Inside the house overlooking... Auschwitz

A three-story villa with a carefully manicured garden and a dark history is preparing to open its doors to the public, this time with a new and important purpose. The villa known as "House 88," once the residence of Rudolf Höss, the longest-serving commandant of the Auschwitz concentration camp, will now be transformed into a global center for combating extremism, writes A2 CNN.

A life hidden behind high walls

The house, located just a few meters from the concentration camp, was designed to be an oasis of peace for the Höss family. His wife, Hedwig, and their five children lived a life filled with ordinary family activities: playing in the garden, horse riding, and swimming in the nearby river. But behind the high walls and covered windows, the reality was quite different.

In the adjacent camp, millions of Jews, Roma, homosexuals and political opponents were sent to gas chambers and crematoriums. Höss, in his role as commandant, was responsible for the mass killings using the pesticide Zyklon B to achieve a quick and efficient extermination.

The painful memory and the film that deepened reflection

The house was also the focus of the film “The Zone of Interest” (2023), which explores the “banality of evil,” a concept coined by philosopher Hannah Arendt. The film shows how Höss and his family lived a normal life while the massacres took place just a few meters away.

The diaries of Höss and his family maid shed light on how they tried to distance themselves from the crimes that took place outside their walls. In one of his accounts, Höss describes a mother who showed him her children and begged for mercy: “How can you kill such beautiful children? Don’t you have any heart?” Höss, however, showed no remorse; he called the extermination of the Jews a “mistake” rather than a crime.

A house with a new mission

After the liberation of Auschwitz in January 1945, House 88 passed through various hands. Most recently, it was purchased by the Counter Extremism Project, a New York-based non-governmental organization that aims to combat extremism and anti-Semitism, writes A2 CNN.

Hans Jakob Schindler, the organization's director, said the center will be a powerful symbol to combat hatred and educate the public about the dangers of extremism. The house will open to visitors in January 2025, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.

"When you look at this property, the gardens, the fountains, the ordinary life it symbolizes, you realize that just not forgetting is not enough to stop the hatred and anti-Semitism that still exists today," said Mark Wallace, the organization's CEO.

The symbolism of resurrection

One of the first actions the Counter Extremism Project team took was to place a “mezuzah”—a wooden plaque engraved with verses from the Torah, the Jewish holy book—on the main door of the house. This symbolic act restores the connection to Jewish life and transforms this space from a hotbed of crime into a place that combats hate.

The transformation of House 88 comes as an important reminder. It proves that even the darkest spaces of history can be transformed into centers of hope and action. This initiative marks a major step towards learning from the mistakes of the past and building a more just future, where hatred will have no place near “the neighbor’s house.” (A2 Televizion)