Judah-very big!! Word of the Week Antisemitic poster concerning Jews in allied armies

Identifier
irn3763
Language of Description
English
Alt. Identifiers
  • 1990.333.50
Level of Description
Item
Languages
  • German
Source
EHRI Partner

Extent and Medium

overall: Height: 33.250 inches (84.455 cm) | Width: 47.250 inches (120.015 cm)

Creator(s)

Archival History

The poster was acquired by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1990.

Acquisition

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection

Funding Note: The cataloging of this artifact has been supported by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.

Scope and Content

German propaganda poster issued in 1940, from the Parole der Woche (Word of the Week) series. The poster references Jews fighting for the British army and frames it as an act of desperation by the British. The yellow background color is a similar shade as the Star of David badges Jews were forced to wear in Germany. The poster shows an image of a captured Polish-Jewish soldier, attempting to make Jews appear inept as soldiers. Approximately 100,000 Jews fought in the Polish army against the invading German Army. At the outbreak of the war, Jewish leaders in Britain and Palestine campaigned for an official Jewish unit in the British Army. Meanwhile, approximately 30,000 Jews volunteered for service in the army. The Jewish Brigade formed in September 1944, and fought German forces in Italy. Overall, approximately 1.5 million Jews fought in Allied armies, and hundreds of thousands received citations for combat and bravery. The Nazis used propaganda to buttress public support for the war effort, shape public opinion, and reinforce antisemitic ideas. As part of their propaganda campaign, the Nazis created the Word of the Week Series of posters (also referred to as Wandzeitung, or wall newspapers), which began distribution on March 16, 1936. Each week, new posters were placed in public places and businesses to be viewed by as many people as possible. Posters were the primary medium for the series, but smaller pamphlets were also produced. The posters targeted the Nazis’ early political adversaries, Jews, Communists, and Germany’s enemies during the war. The series was discontinued in 1943.

Conditions Governing Access

No restrictions on access

Conditions Governing Reproduction

No restrictions on use

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

Poster printed on off-white paper, adhered to a white linen backing. A line of large, black text is printed across the top of the poster, which has a yellow background overall. On the left side is a black-and-white mugshot style, photographic image of a captured Polish-Jewish soldier. The image is captured in such a way as to emphasize the soldier’s large nose and hooded, heavily shadowed eyes. He wears a military helmet crookedly on his head with the strap fastened under his chin. Overlaid across the bottom of the image are two lines of small, black text. To the right are three paragraphs of black, German text. The top and bottom paragraphs are in fraktur font, the middle paragraph is a quotation and in block lettering. At the upper right, there is a small logo consisting of a line of text arranged in a circle around three larger letters. There is a tear at the bottom center edge, and small discolored areas in the margins.

Corporate Bodies

Subjects

Genre

This description is derived directly from structured data provided to EHRI by a partner institution. This collection holding institution considers this description as an accurate reflection of the archival holdings to which it refers at the moment of data transfer.