Ka kammala wannan magana: A watan Satumba na shekara ta 1939 gwamnatin Faransa ta amsa farmakin da Jamus ta kai wa Poland ta wajen yin yaƙi da Jamus. Makonni biyu bayan haka sojojin Soviet suka mamaye Poland daga wancan gefen. Yayin da kowa ke jiran abin da gwamnatoci za su yi a nan gaba, yanayin da mazauna birnin Paris suke ciki bai canja ba. Amma, a watan Mayu na shekara ta 1940, sojojin Jamus suka mamaye ƙasar Faransa.
Hukuncin da aka kulla a ranar 22 ga Yuni, 1940 ya sanya aikin soja a arewacin rabin da kuma yankin gabar tekun yammacin kasar, yayin da ya kirkiro a kudancin rabin Faransa da ake kira "yankin yanki", wanda gwamnatin marigayi ke gudanarwa daga Vichy a karkashin wani jarumin yaki na Faransa mai shekaru 80. Selma Steinmetz da Oskar Grossmann suna daga cikin daruruwan 'yan gudun hijirar siyasa wadanda suka shiga daruruwan dubban' yan Paris da suka tsere zuwa kudu yayin da sojojin Jamus suka kusanci babban birnin Faransa daga arewa. Sun ƙare a yankin Toulouse. Selma Steinmetz ta shiga kungiyar adawa ta Faransa.