1933-37 - Discrimination in Nazi Germany

Discrimination against Jews in everyday life

• Pubs and businesses put up signs saying Jews were not welcome

• Pro-Nazi activists took the lead in pushing for anti-Jewish measures in local schools, village committees and almost all areas of public life

Example of discrimination in Germany

• 14 July 1935 - Anti-Jewish demonstrations in swimming pools in Heigenbruken

• Resulted in the Mayor issuing a ban on Jews using the swimming pool

Effectiveness of anti-Jewish signs

• Evidence suggests these signs were displayed to keep officials happy rather than actually stopping Jews from using establishments

• In some pubs, Jewish customers were assured signs were for show and to just ignore it

German views on discrimination of Jews

• Some Germans were embarrassed by the overt discrimination

• Some people were reluctnt to break of from family doctors they had relied on for years

• Appalled to see literary classics seen as Jewish purged from local libraries

• When Nazi activists in Leipzig demanded the removal of a statue of a Jewish composer, Germans and the local party boss blocked the proposal

• However open opposition to the discrimination was rare

• Most people who were unhappy about the discrimination kept their heads down and retreated to ‘internal exile’