She immediately turned against Hitler as she observed his rise to power. She devoted herself to bringing him down, well before others were concerned about what a Hitler-led Germany might be like.
This book tells the tale of a heroic American woman. It was inspiring. But I found it even more disturbing. For sure. It reaffirmed my conviction that yes, it can happen again, and it can happen here! There were so many parallels to what was going on in Germany in the 1930s and what is going on in the United States right now.
Here are a few quotes from the book, just to give you a taste. And I will leave it at that.
They're convinced that Germans will revolt against this lunatic politician. It's just a matter of time.
...
It's essentially impossible to find a condom in Berlin or anywhere else in Germany. Contraception was readily available in major cities by the end of the Weimar Republic. Vending machines dispensed condoms in men's public restrooms. Clinics provided free condoms. Now they're illegal.
...
Newspapers carry stories about German gynecologists facing criminal charges. Gynecologists may receive the death penalty if they are found guilty of terminating an unwanted pregnancy, but only if the woman is Aryan, "racially pure." There is no penalty for terminating the pregnancy of a woman who is "racially inferior."
...
At seventeen he joined Hitler Youth. The full name - Hitlerjugend, Bund der deutschen Arbeiterjugend (Hilter Youth, League of German Worker Youth) - emphasizes the poor, working-class origins of many of its recruits.
...
It is now a crime to criticize the Nazi government. The Malicious Practices Act prohibits Germans from expressing their disapproval about anything Hitler says or does. Even a joke could bring the Gestapo to your door. Newspapers and magazines that once lampooned the Nazi Party go silent.
...
The Circle discusses and debates - often heatedly - the central question: Stay or go? Stay and risk arrest, imprisonment, death? Go and abandon Germany to the Nazis, who are hell-bent on destroying it?
...
Every day, Nazi propaganda disseminates misinformation and false promises. Every day, Hitler wins more German hearts and minds. And it's all happening so fast.
...
We look upon the German movement for liberation and its leader, our Chancellor, as a gift of God!
...
Predicting what will happen next is as alarming as it is inconceivable.
...
Hitler orders the Ministry of Justice to retroactively legalize what has happened, promising to deliver a speech that will explain everything.
...
Gangsters. Germany is being governed by gangsters.
...
... the recognition that Germany isn't the country she once loved can't be avoided. The cruelty, the barbarity, the outright sadism, are horrifying. Still, she holds on to the hope that fascism can be fought.
...
Democracies seem to be toppling everywhere; iron-fisted dictators rule the day.
No comments:
Post a Comment