In German Reichsbürgergesetz and Blutschutzgesetz. These were announced
on 15 September 1935. At the core of
this is antismeitsm and the percepton that the Jews are a race not members of a
religion. Jews living in Germany were seen not as citizens but as subjects.
Reich Citizenship Law of September 15, 1935
(https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/nuremberg-laws
- accessed 9 September 2021)
(Translated from Reichsgesetzblatt I, 1935, p. 1146.)
The Reichstag has unanimously enacted the following law, which is
promulgated herewith:
Article 1
1. A subject of the state is a person who enjoys the protection of the German
Reich and who in consequence has specific obligations toward it.
2. The status of subject of the state is acquired in accordance with the
provisions of the Reich and the Reich Citizenship Law.
Article 2
1. A Reich citizen is a subject of the state who is of German or related blood,
and proves by his conduct that he is willing and fit to faithfully serve the
German people and Reich.
2. Reich citizenship is acquired through the granting of a Reich citizenship
certificate.
3. The Reich citizen is the sole bearer of full political rights in accordance
with the law.
Article 3
The Reich Minister of the Interior, in coordination with the Deputy of the
Führer, will issue the legal and administrative orders required to implement
and complete this law.
Nuremberg, September 15, 1935
At the Reich Party Congress of Freedom
The Führer and Reich Chancellor
[signed] Adolf Hitler
The Reich Minister of the Interior
[signed] Frick
Law for the Protection of German Blood and German Honour of
September 15, 1935
(Translated from Reichsgesetzblatt I, 1935, pp. 1146-7.)
Moved by the understanding that purity of German blood is the essential
condition for the continued existence of the German people, and inspired by the
inflexible determination to ensure the existence of the German nation for all
time, the Reichstag has unanimously adopted the following law, which is
promulgated herewith:
Article 1
1. Marriages between Jews and citizens of German or related blood are
forbidden. Marriages nevertheless concluded are invalid, even if concluded
abroad to circumvent this law.
2. Annulment proceedings can be initiated only by the state prosecutor.
Article 2
Extramarital relations between Jews and citizens of German or related blood are
forbidden.
Article 3
Jews may not employ in their households female subjects of the state of Germany
or related blood who are under 45 years old.
Article 4
1. Jews are forbidden to fly the Reich or national flag or display Reich colours.
2. They are, on the other hand, permitted to display the Jewish colours. The
exercise of this right is protected by the state.
Article 5
1. Any person who violates the prohibition under Article 1 will be punished
with a prison sentence with hard labour.
2. A male who violates the prohibition under Article 2 will be punished with a
jail term or a prison sentence with hard labour.
3. Any person violating the provisions under Articles 3 or 4 will be punished
with a jail term of up to one year and a fine, or with one or the other of
these penalties.
Article 6
The Reich Minister of the Interior, in coordination with the Deputy of the
Führer and the Reich Minister of Justice, will issue the legal and
administrative regulations required to implement and complete this law.
Article 7
The law takes effect on the day following promulgation, except for Article 3,
which goes into force on January 1, 1936.
Nuremberg, September 15, 1935
At the Reich Party Congress of Freedom
The Führer and Reich Chancellor
[signed] Adolf Hitler
The Reich Minister of the Interior
[signed] Frick
The Reich Minister of Justice
[signed] Dr. Gürtner
The Deputy of the Führer
[signed] R. Hess
There was a strict protocol for defining a Jew. If three grandparents were Jewish,
you were Jewish. If two were Jewish and
you did not practise the religion you were a “Mischling” of the first degree but if only one was Jewish and you
did not practise the religion you were a “Mischling”
of the second degree. The word Mischling can
be translated as “mongrel”.
The diagram above shows how this works.
There is a lot of discussion about race at the moment. Are Jews and Gentiles
actually separate races? It isn’t actually
possible to determine by medical tests that a person is Jewish. DNA tests
simply tell you whether or not you are related to a person who is labelled as
Jewish.
For me the main point remains that there is an intolerance of what we don’t understand.
Many of us have learnt to rise above that first gut reaction to the new and
strange. We can cultivate a healthy attitude of “What might I learn here?” However, frequently in cases of anti-Semitism
there is also some jealousy and some perception that Jews act as though there
is Jewish supremacy. My old scripture teacher used to say the Jews were God’s
chosen people and because the German persecute the Jews, God allowed the “other
side” to win World War II. To be fair,
she presented this as a question rather than as a statement.
We might remember that the Nazis also persecuted gypsies, people with disabilities
and homosexuals. There was some misguided belief in a superior race. It is for
this reason too that there was an emphasis on not allowing mixed marriages and
one part of the blood protection law was that a household may not employ a Jewish
woman under forty-five years old.
We might also ponder this difference between subject and citizen. Notably,
the German Jew lost the right to vote. What
about that relationship between taxation and representation? However, might we not
wonder whether we might have got it wrong as well? How many people pay taxes in our own world and
are not allowed to vote on important matters?
Does this relate to white supremacy / privilege? Do people think that white people are superior
to other races and should dominate them?