Confronting Complicity: Exploring Ordinary Germans’ Roles in the Holocaust

The boys in this photo were more than just neighbors—they were playmates, even friends before the Nazis took power. Unbeknown to them then, hatred and prejudice would destroy their bond. Two were brothers and would flee Germany after their mother’s murder in an antisemitic attack, while another would become a guard at an infamous concentration camp. Complicity among ordinary Germans took different forms in the Nazi regime’s early years. While some embraced the new anti-Jewish policies, others looked away as the Nazis isolated, impoverished, and assaulted Jews. Join us as we explore the complicity of many Germans in the Holocaust. Host: Dr. Edna Friedberg, Historian Guest: Dr. Patricia Heberer Rice, Senior Historian Learn more about the complicity of neighbors, friends, and other Germans during the Holocaust: https://exhibitions.ushmm.org/some-were-neighbors Learn about the experience of German Jews during the Holocaust: https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/german-jews-during-the-holocaust