Colonial Business in Postcolonial Germany: The Imperial Afterlives of C. Woermann, 1919–1945
“This connection between colonialism and National Socialism is particularly significant when considering the war and occupation in Eastern Europe. It underscores that the ideology and practices of German colonialism did not simply vanish but rather persisted and were reconfigured within the Nazi regime.”
Todzi, K.S. (2024) ‘Colonial Business in Postcolonial Germany: The Imperial Afterlives of C. Woermann, 1919–1945’, Contemporary European History, pp. 1–14. doi: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0960777324000171.
Colonial Business in Postcolonial Germany: The Imperial Afterlives of C. Woermann, 1919–1945
“This connection between colonialism and National Socialism is particularly significant when considering the war and occupation in Eastern Europe. It underscores that the ideology and practices of German colonialism did not simply vanish but rather persisted and were reconfigured within the Nazi regime.”
Todzi, K.S. (2024) ‘Colonial Business in Postcolonial Germany: The Imperial Afterlives of C. Woermann, 1919–1945’, Contemporary European History, pp. 1–14. doi: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0960777324000171.
“One dark and snowy night in December 1940 in German-occupied Paris, a strange funeral took place when German soldiers carried the coffin of Emperor Napoleon II into Les Invalides. Why was a Napoleon receiving a Nazi funeral?”
Today in Labor History February 18, 1943: The Nazis arrested the members of the White Rose movement. The activist group called for opposition to the Nazi regime through an anonymous leaflet and graffiti campaign. The Nazis put on a show trial in which none of the defendants were allowed to speak. They executed Hans and Sophie Schol, and Christoph Probst on February 22, 1943. White Rose leaflets openly denounced the persecution and mass murder of the Jews. They might have taken their name from the poem "Cultivo una rosa blanca," by Cuban revolutionary and poet, Jose Marti. Alternatively, they may have gotten it from the B. Traven novel, “Die Weiße Rose” (The White Rose).” Traven served on the Central Council of the short-lived Bavarian Soviet Republic. He escaped the terror that followed the crushing of the Republic and fled to Mexico, where he wrote numerous novels, including “Death Ship” and “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.”
Today in Labor History February 13, 1945: 25,000 civilians died when the Allies firebombed Dresden. In a three-day period, they dropped 3,900 tons of explosives and incendiaries, reducing six square miles of the city to rubble. Kurt Vonnegut was a prisoner of war in Dresden during the bombing. He wrote about it in his novel, “Slaughterhouse-Five.”
Today in Labor History February 10, 1898: Marxist playwright Bertolt Brecht was born. Brecht was a doctor, poet and playwright. He fled the Nazis only to be persecuted in the U.S. by HUAC during the Cold War. He is most well-known for his play, “The Three Penny Opera.” He also wrote “Mother Courage and Her Children” and “The Days of the Commune,” about the Paris Commune. Additionally, he wrote poetry and composed the lyrics to many of the songs performed in his plays, like “Mack the Knife” and “Alabama Song” (AKA Whiskey Bar).
Arno J. Mayer, Unorthodox Historian of Europe’s Crises, Dies at 97 A Jewish refugee from the #Nazis, he argued that #WWI, #WWII & the #Holocaust were all part of a “second Thirty Years’ War.”- The New York Times
I did not always agree with him but actually got to know him pretty well and was grateful for the support he showed me. He consistently tried to ask new questions & was eager to discuss and debate
The Pharmacist of Auschwitz is the little known story of Victor Capesius, a Bayer pharmaceutical salesman from Romania who, at the age of 35, joined the Nazi SS in 1943 and quickly became the chief pharmacist at the largest death camp, Auschwitz.
It was Adolf Hitler's failed attempt to forcibly overthrow the democracy of Germany 🇩🇪
His trial was covered by the press in minute detail, and even though he went to jail he used the coverage to spread Nazi propaganda through the media 🎙️
Failed coup, media savvy, going to jail, and evil. Sound familiar?
Today in Labor History October 15, 2005: A planned Nazi march in Toledo, Ohio sparked a 4-hour riot by counter-protesters, including anarchists, the International Socialist Organization, and Anti-Racist Action. Aggression was directed against the police, who initially protected the Nazis, but then later escorted them out of town. However, in December, 700 police, with armored personnel carriers and rooftop snipers, protected Nazis, allowing them to complete a rally, despite massive opposition.
For more on the history of Anti-Racist Action, and other anti-fascist movements of the 70s-90s, read “We Go Where They Go,” by Shannon Clay, Lady, Kristin Schwartz, and Michael Staudenmaier, and “No Fascist USA!” by Hilary Moore and James Tracy.
Today in Labor History August 16, 1933: The anti-Semitic Christie Pits riot took place in Toronto, Canada. At the time, Toronto’s Jewish community was predominantly poor and working-class. During the summer, they would go to the predominantly Anglo Beaches to swim. Some of the locals formed a "Swastika Club" and openly displayed the Nazi symbol to intimidate the Jews. The riot broke out after a baseball game when people displayed a blanket with a large swastika painted on it. A number of Jewish and Italian youth rushed the Swastika sign to destroy it, resulting in a melee with fists and clubs. A mob of more than 10,000 joined in, amidst cries of Heil Hitler. Miraculously, no one died. However, scores were injured. Many required medical and hospital attention.
The incident was depicted in two graphic novels: “Christie Pits” (2019) written by Jamie Michaels and illustrated by Doug Fedrau, and “The Good Fight” (2021) by Ted Staunton and Josh Rosen.
Today in Labor History August 12, 1952: The Soviet authorities murdered 13 prominent Jewish intellectuals and writers in the Night of the Murdered Poets. All were members of the Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee, which fought for the USSR against Nazi Germany. They were falsely accused of espionage and treason, and then imprisoned, tortured, and isolated for three years before being formally charged.