Race and Blood: California's influence on Nazi eugenics and racial science

Résumé du document

The Nazis' race-based crimes are well documented and well-known. Most people are familiar with Adolf Hitler, anti-Semitism, the Holocaust, and concentration camps. Less known, however, is America's role in influencing these racial crimes - California in particular. After the American Reconstruction period, elitists and utopians responded to the influx of new workers by creating and pursuing an ideal of a blond-haired, blue-eyed Nordic race.

Extraits

[...] For example, Rudin cited the “widespread sterilization program” and his “collaboration with Americans” as evidence that his practices were no different than those of the Americans, which were perfectly legal[21]. In Van Verschuer's defense, he cited California legislation, to show that his work was not out of legal bounds. He also stated that the majority of his work was influenced by Californian research, and was supported by American eugenicists, none of whom were punished for doing the same things[22]. For example, he compared California's creation of “colonies” to the concentration camps, as both of them were essentially race-based settlements where eugenics research took place. [...]

[...] Therefore, American funding played a role in supporting the Nazis' eugenics systems. However, the most significant Nazi to be influenced by Americans was Hitler, who derived many of his ideas from American researchers. Hitler, while in jail, excessively read and quoted Californian racial scientists such as Paul Popenoe, Madison Grant, and Leon Whitney, going too far as to write fan mail to them[18]. He drew many facts from studies of Californian eugenicists, especially E.S. Gosney, whose “work has played a powerful part in shaping the opinions of [Hitler]”[19]. [...]

[...] By comparing themselves to Americans in court, the Nazis established that their eugenics program was similar to, and largely inspired by, American racial science and American laws. In conclusion, American eugenics philosophies and laws provided the basis for the Nazis' eugenics program. Americans also supported leading Nazi individuals, many of whom cited American eugenics as a defense in their trials. However, this connection is largely ignored and forgotten, and Americans are hardly recognized for their connection to Nazi ideologies. It is concerning that most Americans are ignorant of this, and that many Americans see themselves as entirely separate from Nazi ideologies. [...]

[...] Therefore, the laws that were implemented in California and America clearly influenced important Nazi leaders in creating their own laws. Once these laws were in place, they had to be supported and reinforced by the Nazi Party. Many of these Nazis that were involved in eugenics and sterilization were funded by Americans and American businesses. For instance, Josef Mengele was an Auschwitz physician responsible for choosing gas chamber victims and for performing human experimentation. His education at the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute was funded by various private Americans and the Rockefeller Foundation. [...]

[...] Race and Blood: California's influence on Nazi eugenics and racial science The Nazis' race-based crimes are well documented and well-known. Most people are familiar with Adolf Hitler, anti-Semitism, the Holocaust, and concentration camps. Less known, however, is America's role in influencing these racial crimes—California in particular. After the American Reconstruction period, elitists and utopians responded to the influx of new workers by creating and pursuing an ideal of a blond-haired, blue-eyed Nordic race[1]. These led to the laws of forced sterilization, segregation, and marriage restrictions in an effort to curtail the population of those deemed inferior—racial minorities, sexual minorities, the poor, and those deemed retarded. [...]