids are told they can chop off their parts and miraculously change who they are, and that it's sanctioned by adults who claim to have their best interest at heart?
At least we aren't digging our graves yet. But figuratively, we are, by our defiant unwillingness to confront abject evil with truth.
Our fathers, mothers, sisters, and brothers aren't disappearing either … unless you are a Jan. 6th political prisoner. Or if you're Matt Taibbi, and you've testified before Congress, and now G-men are showing up at your home. For a friendly visit, of course.
Don't worry. I'm sure they'll forget about you – you who spoke out against the government and their heavy-handed foolishness during Covid. Even though we weren't granted the dignity of taking care of our own health without enduring the third degree from nosy Alabama pharmacists, and even if they threatened to pull your medical license because you thought for yourself – it’s ok! I'm sure they'll eventually forget about your insolence.
Let's not forget about the Great Reset and elite oligarchs – dangerous narcissists who stop at nothing to thwart our freedom – who know they know best! The same ones who said you'll own nothing, and you'll like it. The same ones who've silently but powerfully foisted ESG on every one of us, even in Alabama.
But don't worry. That's all a conspiracy.
Finally, what about our elected officials who geyser promises like Old Faithful but are anything but? Why do they refuse to listen or act on our behalf?
We're all in a precarious situation, every day. There is no escape.
But what if we lived like Anna Essinger, operating with honesty, clarity, and a death-defying fearlessness? What if we were people who see what needs to be done and do it without excuse, like Essinger did in the face of degenerate, murderous evil-doers?
As we head south toward death and destruction of our own making, Essinger's example is a remarkable reminder. What if we were people who did what was irrational, and seemingly impossible, but what was right?
She is the person we should strive to be like right now.
Amie Beth Shaver is a speaker, writer and media commentator. Her column appears every Wednesday in 1819 News. Shaver served on the Alabama GOP State Executive Committee, was a candidate for State House District 43 and spokeswoman for Allied Women.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News. To comment, please send an email with your name and contact information to Commentary@1819News.com.
