Fight against the Jews and their fraudulent ways Antisemitic poster by Fips urging Germans to fight Jewish overpricing

German antisemitic propaganda poster encouraging Germans to fight against unfair Jewish business practices, designed by Philipp Rupprecht (Fips). The poster features a German businessman with a Jewish money lender (that he likely owes money to) on his mind. The Nazis used propaganda to push the narrative that Jewish greed was a burden to society. The image uses the antisemitic trope of the Jewish usurer; a moneylender who charges excessive interest, which originated in the Middle Ages. In many areas of medieval Europe, Jews were barred from many occupations and from owning land. In turn, they had to rely on interest from moneylending to earn income. During this time, the Catholic Church regarded moneylending for interest as immoral, and prohibited Catholics from the practice. Because of this stigma, Jewish moneylenders were seen as immoral and predatory by their Catholic counterparts. These ideas evolved into the antisemitic concept of the fraudulent, parasitic, Jewish businessman who worshipped money. Nazi propaganda used this trope to promote the narrative that Jews were bad for German (Aryan) business and created an atmosphere that tolerated violence against Jews. The Nazis communicated their propaganda through art, music, film, radio, books, posters, and other published materials. Philipp Rupprecht, who used the penname Fips, was one of the Nazi’s preeminent propaganda creators. Rupprecht was an artist for Julius Streicher’s Der Stürmer, an antisemitic newspaper that prominently displayed Rupprecht’s work. His illustrations portrayed Jews as heartless and cruel, and featured discriminatory images of Jews with exaggerated facial features, and misshapen bodies. Rupprecht also illustrated the antisemitic children’s book Der Giftpilz (The Poisonous Mushroom).