The selection process at Auschwitz was a brutal and inhumane practice. Upon arrival at the camp, incoming prisoners were forced to disembark from their transport trains and line up for selection by SS officers. Those deemed unfit for work – usually children, elderly people, pregnant women, and those with physical or mental disabilities – were sent directly to the gas chambers. Those considered fit for labor were selected to stay in the camp and put to work. The sick and disabled were often exploited as slave laborers until they became too weak to continue working, at which point they would be disposed of in the same manner as those initially selected out upon arrival.