Criminals Word of the Week German propaganda poster claiming the United States Army is using criminals to fight in Germany

Identifier
irn11223
Language of Description
English
Alt. Identifiers
  • 1995.96.75
Level of Description
Item
Languages
  • German
Source
EHRI Partner

Extent and Medium

overall: Height: 33.130 inches (84.15 cm) | Width: 47.500 inches (120.65 cm)

Creator(s)

Archival History

The poster was acquired by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1995.

Acquisition

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection

Scope and Content

German propaganda poster issued during the week of June 17 to June 23, 1942, from the Parole der Woche (Word of the Week) series. The poster depicts pictures of American criminals from the recent past, including: Al Capone, Thomas Pendergast, Robert Emmet O'Malley, Robert J. Boltz, and William P. Buckner. The text purports that United States President Franklin Roosevelt recruited criminals to serve in the American armed forces against Germany. It also accuses Roosevelt of being a money launderer, and claims he has a rapport with the criminal elements. The Nazis use this unfounded appraoch as evidence that America’s war on Germany is unjust and ignoring that Germany declared war on the U.S. The poster also attempts to justify the Nazi’s treatment of Jews by showing a captioned picture of a man called, “Louis the rabbi” along with the criminals, and claims that Jews are in league with organized crime. 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, which could be plastered on the back of correspondences. 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

Offset lithographic poster printed on off-white paper. On the right third of the poster is a black-and-white image of Franklin Roosevelt. He is wearing a white, wide-brimmed hat, and is scratching his head with his right hand while holding a sign in front of him with the other. The sign depicts two rows of black-and-white pictures, each with a short caption below. In the top row are three mugshots, and in the bottom row are three candid photos of men in black suits. To the left is a title in large, bold text, and several paragraphs of text, all in German. One paragraph is printed in a narrow, white rectangle, the rest are against the red background. Along the bottom of the poster is a line of large underlined text. Below the image of the sign is a small logo consisting of a line of text arranged in a circle around three larger letters.

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.