Untitled presentation

Was Hitler soley responsbile for the Holocaust?

Hitler did not make the Holocaust happen by himself. Many Germans and non-Germans contributed to/or benefited from the so-called “Final Solution” (the term used by the Nazis for their plan to annihilate the European Jews). In addition to the SS, German government, military, and Nazi Party officials who planned and implemented policies aimed at persecuting and murdering the European Jews, many “ordinary” people—civil servants, doctors, lawyers, judges, soldiers, and railroad workers—played a role in the Holocaust.

WHY DIDN’T JEWS LEAVE WHEN THE NAZIS CAME TO POWER?

After 1937, Jews needed the following documents from German authorities to leave the country.

• Passport

• Certificate from the local police noting the formal dissolution of residence in Germany

• Certificate from the Reich Ministry of Finance approving emigration, which required:

– Payment of an emigration tax of 25 percent on total assets valued at more than 50,000 R M.

This tax came due upon the dissolution of German residence.

– Submission of an itemized list of all gifts made to third parties since January 1, 1931.

If their value exceeded 10,000 R M, they were included in the calculation of the

emigration tax.

– Payment of a capital transfer tax of 25 percent (levied only on Jews) of assets in addition

to the emigration tax.

– Certification from the local tax office that there were no outstanding taxes due.

– Certification from a currency exchange office that all currency regulations had been

followed. An emigrant was permitted to take 2,000 R M or less in currency out of the

country. Any remaining assets would be transferred into blocked bank accounts with

restricted access.

• Customs declaration, dated no earlier than three days before departure, permitting the export

of itemized personal and household goods. This declaration required:

– Submission of a list, in triplicate, of all personal and household goods accompanying the

e m i grant stating their value. The list had to note items acquired before January 1, 1933,

those acquired since January 1, 1933, and those acquired to facilitate emigr a t i o n .

– Documents attesting to the value of personal and household goods, and written

explanations for the necessity of taking them out of the country.

– Certification from a currency exchange office permitting the export of itemized personal

and household goods, dated no earlier than 14 days before departure.

With the preceding documents, emigrants could leave Germany, if and only if they had valid

travel arrangements and entrance visas for another country. After the union of Germany and

Austria in March 1938, emigrants from Austria holding an Austrian pas

In the years immediately preceding U.S. entry into World War II, potential immigrants were

required to file the following documents to obtain a U.S. visa.

• Visa application (Form BC)—Five copies

• Birth certificate—Two copies (country of birth determined applicable quotas)

• Quota number, which established the person’s place on the waiting list to enter the United States

• Two sponsors (close relatives of prospective immigrant were preferred). The sponsors had to

be American citizens or have permanent resident status, and they had to fill out and provide

the following:

– Affidavit of Support and Sponsorship (Form C)—Six copies, notarized

– Certified copy of most recent federal tax return

– Affidavit from a bank about accounts

– Affidavit from any other responsible person regarding other assets (affidavit from the

sponsor’s employer or statement of commercial rating)

• Certificate of Good Conduct from German police authorities, including two copies of each

of the following:

– Police dossier prison record

– Military record

– Other government records about the individual

• Affidavits of Good Conduct (after September 1940)

• Evidence of passing a physical examination at a U.S. consulate

• Proof of permission to leave Germany (imposed September 30, 1939)

• Proof the prospective immigrant had booked passage to the Western hemisphere (imposed

September 1939)

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