Why didn't the German people stop the Holocaust?

Answer 1

Answer 1

We sent a few million soldiers to stop him. What more do you think we should have done?

Answer 2

Answer 1 is not completely correct. In the first place, "we" didn't know when we sent the first million or two about the extermination camps. Secondly, we were "peddaling as hard as we could" but didn't get to the extermination camps until a month or so before the end of the war. Actually, no one could do anything until Germany was occupied by Allied forces. Not even those German citizens who would have wanted to stop it could have done so until the Nazis were defeated.

Answer 3

I would go further and say Ans 1 is not just incorrect, but embarrasingly so. Taking freedoms with the History we're speaking of, for self rightous trumpeting of entirely wrong ideas as facts and reasons, is exactly the way the world got to where it did back then. Shame. (The US actively avoided getting involved with the Nazis and eventually did so really only because the Japanese - who were the really hated enemy of the US people - a dreaded yellow people who attacked us - (not those white, Christian types, in Europe, that were related to and the ancestry of Italian and Germans here), required forming an alliance with other nations. Those nations real concern was of being quickly dominated by the Germans. We, not they were really at all concerned because of what Germany was doing to it's own people back in Europe.)

The whole extermination camp thing was, if not secret, was not mentioned by even people involved and who may have knew...there or here. For many reasons, including just the problem of actually believing that the unbelievable was occurring, as well as having enough troubles of their own, and more. In fact, even after the war ended, the world took years coming to grip with what happened. Still today, many try to deny it..sometimes based on it being so unconsionable that even Nazis wouldn't so such a thing....and others the pityful suggestion that the Jews make it up to get pity.

Much of the world did not find the Nazis as offensive as we do now. England in fact, until very shortly before the war, was in a heated debate about which side to be on. Many there felt additional appeasement or even joining with Germany (to the tune of Parliment votes being in the high 40%) in favor of doing so, was best.

Restrictions and blame on Jews, "imperfects", minorities and basically anyone not like the one speaking, isn't always seen as all that unreasonable and in fact is voiced by many even today.

The discussion about why, later in the war, when the allies (at least those in charge) really propbably did understand what the camps were, didn't they bomb them or such, has many reasonable answers. Including attacking a camp of empoverished civilians especially with no possiblity of rescuing them after, (or knowing what to do with them if you did) is not a clear way to save someone.

Militarilarly, that Germany was using it's resources on the camps rather than on the war, was beneficial to the war effort.

Certainly it isn't fair to say that nobody did anything. Many people did many things. But Germany was a formidable force, politically and milatarilarly. It was not going to be "reasoned" out of continuing it's actions, so the efforts had to be generally trying to save the people who would become victims. Also not easy.

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Agreed that in practical terms there was not that much that the Allies could have done.

However, we are also being told that:

"England in fact, until very shortly before the war, was in a heated debate about which side to be on. Many there felt additional appeasement or even joining with Germany (to the tune of Parliment votes being in the high 40%) in favor of doing so, was best."

This is simply inaccurate, to put it mildly.

There no debate in England 'about which side to on'. The British Parliament never discussed 'joining with Germany' and there was no vote in Parliament on this, either, so where does the figure of 40% come from? Certainly, it does not correspond to any relevant parliamentary vote or to any known survey of public opinion on the question.

The public debate in Britain in the 1930s was about how and whether to avoid going to war again (so soon after World War 1) - which was not such a strange sentiment. The number of people in favour of 'joining with Germany' - against whom, incidentally? - was tiny and, didn't extend much beyond known members of Fascist organizations.

In May 1940 (25-28 May) when France was collapsing, there were discussions in the five-man War Cabinet about a suggestion from Lord Halifax that Britain should explore terms, and for most of this time there was a 3-2 (Churchill, Attlee and Greenwood versus Halifax and Chamberlain) split against the suggestion. In the end, the latter voted with the majority in favour of continuing to fight, and so to the outside world the decision appeared unanimous. There was no suggestion of 'joining with Germany'.

The main reason for mentioning this temporary War Cabinet split is that it looks as if the mysterious figure of 40% may have come from this.

Answer 2

German Jews took some time to realize how what was happening and had a period of disbelief, they viewed themselves as German, many had lived in Germany for generations. The Nazi's didn't publicize the real harsh treatment. If you opposed the Nazi's in any way you would be arrested and sent to a concentration camp. Most German people lived in fear of the Gestapo (police formed by the Nazi's). Just a phone call from a neighbor to the Gestapo informing them you criticized the government may have the Gestapo at your door step looking for you. Some Jews escaped and told of the Horror stories but their was little any nation could do until 1945. Also, Hitler and the Nazi's had brainwashed the German public into believing all their problems where caused by Jews and they needed to be removed from Germany. Initially the mass deportation of Jews took place but this became to costly for the Nazi government to continue so they turned to camps and extermination. There was a great deal of antisemitism in other countries and sadly they turned a blind eye as well.

Answer 3

This is actually a really hard question to answer and one that is debated often and widely between historians.

To start off with, many civilians believed the Holocaust to be simply a rumour. The Germans were perceived as a high class, intelligent, relatively reasonable and dignified race. So, 'Why would they do that?!'...

Secondly, as concrete evidence of the Holocaust began to get into the outer communities, people were intitially in a state of shock and disbelief. Shortly afterwards they feigned ignorance towards the existence of the Holocaust. In regards to the USA, for example, a strongly argued point is that they did not interfere with the Holocaust because it was none of their business, they wanted to preserve what they had and they had other more pressing matters to deal with, for example WW2.

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In purely practical terms it is not obvious what the Allies could have done. When media reports began to appear in Britain (from late 1942 on) Victor Gollancz and others set up a committee to try to 'do something' about the genocide of the Jews. Many highly respected and influential people joined, but they achieved nothing in practical terms.

Please see the related question.

Answer 4

It was hard for people during the time after WW1..especially Germany itself. They had to pay approx. 30 billion in dept to the Allies/Triple Entente, and weaken their military and also have their land taken away to establish new nations. Adolf Hitler used very skilled and enthusiastic Propaganda during this time to rally up the Germans, and help them recover. It is really hard not to fall into this feeling when radios shout with the words from Adolf Hitler everyday. People started to follow him in search for a new life basically, after WW1. If people knew Adolf Hitler was going to kill 2/3 of the Jewish population in Europe(or the whole world if I am correct) then they would...but no one would know that he was so anti-Semitic and his mind was full of ways to torture those who aren't Aryan, or in other terms, blonde hair blue eyed.

Answer 5

Because either they were too scared or they believed it because that was what they were brought up on believing. Kinda like how school students don't turn on teachers.

Answer 6

Changing government policy in a totalitarian Dictatorship is very difficult and dangerous.

Answer 7

They were afraid to go and stop because they thought that they could get caught up in the the Holocaust that is why they did not stop the holocaust form happening.