Anne Frank

Anne Frank was a unique and unforgettable person. She lived a life that was short yet full of dramatic experiences. Her bravery is very inspirational, especially to anyone who has ever been oppressed.

Anne Frank was born in Frankfurt, Germany on June 12, 1929. At the age of four Anne and her family moved to Holland. Anne went to a Montessori school in 1941, her last year in grade school. Schools were now segregated between Jewish and non-Jewish children. Anne and her sister Margot now went to a Jewish school with only Jewish teachers. Anne woke up at six o'clock in the morning on Friday, June 12th. She wasn't surprised that she had woken up so early, because today was her thirteenth birthday. It was wartime in 1942. Anne was living with her family in Amsterdam, the capital city of the Netherlands. The Nazis had been in the Netherlands since 1940. The war was in the back of her mind at this time. Anne started opening her presents at seven o'clock, when her parents got up. Anne recieved many gifts from her family, but the best one came from her parents, a red and white checkered hardcover diary. This was her first diary, and she was ecstatic. Anne's new diary became her best friend, she would write down all of the things she couldn't tell her closest friends. She called her new friend "Kitty."

It was now 1943 and the Nazis Party was at the height of its popularity. Adolf Hitler had convinced the country that Germans were superior human beings and should rule the entire world. Anyone who opposed Hitler was beaten or imprisoned. Many people were arrested. This is when Hitler began his final solution which involved concentration camps. His philosophy was to hate anyone who wasn't pure German. For various reasons his biggest target became the Jews. Jewish people who were arrested were never heard from again. Otto Frank heard stories of concentration camps where Jews were put to death. He knew he had to do something to prevent this from happening to his family. Otto Frank knew that his business would be taken away by the Nazis, so he transferred the ownership of his business to Victor Kugler and Johannes Kleiman in 1941. The business was renamed Trading Company Gies & Co.

Otto Frank thought of a plan to escape the Nazis. Some of the Dutch people of Holland did not support the Nazis. They felt like they wanted to help the Jews. Some of these Dutch people let the Jews hide in their attics, basements, and barns. Some of the Dutch would take the Jewish infants and children in and tell the Nazis that the children were theirs. On July 6, 1942, Anne and her family went into hiding. The annex was the upper portion of the building they would secretly occupy for over two years. While walking to the annex, Mr. Frank confided about their plan to go into hiding and that they would be joined by the Van Daan family later on.

When they arrived at the annex, they were surprised at all of the things Otto's friends had hid for them. There was furniture, books, clothing, food, and dishes. Ultimately, there were seven people hiding in the annex hoping to save their lives. Their biggest fear was of being discovered. Obviously this meant staying indoors at all times. For most people, this experience would be a terrible way to live.

Anne Frank was different. She had an incredible spirit and love of life. Through trying times she wrote her feelings into her diary which proved to be a lasting record of a part of history that the world would never forget. Unfortunately, Anne was arrested by the Nazis and taken to a concentration camp with her sister Margot. Luckily, the pages of Anne's diary were accidentally scooped up by the Nazis at the time of the family's arrest. Through a string of circumstances, they were finally recovered and restored so the world could have a record of this brave girls' experiences.