Though titled C’étaient des enfants (They were Children), this exhibit in Paris’ Hotel de Ville is an emotional trip through photos, documents and letters that show what Jewish children were forced to go through before and during World War II.

I’ve gotten in the habit of checking out the special exhibits at the Hôtel de Ville because they are always excellent – and free. (Each quarter (Arrondissement) has its own city hall, but this is the central one for all of Paris.) This year’s exhibit, however, had me on the brink of tears throughout. C’étaient des enfants (seteh dayz ohnfahn) means “They were children.” The exhibit, which runs until October 27, 2012, honors the memory of all the children in Paris who were rounded-up and sent off to camps during the Nazi occupation and the Vichy collaboration. Read More