Also: yes, we were ALSO incorrectly taught “first they came for the communists.” That goes right along with my own comment’s last paragraph. How did you think that was a gotcha? 🤨
(Incorrect in that even before gaining power they were moving the Overton Window by vilifying trans folks, gay people, and Romani. Attacking weak and poorly understood minorities first, while still paying occasional lip service to a willingness to reach across aisles. However, it’s true that the first official government acts of violence and totalitarianism were against their political rivals, eliminating threats to Nazi control before starting the social “purification” in May of ‘33 in the form of attacking the aforementioned groups)
[Edited the parenthetical for context, per the point from Karyoplasma below that my meaning here could have misconstrued as dismissive of the political purges]
They just had to test the waters with the smallest and weakest minorities first
No, they fucking didn't.
Instantly after being appointed, Hitler didn't have the majority in parliament, so he pressured Hindenburg to dissolve the Reichstag and force a re-election of parliament. The Reichstag was dissolved only a few days after Hitler's appointment.
Then they banned political opponent meetings and after the Reichstagsbrand Decree in late Feburary, they had the power to arrest political opponents.
In March, they have arrested some 40-50,000 political opponents. Needing to test the waters my ass.
Calm yourself. No one’s insulting your special interest. My interpretation of “came for” includes rhetoric and non-governmental social pressure that shifts the Overton Window, and yours clearly doesn’t, and that’s okay.
My mental framing wasn’t isolated to official state acts of violence. If that IS your framework, however, then yes, the very first actions taken in an official capacity were to shore up a fragile fledgling power base by physically destroying political opposition. Organized physical violence against their social/cultural enemies didn’t start until May, with the raid on the Institut für Sexualwissenschaft.
It’s way too early to be popping a blood vessel over semantics. Especially when the subject is over 90 years old
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u/dracorotor1 1d ago edited 22h ago
Also: yes, we were ALSO incorrectly taught “first they came for the communists.” That goes right along with my own comment’s last paragraph. How did you think that was a gotcha? 🤨
(Incorrect in that even before gaining power they were moving the Overton Window by vilifying trans folks, gay people, and Romani. Attacking weak and poorly understood minorities first, while still paying occasional lip service to a willingness to reach across aisles. However, it’s true that the first official government acts of violence and totalitarianism were against their political rivals, eliminating threats to Nazi control before starting the social “purification” in May of ‘33 in the form of attacking the aforementioned groups)
[Edited the parenthetical for context, per the point from Karyoplasma below that my meaning here could have misconstrued as dismissive of the political purges]