German Citizens During World War 2

The Holocaust, something everyone never wants to see, to hear about, or to experience ever again. It was a terrible event that took place around the time of World War 2 in Germany. Hitler is the only man responsible in everyone’s eyes. He is the man everyone thinks of when we hear the word, Holocaust. He targeted mainly Jews, but what about everyone else? What happened to the regular people living in Germany during this time? What did the normal non-Jewish, citizen do when all this happened? The lifestyle of a regular German was affected majorly by this and changed the way Germans are today. How they lived before the war, right after the war, and how it has affected them now are major components in the way Germans are.
Before the World War 2, Germany was in a lot of debt. They had a lot of borrowing to do from other countries because of the Treaty of Versailles. Also, The Nazi’s were not a big power, and seemed almost harmless to government officials. Citizens did not have to worry about concentration camps, or any real harm being done to them. This life would not last long for them as Hitler is announced chancellor. A lot of propaganda was being used for the Nazi’s to promote hatred towards Jews. It surrounded all the people and was seen almost everywhere. The Nazi’s wanted to make Jews seem sub-human and give them no reason at all for living. More and more people started following what the Nazi’s were promoting which was making them more powerful. A lot of people did not know the truth of why their country was in so much debt, so the propaganda of, “All the problems this country has is because of the Jews” made people follow the Nazi’s. Jews were excluded from German society and could not even start their own business. Jews had it the toughest during this time because Nazi’s made more people turn on them.
Germany changed drastically after World War 2. As quickly as the war ended so did the Nazi’s. It was illegal to put a swastika on anything. Once Hitler was dead Karl Donitz became the new president of Germany. In his speech after he became president he saw Hitler as a hero. Donitz was president for only twenty days before he was convicted of unrestricted submarine warfare, which landed him in prison for ten years. Germans lives after World War 2 were focused on repairing Germany more than anything else. Germany was destroyed during the war. There was no more Germany, it was divided into four zones, American, British, French, and Soviet. Also inflation rose by 85%. What helped Germany get out of this mess was the Cold war and the long postwar.
During the break I got a chance to interview one of my dad’s employee’s son. They just moved to San Diego from Germany so I got a chance to ask him some brief questions about what Germany is like now. I told him I was doing a report about Germany after World War 2 so he knew I wasn’t asking him random questions. First I asked, “What is Germany like?” He responded, “It is normal, not really any different from here.” Second I asked, “How do you think World War 2 affected the way Germany is now?” He responded, “I don’t really hear much about the past and all the bad stuff that happened because a lot of people don’t like to think about it.” Thirdly, I asked, “Do your school teachers talk about the bad things in the past often?” He responded, “Not really, like I said people don’t like to think about that stuff anymore. Lastly I asked, “What do you think your life would be like now if all the bad stuff didn’t happen?” He responded, “It would probably be exactly like here, except for the language. People wouldn’t be scared to bring up the past.” Germany was affected majorly by this war. It changed the way Germany is today and the way it is going to be. No one likes to talk about the Holocaust because it brings bad memories to their minds. Germans lifestyles were changed drastically, and would not want to be the way it was during World War 2.