Victims of WWII: Lost but Not Forgotten
The Romani Genocide: From Nazi Persecution to Extermination
14m
In 1930s Germany, the Nazi regime targeted not only Jews and political opponents but also Roma and Sinti people, deemed “racially inferior” and “asocial.” Under the banner of racial hygiene, the Nazis imposed forced sterilization, internment, and slave labor — escalating to systematic deportation and mass murder across occupied Europe.
Thousands were executed by Einsatzgruppen in Poland, the Soviet Union, and the Balkans; tens of thousands more were sent to killing centers such as Auschwitz-Birkenau, Chełmno, and Jasenovac. Entire families perished in what the Roma call the Porajmos — “the Devouring.”
Despite claiming at least 250,000 lives, this genocide remained largely unrecognized for decades after the war. Only in 1982 did West Germany officially acknowledge it as genocide. This story restores the voices of the Roma and Sinti victims — silenced for too long — and reveals a forgotten chapter of the Holocaust.
Up Next in Season 1
-
From Luxury to Ravensbrück: The Fate ...
Born into privilege, Élisabeth de Rothschild lived a life of elegance, beauty, and influence. But when France fell to the Nazis, her wealth and name could not save her. The Vichy regime’s betrayal, the Gestapo’s cruelty, and one final train to Ravensbrück sealed her fate. From Parisian salons to ...
-
Inside Nazi Military and Camp Brothel...
On the 1st of September, 1939, Nazi Germany invades Poland and ignites World War II in Europe. As the German war machine spreads across the continent, it brings with it not only occupation and terror, but a hidden system of organized sexual violence.
Behind the front lines, the Wehrmacht and the...
-
Love, Resistance, and Revolt: Mala Zi...
After the turning point at Stalingrad in 1943, the Red Army began pushing west — but inside Auschwitz-Birkenau, the machinery of death continued. Among the deportees from Belgium was Mala Zimetbaum, a brilliant young Jewish woman fluent in six languages.
Assigned as a translator and runner in th...
