Weimar Ethnic Minorities Flashcards
Idea of Volk
From 1871 onwards, ethnic minorities (Poles, Gypsies and Jews) were not regarded as equal - especially by elite groups such as landowners or the army
Who were Gypsies?
Roma or Sinti people who travelled across Eastern Europe
Prejudices in Germany before the War
Protestant prejudice against Catholics and there was prejudice between different regions ; ethnic minorities had their own exclusive clubs and associations, while Germans had theirs
Evidence of partial integration of ethnic minorities in society?
Businessmen did business together and interacted in daily life - significant amount of intermarriage with 1/3 of Jews married to non-Jews in 1915
Status of Ethnic Minorities under Weimar
In broad terms, ethnic minorities were mostly accepted although they still faced low level discrimination (similar to women) - lower wages and were less likely to be hired than a German man. Elite conservative groups like the army and landowners were hostile while city based liberals were welcoming
Weimar Constitution attitude to Ethnics
Article 113 of Weimar said that groups that spoke a different language could not be legally stopped from using this language or preserving their national identity in the way they ran their schools - THIS WAS A LIBERAL LAW WHICH WAS NOT ALWAYS IMPLEMENTED AND DID NOT CONTROL LAWS MADE BY THE LÄNDER AGAINST MINORITIES ; Weimar constitution was progressive but undermined yet again by regional autonomy
What did people think of these ethnic minorities?
They were more accepting of people who settled and became familiar
Weimar and Eugenics?
Significant number of people who believed in theories about eugenics which led to racist thinking - for example in 1920 “The Release and Destruction of Lives Devoid of Value”recommended the mercy killing of defective human beings ; this thinking applied to racial groups
Jewish Demographic
1% of all Germans in 1918 and it was only 0.76% in 1933 - these Jews were highly concentrated in the cities, especially Berlin ; they had a huge influence on culture and many became polticians
Jews in Politics
5 Jews held cabinet posts in the Weimar Republic - including foreign minister Walter Rathenau (1922) - he was assassinated by the consul organisation shortly after and this led to the government banning some anti-Semitic organisations - most aggressive being the German People’s Offensive and Defensive Alliance which had 170000 members when it disbanded in 1923
Attitudes of Racist Groups and Individuals
- German People’s Offensive and Defensive - said that Jews had conspired with the allies and lost Germany the war “November Criminals” - many joined the Nazi party later
- Judiciary were anti-Semitic like they were prejudiced towards right wing organisations ; made racist remarks with their judgements
- Jews blamed for the depression and the people’s financial misfortune ; Jewish Organisations such as the Reich Federation of Jewish Front Soldiers were set up to fight anti-semitism with the “Reich” stressing that they had fought for Germany in the War (12000 Jewish soldiers had sacrificed their lives for Germany)
What effect did the depression have?
As depression worsened, more and more people turned to parties on the extreme right or left and many of these parties were extremely anti-semetic
Discrimination against Gypsies
Despite article 113 - heavy discrimination as they moved around so did not contribute to the country by working/paying tax ; there was no federal legislation against Gypsies BUT several Länder passed laws to try and control them, for example in 1926 Bavaria passed a series of laws against Gypsies to control their movement and get their children into schools/adults into work - other states like Hesse adopted this and then in 1927 Bavaria said all Gypsies should carry identity cards
Attitude to Poles?
Border between Poland and Germany was redrawn ; significant hostility because of WW1 and the Danzig Corridor with Germany losing a lot of land to Poland ; many spoke both German and Polish however (500000) and therefore felt more integrated ; between 1925 and 1933 30000 Poles left the country
Attitudes to Black People
Rising hostility after 1923 - French army occupation that took over the Ruhr in 1923 had black units from French african colonies ; 500 mixed race children were born in Germany after 1923 and were denounced as “Germany’s Shame” - black adults who lived in Germany before 1923 found some places more hostile after occupation though musicians/writers accepted in cities
