Today is the 80th anniversary of the execution of Sophie Scholl.
“What does my death matter if, through us, thousands of people are awakened and stirred to action?”
Sophie was a courageous young lady who stood up against the Hitler and the Nazi regime during the Second World War. As somebody from a Jewish faith, Sophie is one of my greatest political heroes. Her life and death have inspired me throughout my own life and it is important that we remember her today.
In 2021, I spoke to BBC Radio 4 about why Sophie has been such an inspiration to me.
Whilst a student at Munich University, where she studied medicine, Sophie joined the White Rose resistance group. With just six members, the group became a voice against the Nazi regime, denouncing the murder of Jewish people and demanding an end to the war. Encouraging citizens to resist the Nazi regime, Sophie and the White Rose group refused to be silenced, telling their fellow students that they would not leave them in peace until everybody rose up to take action.
The group produced leaflets that encouraged people to rise up against Hitler’s regime and “crush their tormentors”. In February 1943, the White Rose group printed their sixth and final leaflet which Sophie and her brother, Hans, distributed around Munich University.
Spotted by a university caretaker, Sophie and Hans were both reported to Hitler’s secret police, the Gestapo, and arrested. After interrogation and a mock trial, the siblings were both sentenced to death in February 1943.
Learning about Sophie Scholl in my teenage years changed my perspective completely. I was heartened by the courage, bravery and determination of individuals like Sophie who stood up against the Nazi regime, speaking out for Jewish people and demanding that Hitler’s war came to an end. Thanks to Sophie, I realised that, if not checked, hatred grows and grows - we must learn from the past but not live in it.
