I’ve worked on this storytelling project since 2003, over 20 years, but I never tire of seeing the creativity, the commitment and the excitement of youth working on the projects. In addition to the incredible work done by the authors and illustrators in this book, their school did so much more to present the powerful story of the White Rose. We continue to learn that  kids can do amazing things! This book especially showcases the commitment of these special middle schoolers, to include a QR code that shares their dance honoring the White Rose. It’s been a labor of love and it’s described at length below.

A special thanks to all at the Creative Arts Academy (CAA) students in Davenport, Iowa for their dedication to this White Rose project. The 7th grade Visual Arts students created oil pastel artwork inspired by the White Rose excerpts taken directly from the White Rose published leaflets. The excerpts were chosen and narrated by Theatre students. Visual Arts students were asked to describe the text with visual imagery. Visual Arts created and designed the paper white rose backdrop. Using origami techniques, students folded over five hundred roses! The roses used by the dancers in their performance were created using copies of the White Rose leaflets.

Dance students choreographed original performances to express the heartbreak of the White Rose resistance along with the journey from struggle to legacy. Communication and Media Arts students filmed and edited the video. They also created animations and all video effects. Music students performed and recorded the song that plays under the narration and throughout the credits. All 7th grade CAA students participated along with the 8th grade Visual Arts Students.

A special thanks to the 8th graders who worked on this book. Soon there will be a matching Reader’s Theater script so students nationwide can act out this very important story.

Kudos to all the kids mentioned above and wonderful educators at CAA! A special shout out to a creative teacher named Heidi Hernandez who served as writing coach for this book!

Deb Bowen
Creator, A BOOK by ME

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“As we wrote this story we learned the importance of standing up for what is right, even if you are standing alone. Doing nothing, or staying neutral, becomes part of the problem. One person’s voice and opinion can be amplified by others. However, when you remain quiet, movements for change are less likely to take shape. Say something and do something when you see injustice–your voice has power.”

Creative Arts Academy 8th Grade Visual Arts Class of 2023

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White Rose – Nazi Resistance Group

The elimination of free thought and speech was a burden that the common German carried prior to and during WWII. Through fear tactics, propaganda, and various youth organizations, the Nazi Party infiltrated the minds and thoughts of the masses. Their message, a false facade of support for the Motherland, forcefully informed the people of Germany what they needed to believe and do to be a true patriot. The White Rose dangerously spoke in opposition to mass media and the government. They called on individuals to rise up against the hateful messages and actions of the Nazi Party.

Hans Scholl, as a young boy, fell under the spell of Nazi ideology. He and his sister Sophie were active members of Nazi youth groups. Hans was a member of the Hitler Youth, and Sophie was a member of the League of German Girls. Their parents’ lack of support to be a part of such groups did not hold them back; they both quickly rose in rank and status.

On September 1, 1939 Hitler invaded Poland. Shortly afterwards many nations declared war. In 1942 Sophie moved from Ulm to Munich to study biology and philosophy at the university. Her brother, Hans, was already a student at the University of Munich; he studied medicine. In order to attend college, students were required to be active members of their community. Serving on the Eastern Front, Hans and his friends were driven to stand up against acts of injustice when they learned of mass murder in Poland and the Soviet Union. In June of 1942 the White Rose was established. The founding members were Hans Scholl, Willi Graf and Alexander Schmorell.

Together they published leaflets that questioned the system in place and called the German people to action. “Our current ‘state’ is the dictatorship of evil. We know that already, I hear you object, and we don’t need you to reproach us for it yet again. But, I ask you, if you know that, then why don’t you act? Why do you tolerate these rulers gradually robbing you, in public and in private, of one right after another, until one day nothing, absolutely nothing, remains but the machinery of the state, under the command of criminals and drunkards?”- White Rose Pamphlet

When Sophie discovered the White Rose publications and found out that her brother was involved, she joined the group. The White Rose began to expand, and the message began to spread. What started as leaflets, typed on a typewriter and mailed to individuals, were soon created in larger quantities by mimeograph. Before long the leaflets were reaching thousands of individuals throughout Germany. Surrounding areas, as far north as Hamburg and as far south as Vienna, were beginning to feel strength in numbers; resistance was growing. The group even began to spread their anti-Nazi message through a graffiti collective. They painted messages such as “Freedom” and “Down with Hitler” on walls throughout the region.

The White Rose continued to print new leaflets. The sixth, and last pamphlet, was written in 1943. Hans and Sophie dispersed these on campus in the central hall of the University. Sophie tossed remaining pamphlets through the air from above the central corridor. The pamphlet distribution was observed and reported. A maintenance worker, Jakob Schmid, called the authorities. The Gestapo arrived quickly and arrested both Sophie and Hans Scholl; they were tried for treason. A draft of the seventh pamphlet, written by Chistoph Probst, was found on Hans. The three were executed, by guillotine, on February 22, 1943. Others involved were arrested and tried as well; Schmorell and Huber were executed July 13, 1943.

Amazingly, the text of the sixth pamphlet was smuggled into the UK. There, the military printed and dropped copies of the document over Germany by plane in July of the same year. A quote from the sixth leaflet explains: “The German name will be forever defamed if German youth does not finally arise, avenge, and atone, if he does not shatter his tormentor and raise up a new intellectual Europe. Students! The German nation looks to us!”- White Rose Pamphlet

We can learn many things from the bravery and honor of the White Rose. Our communities, made up of people, young and old, have a moral obligation to reject injustice: speak up, stand up, and unite! We have a powerful voice, a voice that can enlighten those who have been misled and disillusioned by hate and fear. We must protect what is important, as spoken in the final words of Hans Scholl before his execution: “Long live freedom!”

Note: Despite the brutal crackdown by the Nazis, the legacy of the White Rose continued to live on, with their story becoming a symbol of courage and resistance against tyranny. Monuments and memorials were erected in Munich and other cities to honor the members of the White Rose and their sacrifice. The group’s message of standing up for justice and human rights in the face of
oppression continues to inspire people around the world.

One of the most notorious Nazi concentration camps located near where the brave students lived in Munich, Germany was the Dachau concentration camp. Dachau was the first concentration camp established by the Nazi regime in March 1933, shortly after Adolf Hitler came to power. It was initially used to imprison political opponents, dissidents, and other perceived enemies of the Nazis. As Dachau expanded over the years, it became a symbol of the brutality and inhumanity of the Nazi regime. Thousands of prisoners, including Jews, political prisoners, homosexuals, and other marginalized groups, were subjected to forced labor, torture, and medical experiments at the camp. It’s estimated that over 30,000 prisoners were killed there. A crematoria was constructed to dispose of the dead. Dachau was liberated by American forces in April 1945 towards the end of World War II. The atrocities committed at the camp were documented and served as evidence during the Nuremberg Trials.

 

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We Will Not Be Silent

Are you ever too scared to voice your opinion when you see someone being mistreated? Have you ever wondered how your actions impact others? The story of the White Rose is an inspirational story about how forming alliances with others, against injustice, can have a major impact. Learn about the founding members and their journey to spread truth.

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A BOOK by ME, a book series developed by Deb Bowen, empowers students to preserve history by telling the story of unsung heroes in our communities. For the young participants, it’s a guided cross-curricular project that gathers stories of people who do amazing things but have received little or no recognition. Students learn how to publish a picture book that is a primary source document with photographs and a biography.

Since 2003, Deb Bowen has been arranging meetings between students and individuals from the WWII generation. This intergenerational storytelling results in unique storybooks written and illustrated by kids for kids in the A BOOK by ME series. More about Deb Bowen >