Boycotts
After its defeat in World War I, Germany was in an economic and political crisis, with many people out of work. The Nazis came to power in January 1933 and shortly afterwards, on April 1, the Nazi Propaganda Minister, Joseph Goebbels, declared a national boycott against German Jews. The boycott was carefully planned to begin simultaneously in every city and town at 1OAm. Uniformed, and often armed, guards were placed in front of every store or business owned by Jews. Customers were prevented from entering. Guards were also placed at the offices of Jewish lawyers and doctors.
Jewish businesses and department stores, which were a prominent part of the community, became convenient targets for the boycotts. The modern department store, with its fixed and low prices, was blamed for Germany's economic crisis. Nazi propaganda claimed that all department stores were in Jewish hands and were a danger to the German middle class. As part of the boycott, signs were posted warning, "Jewish store! Whoever buys here will be photographed." Trucks, with Nazis bearing signs, patrolled the streets. The signs proclaimed, "Germans! Defend yourselves! Don't buy from Jews!"
The boycotts were among the first measures taken against the Jews during the Holocaust and laid the groundwork for the subsequent removal of Jews' civil and human rights. Following the boycotts the Nazis passed laws barring Jews from public schools, the professions and the civil service.
Definitions
- Boycott - Refusal to buy a product or patronize a store. Often used as a form of protest or coercion.
- Hitler Youth - Nazi paramilitary and social club for German boys from ages 14-18. The organization inoctrinated German youth with Nazi beliefs and anti-Semitism. Young girls joined the League of German Girls.
- SA / Sturmabteilungen - Stormtroopers, also known as the "brown shirts." Paramilitary organization, noted for its violence and brutality, intimidated and battled early opponents of the Nazis.
Fietz Fabric Department - Berlin, 1909
Like the Fietz Department Store shown here, many of the first department stores offered services that only the wealthy had been able to afford before. Prices were fixed and low. Customers could browse and goods could be returned. Courtesy Blidarchiv.
Nathan Israel Boycott - Berlin, April 1, 1933
The boycott at the Nathan Israel Department Store in which the SA hold signs reading "Germans defend yourselves! Don't buy From Jews." By 1935 this department store was in Nazi hands and Wilfried Israel was notified that he was no longer the owner. He continued to work there as hundreds of Jewish employees were laid off. He is credited with getting most of the staff, especially the children, out of Germany before the war broke out. Courtesy United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
The Roles and Intention of Boycotts
The photograph shows members of the SA enforcing the boycott in front of the Nathan Israel department store. Why do you think the SA was used? What message did the presence of the SA communicate to German citizens?
Explain the word boycott in your own words and give a contemporary example. What is the difference between the intent of the Nazi boycott and the international boycott of South Africa during the years of apartheid? Who stood to gain from the Nazi boycott and the removal of Jews from the economic life of Germany?
In response to the unprecedented violations of human rights during the Holocaust, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was passed on December 10, 1948. Article 23 of the Declaration states that all people have the right to work and to choose their jobs. Why do you think that economic rights were included in the declaration? How does Article 23 relate to the Nazi boycott of the Jews?
Organize a Boycott
Choose a clothing or department store that is popular with student. Imagine that students in your school wanted to boycott this store. What would they have to do to organize such a boycott? How could the boycott be made as effective as possible? Brainstorm ideas in pairs or small groups. List your ideas in order of priorities. Develop an action plan. Write slogans for signs and design posters for the boycott.
Compare your invented student boycott with the Nazi boycott. What are the similarities and differences? What role do slogans and signs play in a boycott?
What effect would a student boycott have on store owners, on the community and on students who do not support the boycott? What is the difference between students persuading other sudents to boycott a store and an organized boycott led by a group in power?