Commemoration of over 6,500 forced laborers: Viersen sets a new example

Commemoration of over 6,500 forced laborers: Viersen sets a new example

On June 17, 2025, a memorial threshold was unveiled in Viersen, commemorating more than 6,500 people who had to do forced labor in the region between 1940 and 1945. This ceremony took place at the town hall in Viersen, near the famous “Strong Woman” by Georg Ettl. The memorial threshold made of enamel, 1.2 meters wide and surrounded by basalt stones, refers to the darkest time in the city's history and highlights the suffering of many. Mayor Sabine Anemüller emphasized that this warning was based on a citizen's application submitted by the “Niewieder” initiative and several local associations.https://lokalklick.eu/2025/06/22/die-wuerde-zurueckbaren/

The inscription on the memorial threshold impressively explains the conditions under which the forced laborers suffered: “Forced labor in state construction projects, in industrial companies and craft businesses, with farmers and in private households”. Many of them fared poorly and many died due to poor living conditions, industrial accidents or bombings. This shows how important it is to keep these memories alive and face the past.

The reality of forced labor

Over 12 million people worldwide were forced into forced labor during World War II. In the summer of 1944, six million civilian workers were working in the German Reich alone, in addition to two million prisoners of war and over half a million concentration camp prisoners. Forced labor was designed for a wide variety of areas and ensured a crucial part of arms production and agricultural supplies. This brutal form of exploitation left not only physical but also psychological wounds that still exist today for many former forced laborers.https://www.erinnerungskultur-viersen.de/zwangsarbeit

People from the occupied territories, including Poland and the Soviet Union, were particularly affected. These forced laborers lived in extreme conditions, often in overcrowded accommodation and with inadequate food. From 1943 onwards, German industry increasingly relied on the labor of prisoners from the concentration camps, who suffered the worst living conditions. Their work was monitored by a repressive system that included the Wehrmacht, police and SS, and attempts to escape were often punished with brutal punishments.https://www.bpb.de/themen/nationalsocialism-zweiter-weltkrieg/ns-zwangsarbeit/222627/ueberblick-die-nationalsocialistische-zwangsarbeit/

In Viersen, for example, at least 2,725 forced laborers were employed in factories and on farms. Many of them died and were buried in local cemeteries. After the end of the war, the situation for many forced laborers was precarious as they often waited years to return home or had to live in camps.https://www.erinnerungskultur-viersen.de/zwangsarbeit

The memory of these people and their story of suffering reminds us not to forget the historical lessons. The memorial threshold in Viersen is an important step in the urban culture of remembrance, which makes the horrors of the past visible and serves as part of historical memory.