Exclusion and persecution of German Jews during the era of National Socialist rule are more clearly accessible as historic events if they are seen in relation to the local or regional level. Police persecution or antisemitic administrative measures are therefore best described using concrete cases as examples.

The exclusion of Jewish citizens from social contexts and displacement of Jewish business owners from economic life were visible to all. Not only Nazi party members participated in the antisemitic assaults and auctioning off of Jewish property, but also numerous neighbours who were not directly aligned with the party. Especially the documentation of regional financial authorities provides an in-depth view of the political, legal and economic processes regarding persecution and expropriation of Jewish families during the period of Nazi rule.

Collaboration of authorities makes the plundering activities possible

The examples shed a light on the cooperation between authorities, the Nazi party and the legal system in the expropriation activities and also give an impression of the personnel and material resources involved in the plundering machinery. On the subpages of this web presentation, first of all, the persecution characteristics are explained. Content-wise, they are structured according to the main aspects directly related to the emigration processes:

1.
Starting from 01 April 1933, the factual exclusion of the Jewish population from economic life began with the boycott of shops, practices and offices of Jewish proprietors. Many realized at an early stage that there was no longer a future for them in Germany. Especially young people who were only just beginning their career found that they hardly had any other choice but to emigrate. Therefore, on the subpages of the theme field of "persecution", besides the events of the boycott day on 01 April 1933, also the consequences for education and training are described and the problems faced by young Jewish people are pointed out.

Exclusion from working life was equal to expropriation

In business and industry as well as in education, anti-Jewish laws and ordinances led to the exclusion of Jewish trainees and students from their academic and training environment. In cases where the authorities still permitted them to complete their studies or professional training, they also demanded emigration immediately afterwards. Also for Goettingen and the surrounding area, examples of this practice are evident.

2.
The process of exclusion from society began a little later than the business boycott and included the measures by financial authorities outlined earlier. For the Jewish persons affected, the special charges, freezing of assets and further fiscal restrictions not only meant the end of their professional activities, but also exclusion from cultural life and further complications in taking the necessary steps to escape from Germany.

Example cases elucidate the extent of the measures taken

In particular the cooperation of the authorities at the legal and administrative levels demonstrates what the consequences were for the persecuted. The fate of the persons affected should therefore be examined considering the background of the measures intended to remove the Jewish segment of the population from Germany, as well as the fact that they sometimes failed to have the "desired" effect. This perspective shall be illustrated by examples.