History of the Holocaust Michael Hall

The following oral history testimony is the result of a videotaped interview with Kurt Klein, conducted on March 13, 1992 in Beverly Hills, California on behalf of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The interview is part of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum's collection of oral testimonies. Rights to the interview are held by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. I have edit this with my voice over the original interviewer so that it is more suited for Audio in 2021. I did not conduct this interview and all credit is given to the USHMM.

This episode covers the second half of the Chapter 5 Lecture. Here we start to focus on some of the earliest anti-Jewish legislation. I talk about what parts of society were targeted first and why, as well as the impact these early moves had on society.

This episode begins to introduce the Nazi party as the come to power. I talk about some of the individuals backgrounds and what they bring to the Nazi party in terms of skills and ideologies. I also talk about some of the economic and social policies other than anti-Jewish policies. Those I will discuss in Part 2 later this week.

This episode I discuss Chapter 4 in our textbook. I talk about How Weimar Germany came about, many of the problems associated with Weimar Germany, and give some hints as to why the Nazis were able to come to power in this atmosphere.

I know this one is a little long, but it is really important. This episode I go deep into the mindset of racism and prejudice in the early 1900s. I talk a little about the eugenics movement and the pseudo-science surrounding it. I also discuss the anxiety around personal identity and how that can allow an opening in a person's mind to be filled with these hateful stereotypes. 

This episode deals with Chapter 3. I am discussing the effects of WWI and its immediate aftermath on the Jewish population and their relationship with the rest of Europe and the Middle East at the time.