From 1933 until the outbreak of war in 1939 Jews felt the effects of more than 400 decrees and regulations that restricted all aspects of their public and private lives, the incomparable atrocities thereafter are beyond my writing. But the foundations of their segregation started in a 25 point plan by the Nazi party in 1920.
The government required Jews to identify themselves in ways that would permanently separate them from the rest of the population. The city of Berlin forbade Jewish lawyers and notaries to work on legal matters. Laws and decrees restricted reimbursement of Jewish doctors from public (state) health insurance funds, the intention was to segregate Jews from society and to abrogate their political, legal, and civil rights.
The government required Jews to identify themselves in ways that would permanently separate them from the rest of the population. All Jews were obliged to carry identity cards. Jews were often forced to work for nothing and were pushed into more laboured and menial positions.
In a spate of riots called Night of Broken Glass Jewish shops and offices were smashed and vandalised, and the German people were disgusted by the amount of damage The order of the day was to blame it on the Jews. During the impact of the Great Depression, when people became unemployed and all looked helpless, Hitler's search for a scapegoat proved very fruitful and Jews were forced to scrub the streets clean. Hitler made numerous speeches indicating that the Jews were people of robbers, everything they had was stolen, they were vampires and parasites.
There were sympathisers, but most felt compelled to remain silent even though they didn’t fully approve what was going on. The Jews were a minority, they were different, the perfect scapegoat to blame all the problems of the time.
Beginning to sound familiar?
Small acorns become huge oak trees in the scapegoat business, and chipping away at a minorities social status such as working for nothing, infringement of privacy, being segregated, issued with cards or vouchers, being penalised for family growth and being audited for possessions, all help to magnify diverse thinking away from the real cause and incompetence of a hierarchy that uses attack as a form of defence. On reflection, the mainstream of society realised how they were caught in a powerful and strong flowing river of propaganda, but it took many years of fight to dilute this putrid poison. Smashing the acorn at an early stage and exposing it for what it carries is paramount, and its escalation must be stopped by whatever means available to prohibit future segregation and oppressive propaganda.
Reblogged from Jimi
