World War II Documents from the State Archive of Kiev Oblast. Part 1: Postcards Home: Postcards of Ukrainian Forced Labor Workers from Nazi Germany

In spring 1942, Germany began to draft occupied populations as forced laborers. Eastern workers (Ostarbeiters) were of both sexes between the ages of 15 and 60 years old. During their period of residence in the Reich, Ostarbeiters were permitted to write their relatives in the Ukraine. Their letters, however, never reached their intended destinations. Instead they were directed into a secret archive and kept "under arrest" until the early 1990s, when the entire collection was finally declassified. The collection of postcards contains the testimonies of Ukrainian, most of who had been forcibly removed to Germany. The correspondence usually got past the German censors, even though it vividly describes the conditions in Germany, the kind of work, way of life, spare time, treatment of Ostarbeiters by the Germans, and relations with representatives of other nations (Frenchmen, Poles, Belgians, and others). Many letters are highly emotional as the writers express their longing to return home and concern about relatives and friends.