Jacob Wiener (standing second from right) and his brother Benno (standing at far left) pose in front of their father's bicycle shop in Germany with a group of non-Jewish children from the neighborhood in 1929. One of the other boys in the picture later became a guard at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Jacob G. Wiener
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.
Guest
Dr. Patricia Heberer Rice, Senior Historian, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Host
Dr. Edna Friedberg, Historian, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Watch live on YouTube or Facebook. After the live broadcast, the recording will be available to watch on demand on the Museum’s YouTube and Facebook pages.