The Nazi resistance group – “the White Rose” – believed that Hitler was harming the soul of Germany, that political and religious freedom were essential, that the persecution of Jews and everyone else was utterly wrong. They wrote leaflets and flyers to sway the hearts and minds of the people.
They wanted to awaken the conscience of the people so they would throw off their oppressive government. Two members of the group, Hans and Sophie Scholl, were students at the university in Munich. On February 18, 1943, they brought hundreds of their leaflets to school. They decided to throw them from a third floor balcony so everyone who passed below might read their message. A maintenance worker saw and reported them to the Gestapo. They were caught and as they were interrogated, they confessed that they were the only ones involved in the White Rose. Sadly, the Nazis tracked down their whole group.
Sophie defended their actions vigorously in court. She said, “somebody, after all, had to make a start. What we wrote and said is also believed by many others. They just don’t dare express themselves as we did.”1 She had dropped leaflets at the university on February 18th and on February 22nd she was executed.
Many sources say that as she faced the end of her life, Sophie’s last words were this: “such a fine, sunny day, and I have to go…What does my death matter, if through us, thousands of people are awakened and stirred to action?”2
[1] https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sophie_Scholl
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophie_Scholl