''Der Giftpilz'' is a piece of antisemitic

Nazi propaganda The propaganda used by the German Nazi Party in the years leading up to and during Adolf Hitler's dictatorship of Germany from 1933 to 1945 was a crucial instrument for acquiring and maintaining power, and for the implementation of Nazi polici ...

published as a children's book by

Julius Streicher Julius Streicher (12 February 1885 – 16 October 1946) was a member of the Nazi Party, the ''Gauleiter'' (regional leader) of Franconia and a member of the '' Reichstag'', the national legislature. He was the founder and publisher of the virul ...

in 1938.Der Giftpilz
The title is German for "the poisonous mushroom/toadstool". After the war, Streicher was convicted of being an accessory for crimes against humanity in the

Nuremberg trials The Nuremberg trials were held by the Allies against representatives of the defeated Nazi Germany, for plotting and carrying out invasions of other countries, and other crimes, in World War II. Between 1939 and 1945, Nazi Germany invaded m ...

and executed in 1946.

The text is by Ernst Hiemer, with illustrations by

Philipp Rupprecht Philipp Rupprecht (4 September 1900 – 4 April 1975) was a German cartoonist best known for his anti-Semitic caricatures in the Nazi publication ''Der Stürmer'', under the pen-name Fips. Career Born in Nuremberg, Rupprecht immigrated to Argentin ...

(also known as ''Fips''); the title alludes to how, just as it is difficult to tell a

poisonous mushroom Mushroom poisoning is poisoning resulting from the ingestion of mushrooms that contain toxic substances. Its symptoms can vary from slight gastrointestinal discomfort to death in about 10 days. Mushroom toxins are secondary metabolites produc ...

from an edible mushroom, it is difficult to tell a Jew apart from a Gentile. The book attempts to "warn" German children about the dangers allegedly posed by Jews to them personally, and to German society in general.

Antisemitism

The book explains that the

Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law ('' halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the ce ...

discourages Jews from performing manual labour and encourages them to engage in trade instead; that it teaches Jews that non-Jews are meant to be slaves and asks Jews to enslave the non-Jewish population; and that Talmudic law allows Jews to cheat non-Jews. The book was sometimes used in German schools. A copy of the book is held by the

U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) is the United States' official memorial to the Holocaust. Adjacent to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the USHMM provides for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust his ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

An English-language translation of the book was produced by U.S. neo-Nazi activist

Gary Lauck Gerhard Rex Lauck (born 1953) is an American neo-Nazi activist and publisher. Based in Lincoln, Nebraska, he is sometimes nicknamed the "Farm Belt Fuehrer" due to his rural origins.Martin A. Lee, ''The Beast Reawakens'', Warner Books, 1997, p. ...

, and thereafter marketed on his website for $10. Lauck also produced an Estonian-language translation in 2007, and claims to be working on translations into many other languages. The

Estonian Internal Security Service The Estonian Internal Security Service ( et, Kaitsepolitsei, officially et, Kaitsepolitseiamet, KaPo for short) is a central national security institution of Republic of Estonia. Its purposes are centered on enforcing constitutional order. Th ...

has investigated the case under the section of Estonian penal code criminalizing incitement to social hatred, but concluded that it is unlikely to have the jurisdiction or means to prosecute the author, as under American law, websites are covered by the

First Amendment to the United States Constitution The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution prevents the government from making laws that regulate an establishment of religion, or that prohibit the free exercise of religion, or abridge the freedom of speech, the ...

References

External links

Images and selected translated text from Der Giftpilz.Complete book in English
{{DEFAULTSORT:Giftpilz 1938 children's books Nazi propaganda Picture books German children's literature Antisemitism in literature 1938 in Judaism Nazi books

Contents

Antisemitism

See also

References

External links