How far do you agree that the Nazi seizure of power in 1933 was the most significant turning
point in attitudes towards, and the status of, ethnic minorities in the years 1918-89?
It seems to me that throughout the period of 1918-1989 the status of and attitudes towards
ethnic minorities in Germany, which I would define as both their legal status and the regard in
which they were held in society, underwent several significant turning points. This can be
seen in how equal rights were first granted to them under the Weimar constitution, then
retracted by the Nazis upon their seizure of power in 1933 only to be introduced once more
by the Federal Republic of Germany in 1949. Although it could be argued that racist,
specifically anti-semitic, attitudes were prevalent in Germany through much of the period of
1918-1989, I would assert that 1945 was the most significant turning point for ethnic
minorities during this time frame as it marked the beginning of an era in which
discriminatory attitudes would no longer be validated by the government and from that year
onwards their legal status would only go on to improve after hitting rock bottom under the
Nazi regime.
Naturally, upon the Nazi seizure of power in 1933 the status of ethnic minorities declined
considerably in accordance with Hitler’s radically discriminatory racial ideology. It could be
argued that 1933 was the single most significant turning point in the lives of German ethnic
minorities, as the Nazis tore the democratic heart out of the Weimar constitution, marking
the beginning of an era in which ethnic minorities would not only be unwelcome in Germany,
but also in danger at the hands of their government. Jewish Germans in the Weimar Republic
had largely been middle class doctors, accountants and department store owners, with the
government’s eagerness to open careers to all talent providing them the opportunity to enter
professions and have successful careers in commerce . By the end of the 1920s the
assimilation of German Jewry was well underway, with one in every three Jews marrying
outside his faith, Jewish families speaking German as their primary language and the
majority of Jews holding German citizenship. This acceleration in assimilation under the
Weimar Republic was brought to an abrupt halt when the Nazis seized power. In April 1933,
the Nazi regime began to implement discriminatory laws, with the ‘Law for the Restoration of
the professional Civil Service’ expelling Jews from the civil service and universities and the
boycott of Jewish shops, organised by Julius Streicher, seeking to sabotage the Jewish
department stores that flourished in the Weimar Republic. Although it could be argued that
antisemitic attitudes were widespread in Germany even prior to the Hitler’s rise to
dictatorship evidenced in General Ludendorff’s ‘stab in the back myth’ and riots in the
Scheunenviertel district of Berlin, I would argue that the Nazi seizure of power marked a
turning point in attitudes towards the Jews in particular; any discriminatory and violent
sentiment towards ethnic minorities was illegal under the Weimar Republic and those
attacking Jews were prosecuted, whereas from 1933 onwards these harmful attitudes
became not only legal, but endorsed by the state.
Although 1933 indisputably marked the beginning of a downward spiral for the status of and
attitudes towards ethnic minorities in Germany, I would highlight the year 1938 as one which
could be considered a more significant turning point in the period of 1918-1989. This can be
point in attitudes towards, and the status of, ethnic minorities in the years 1918-89?
It seems to me that throughout the period of 1918-1989 the status of and attitudes towards
ethnic minorities in Germany, which I would define as both their legal status and the regard in
which they were held in society, underwent several significant turning points. This can be
seen in how equal rights were first granted to them under the Weimar constitution, then
retracted by the Nazis upon their seizure of power in 1933 only to be introduced once more
by the Federal Republic of Germany in 1949. Although it could be argued that racist,
specifically anti-semitic, attitudes were prevalent in Germany through much of the period of
1918-1989, I would assert that 1945 was the most significant turning point for ethnic
minorities during this time frame as it marked the beginning of an era in which
discriminatory attitudes would no longer be validated by the government and from that year
onwards their legal status would only go on to improve after hitting rock bottom under the
Nazi regime.
Naturally, upon the Nazi seizure of power in 1933 the status of ethnic minorities declined
considerably in accordance with Hitler’s radically discriminatory racial ideology. It could be
argued that 1933 was the single most significant turning point in the lives of German ethnic
minorities, as the Nazis tore the democratic heart out of the Weimar constitution, marking
the beginning of an era in which ethnic minorities would not only be unwelcome in Germany,
but also in danger at the hands of their government. Jewish Germans in the Weimar Republic
had largely been middle class doctors, accountants and department store owners, with the
government’s eagerness to open careers to all talent providing them the opportunity to enter
professions and have successful careers in commerce . By the end of the 1920s the
assimilation of German Jewry was well underway, with one in every three Jews marrying
outside his faith, Jewish families speaking German as their primary language and the
majority of Jews holding German citizenship. This acceleration in assimilation under the
Weimar Republic was brought to an abrupt halt when the Nazis seized power. In April 1933,
the Nazi regime began to implement discriminatory laws, with the ‘Law for the Restoration of
the professional Civil Service’ expelling Jews from the civil service and universities and the
boycott of Jewish shops, organised by Julius Streicher, seeking to sabotage the Jewish
department stores that flourished in the Weimar Republic. Although it could be argued that
antisemitic attitudes were widespread in Germany even prior to the Hitler’s rise to
dictatorship evidenced in General Ludendorff’s ‘stab in the back myth’ and riots in the
Scheunenviertel district of Berlin, I would argue that the Nazi seizure of power marked a
turning point in attitudes towards the Jews in particular; any discriminatory and violent
sentiment towards ethnic minorities was illegal under the Weimar Republic and those
attacking Jews were prosecuted, whereas from 1933 onwards these harmful attitudes
became not only legal, but endorsed by the state.
Although 1933 indisputably marked the beginning of a downward spiral for the status of and
attitudes towards ethnic minorities in Germany, I would highlight the year 1938 as one which
could be considered a more significant turning point in the period of 1918-1989. This can be
