Blog Nov 18

1.             What does Hitler mean by the distinction between "emotional antisemitism" and "racial antisemitism"?

Hitler made a distinction between ‘emotional anti-Semitism’ and ‘racial anti-Semitism’ in order to rationalize his beliefs. According to Hitler, ‘emotional anti-Semitism’ was an invalid way of creating a political movement because it wasn’t based in fact. ‘Anti-Semitism based on purely emotional grounds will find its ultimate expression in the form of pogroms.’ In order to truly rid the world of Jewry, a ‘systematic, legal campaign against the Jews [to annul] the special privileges they enjoy in contrast to the other foreigners living among us” was necessary. 

1.             What happened on Kristallnacht? Why did the Nazis do it?

Kristallnact took place on November 9-10, 1938. This event can be seen as a microcosm for the entire Holocaust. The English translation is ‘Crystal Night’ which was fitting because of the massive amounts of glass that littered the streets from Jewish establishments being destroyed by SA paramilitary forces and non-Jewish civilians. Many Jews were killed and thousands were arrested and taken into concentration camps only to meet their death there. This event was sparked because of the assassination of the German diplomat Ernst vom Rath by Herschel Grynszpan. Grynszpan was a German-born Polish Jew who lived in Paris.