Over 70,000 crosses commemorate disabled people murdered by Nazis

Friday 01 March 2019

Islanders have joined people around the world in a global memorial project, which has now produced over 70,273 blocks of fabric with red crosses - one for each disabled person murdered by the Nazis.

Jeanne Hewell-Chambers announced the success of her '70,273 Project' on Valentine's Day this year, with 72,055 blocks sewn in the three years after the initiative launched.

The red crosses aimed to symbolically commemorate the decision process leading to 70,273 physically and mentally disabled people to be murdered by the Nazis between January 1940 and August 1941.

Doctors would assess each individual's medical file and, without meeting them, place a Red Cross at the bottom of their forms if they deemed them to be "unfit" or an "economic burden on society." If two of the three assessing doctors placed crosses at the bottom of the form, the disabled person would be killed.

Jeanne said she learned of the horrific practice while watching a documentary, and was particularly moved given that her sister-in-law Nancy, has a mental disability.

Therefore Jeanne said she wanted to preserve the victims’ memory, explaining her heart “cried at the thought of their vulnerability and voicelessness making them prey for those who are arrogant enough to find them unworthy of life.”

What Jeanne describes as “a big, fat, crazy idea” soon took an unexpected turn as people from all corners of the world started stitching up blocks, one for each victim. Jeanne says tens of thousands of people from 140 or more countries have taken part - including Jersey - since the project was launched in 2016, creating a total of 72,055 blocks.

Jeanne announced the final block count three years to the day after the project started, which coincidentally was also her birthday. “I celebrated both pretty much the way I spend most days,” she said, “by checking in blocks and quilts, creating labels, replying to emails, and doing various other things on/for the project.”

“It’s all so incredibly, almost overwhelmingly wonderful,” she added. “I’m completely awed by the kindness and compassion that’s in evident abundance throughout the world.”

But Jeanne refuses to be congratulated on the success of the project. Instead she says: “All I did was till the soil and tuck in the seeds. Kindness and compassion took root, thanks to all the good people who participated, and the commemorations bloomed.”

Pictured: Islanders sewed over 1,500 pairs of red crosses.

Dozens of islanders were involved in the endeavour, thanks to local patchwork and quilting enthusiasts, Gisele Therien and Kim Monins. The pair stitched their way through the island’s parishes, holding workshops during which islanders were asked to get involved.

Over 1,500 pairs of red crosses were created and then turned into 26 quilts, which went on display at Jersey Museum in January 2018. 

Gisele was thrilled to learn Jeanne had achieved her goal of having 70,273 blocks made. “I was so happy to have got so many islanders involved back in the early days of the project,” she added. It was an impressive sight to see the Jersey quilts on display at the Museum.” 

Pictured: Kim Monins, Jeanne Hewell-Chambers and Gisele Therezien.

Although the project has now reached its goal, Jeanne says it’s not really over. She has already started planning ‘The Great Gathering’ - sometimes also called ‘The World Premiere’ - when all the quilts will be on display together.

“The whole world is invited,” she promised. “Visitors will be able to see all 70,273 commemorations and meet people from the far corners of the earth they’ve become friends with. It promises to be quite a powerful few days.”

Beyond that, Jeanne also says there will be a lasting legacy for the project. “We have forged deep, lasting friendships that transcend cultural, geographical, and language differences and distances,” she wrote on her blog. 

Pictured: One of the quilts created by the Jersey Modern Quilt Guild.

“We find that we have much more in common than what separates us, and we now know with absolute certainty that there is more goodness, more kindness, more compassion in every corner of the world than there is hate.

"We have proven that love and respect makes it possible to love and learn from those whose lives are not the same as ours," she concluded."This is big, y’all. This is big.”