The Holocaust
The Jewish Holocaust is the most extreme example of genocide in history. The Nazis
hunted down Jews and other “lesser races” from 1933 to 1945. The “Final Solution” in 1938
turned the war down a dark, sadistic road that would continue for years. The Final Solution
resulted in the creation of concentration and death camps the countries of Poland and Germany.
Following the Holocaust, the shock created by the crimes against humanity led to the people
responsible being brought to justice for their inhuman acts. The Holocaust was a horrific
example of genocide brought about by racial politics in the 20th century.
The Holocaust is defined as the systematic, state-sponsored persecution and murder of six
million Jews under the Nazi regime (Berenbaum). This event occurred from the result of several
unfortunate factors which included World War I, Hitler rising to power, propaganda from the
Nazis, and the strength of the German military. World War I laid the foundation for the
cataclysmic events that followed. After the war, the Allies forced Germany to accept the Treaty
of Versailles, which lay the blame for the war solely at Germany’s feet. The country was also
required to pay a very large sum of money in restitution fees. These terms left the German
people to feel embittered and angered towards the Allies as well as their own democratic
government, the Weimar Republic, since they are the ones who conceded defeat and signed the
treaty.
Adolf Hitler tried to overtake the government with his Nazi party in the 1920’s. He also
ran for president in 1933. Although he was unsuccessful, his opponent, Paul von Hindenburg,
appointed him Chancellor. The following year, Hindenburg died and Hitler declared himself the
Fuhrer of Germany.
Once Hitler became the sole dictator of Germany, he started laying the groundwork of his
regime. He opposed the Treaty of Versailles and started assembling an army. This was in direct
violation of the treaty the Weimer Republic signed at the end of World War I. Hitler then used a
political method called propaganda in order to discriminate against the Jews in Germany. All
newspapers, radios, televisions were forced to send out anti-Semitic messages to the population
of German citizens. Hitler targeted the children because he believed that raising children to
believe in his propaganda will affect all generations to come. So, Hitler created a group called
Hitler Youth. These children often did many good deeds in the neighborhoods they lived in and
was the Nazi equivalent of the Boy Scouts. They were given ranks and had roles to portray.
These children were subjected to Nazi propaganda which led them to believe in the Aryan
Superiority.
