The cataloguing of the cemetery and writing
up of the website work is still ticking over. Every story that I have
researched has given me yet another perspective; not only into historical
events, but also into the way we treat each other and life in general.
I spent a fascinating morning recently with
a friend, gathering information for a story about her father who is buried at
the cemetery. It is now posted onto the website and you can read it here.
There are two things in this story that I’d
like to talk about. The first is the way that non-English speaking immigrants
were treated in the early 1900s. It could be that immigrants are still treated the
same way today. I don't know. My friend said that her family was convinced that the
immigration officers gave out a generic name for all Jewish immigrants if they
couldn’t understand the Yiddish speakers. In their case, all the families were given the name Goldberg. I accept that this is not an act of
cruelty, but it is a dehumanizing approach to people who are already displaced and
escaping persecution.
My second point is the photograph. Do visit the web page and have a look at the two men. Don’t
you just love those Victorian male bathing costumes? I think they’re fabulous!
