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 In 1933, the "Decree for the Coordination of All
Activities" put all radio stations, newspapers,
libraries, art, music, and movies under control of
the Nazis. Why do you think they wanted to control
these areas of life?
I. Nazi Racial Ideology:
Nazi racial theory was based on the notion of racism, in which
discrimination or hatred against another racial or ethnic group is both
natural and correct. For the Nazis, race was a fixed biological and reality;
each racial group had its own "essence" and set characteristics that could
not be changed.
Social Darwinism is a philosophy that takes Charles Darwin’s ideas about
“survival of the fittest” and natural selection and applies them to the
political, social, and economic issues of human society. According to the
Nazis, who adopted this attitude, Northern European peoples (e.g., Germans,
the English, Scandanavians) were considered to be the peak of human
evolution, whereas people from other races (e.g., Africans, Jews, Roma) were
viewed as untermenschen, or "sub-human." For the social Darwinist, there
is no need to use resources to help the poor, the sick, or the disabled,
because they might spread their "tainted genes" to the next generation.
Hence, disease, poverty, war, and discrimination were viewed favorably,
since they eliminated the socially and biologically "unfit."
British Imperialism in Africa
Westward Expansion in U.S. History
“Eugenics Movement” in U.S. - early 1900s
According to Nazi racial theory, the races were arranged in a strict
ranking, with blonde, blue-eyed Northern Europeans, known as
"Aryans" or "Nordic types," at the top and the Jews at the bottom.
Nazis believed that the Nordics were physically, mentally, and
culturally superior to other races and were responsible for
history's greatest accomplishments. In terms of appearance,
Nordics were tall, fair-skinned, with light hair (blond, red, or light
brown), eyes of a light color (blue, grey, or green), and a narrow
skull. Jews were considered a "degenerate" race, spawned from
inter-marriage between Africans, Asians, and Arabs, that was the
eternal enemy of the Nordic people. Non-white races, such as
Africans, indigenous peoples, Hispanics, and Asians were
considered to be intellectually and culturally inferior to the
Nordics, but were not believed to be intrinsically evil like Jews.
Such people would be used as slave labor in the imagined Nazi
world order.
II. Why were Jewish people targeted
specifically by Hitler and the Nazis?
 n Anti-Semitism common in Europe for many centuries
 n Jews were associated with revolution and Communism
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(Trotsky was Jewish)
n Jews blamed for signing Treaty of Versailles and did not
suffer as much during Hyperinflation and Great Depression.
n Suspicion/resentment over their wealth & power – Jews
made 1% of German population but 17% of bankers were
Jews
n Being a minority, Hitler and the Nazis knew that Jewish
people would not have the power to fight back and would
make a convenient scapegoat
n Religious intolerance – were seen as different from
Christians.
"Stages of Growth for Members of the Nordic Race."
Nazi Propaganda glorified the ideal "Aryan" blonde haired, blue eyed family...
While others displayed the “head-shape” that good German
citizens should watch for in their neighbors to find out if they
were Jewish
Turn to page 11 of your assignment packet. Examine the various pieces of
Nazi propaganda about Jewish people on pages 11 and 12. Then fill out the
graphic organizer on page 13.