Media Essay
The Boycott of Jewish Businesses - Photograph
On April 1, 1933—less than 3 months after rising to power—the Nazis staged a nationwide boycott of Jewish businesses. The boycott signaled the start of the Nazi movement to exclude Jews from all aspects of German society.
Public humiliation of three Jewish businessmen
Three Jewish businessmen are forced to march down a crowded Leipzig street while carrying signs reading: "Don't buy from Jews. Shop in German businesses!" Leipzig, Germany, 1935.
Item ViewBoycott sign
Scene during the boycott of Jewish businesses. A sign on truck carrying Storm Troopers (SA) urges "Germans! Defend yourselves. Don't buy from Jews." Berlin, Germany, April 1, 1933.
Item ViewBoycott of Jewish-owned businesses
Members of the Storm Troopers (SA), with boycott signs, block the entrance to a Jewish-owned shop. One of the signs exhorts: "Germans! Defend yourselves! Don't buy from Jews!" Berlin, Germany, April 1, 1933.
Item ViewSA members post anti-Jewish boycott signs
An SA member instructs others where to post anti-Jewish boycott signs on a commercial street in Germany. A German civilian wearing a Nazi armband holds a sheaf of anti-Jewish boycott signs, while SA members paste them on a Jewish-owned business. Most of the signs read, "Germans defend yourselves against Jewish atrocity propaganda/Buy only at German stores." Germany, ca. April 1, 1933.
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