Nonviolent Group That Exposed Nazi War Crimes
Praised as a Symbol of Freedom and Humanity in Germany
Traute Lafrenz, the last surviving member of the nonviolent group ‘White Rose’ that resisted the Nazi regime in Germany during World War II, passed away on the 6th (local time) at the age of 103.
AFP and The New York Times (NYT) reported on the 10th that “the White Rose Foundation and Lafrenz’s son, Michael Page, announced that she died at her home in South Carolina, USA.”
The White Rose was formed in Munich, centered around siblings Hans Scholl and Sophie Scholl. In 1941, when the Nazis were carrying out euthanasia policies under the pretext of protecting the genetics of Europeans, the Scholl siblings were deeply shocked after hearing a sermon by Bishop August von Galen criticizing these actions.
Appalled by Nazi policies, the Scholl siblings obtained the bishop’s permission to copy the sermon and distributed it at the University of Munich. Subsequently, students who sympathized gathered, and the White Rose’s activities began in the summer of 1942.
A scene from the movie "The Last Days of Sophie Scholl," which depicts the activities of the White Rose group [Image source=Naver Movies]
The White Rose resisted the Nazi regime by creating and distributing leaflets exposing war crimes. They produced six leaflets, distributing them on campus, denouncing the brutality of war and the inhumanity of the Nazis, exposing the Jewish genocide, and advocating for European solidarity based on tolerance and justice. Under the cover of darkness, they also painted slogans such as “Down with Hitler” on the streets.
However, while distributing the sixth and final leaflet on campus, the Scholl siblings were caught by school security, and in February 1943, all members were arrested by the secret police Gestapo. Ultimately, the leadership, including the Scholl siblings, was executed by guillotine four days after their arrest.
The heroic last stand of the Scholl siblings remains a symbol of German resistance against the Nazis, and hundreds of schools and streets bear their names. The White Rose’s activities were made into films in 1982 and 2005, with the second film, Sophie Scholl ? The Final Days, winning the Best Director and Best Actress awards at the Berlin Film Festival.
Born in May 1919, Lafrenz met Alexander Schmorell and the Scholl siblings, who founded the White Rose, while she was a medical student in Hamburg, and moved to Munich. During the White Rose activities, she was responsible for distributing leaflets and securing ink, paper, and envelopes.
Lafrenz was arrested in March 1943, the month after the execution of the White Rose leadership including the Scholl siblings. At that time, following Hitler’s order to resume guillotine executions, over 5,000 people were beheaded in Germany. However, Lafrenz served one year in prison and was released.
Afterward, Lafrenz lived a life of police interrogations and imprisonment until Germany’s defeat in April 1945. After the war, she emigrated to the United States in 1947, completed her medical studies, married ophthalmologist Vernon Page, and had four children. She served as principal of the Esperanza Special School for over 20 years and was active in the field of anthroposophy for a long time.
On her 100th birthday, May 3, 2019, Lafrenz was awarded a merit medal by the German government. At that time, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier praised Lafrenz as “one of the few who listened to the voice of conscience against National Socialist crimes and had the courage to resist dictatorship and the Jewish genocide,” calling her “a hero of freedom and humanity.”
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