Discussion
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Why is Jesse Owens saluting, and
why is Luz Long extending his arm?
They are saluting their countries' flags
[raised for the medal winners], Owens
with a U.S. military salute and Long with
the Nazi salute.
Discussion
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How is this photograph evidence that
contradicts Adolf Hitler's claim of the
superiority of the "Aryan race"?
A German athlete, Luz Long, finished
second to a non-German, Jesse Owens.
Background
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Berlin was chosen as the site for the Olympic
Games two years before Adolf Hitler came to
power. Fearing that many nations would boycott
the games because of Hitler's blatant racism, the
International Olympic Committee pressured the
Germans not to use the games to promote Nazi
ideals. Yet the sports complex was covered with
Nazi banners and symbols, and Aryan supremacy
was repeatedly proclaimed in speeches and
pamphlets. Jesse Owens' four gold medals
spoiled Hitler's plans to have the games
showcase Aryan supremacy. The next two
Summer Olympics—the 1940 and 1944 games—
were canceled because of World War II.
Rise of Hitler and the Nazis
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Racism and nationalism: At the core of Adolf Hitler's ideas was racism
and bigotry, especially anti-Semitism. He also was an extreme nationalist.
The Nazi Party: After World War I, Hitler joined the extremist German
Workers' Party. Within a few years he took control of the party, now called
the Nazi Party.
Failed uprising: In 1923, Hitler staged an armed uprising against the
government. Known as the Beer Hall Putsch, the uprising was quickly
crushed, and Hitler was arrested.
Mein Kampf: While in jail, Hitler wrote Mein Kampf, in which he linked
German nationalism, anti-Semitism, and anticommunism to a Social
Darwinian theory of struggle. He claimed that superior nations had the
right to expand and superior individuals had the right to lead the masses.
Growth of Nazism: Realizing that the Nazi Party would have to gain
power by legal means, Hitler expanded it into a mass national party,
attracting Germans who were disaffected by Germany's economic
problems and were attracted by the Nazis' nationalism and militarism.
Hitler the Führer: After President Hindenburg allowed Hitler to become
chancellor, the Nazi-dominated Reichstag gave Hitler the power to ignore
the German constitution. This made Hitler a dictator, and the Nazis quickly
took control of all German institutions. When Hindenburg died, Hitler
became the sole ruler of Germany—the Führer.
Discussion

How might the economic situation in
Germany in the early 1930s have influenced
the willingness of many German people to
accept a leader whose philosophy was based
on racism and bigotry?
When times are hard, many people look for
someone to blame for their problems. Hitler
provided a scapegoat for Germany's economic
problems in the form of the Jewish people.
Background
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On November 8, 1923, Hitler and
members of the Nazi Party forced their
way into a right-wing political meeting in a
beer hall in Munich. Hitler convinced the
group to join him in a revolutionary march
to Berlin, similar to Mussolini's March on
Rome. The next day some 3,000 Nazi
marchers were met with police gunfire.
Hitler was arrested, put on trial, and
sentenced to five years in prison, though
he served only eight months.
Discussion

What was ironic about the Reichstag's
actions?
The Reichstag, a democratic institution,
passed legislation that led to the end of
Germany's democratic government.
Plans for the Nazi State
An "Aryan state": Hitler's goal was the
development of an "Aryan" racial state
that would dominate the world for
generations to come.
 Involvement of the German people: In
part, the Nazis made the German people
complicit in their policies by means of
mass demonstrations and spectacles.
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Discussion
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Why do you think Hitler had come to
the conclusion that it was necessary
to attain power by legal means?
Hitler had already led an armed uprising,
and it had failed. He also might have
realized that attaining power legally would
give his government credibility.
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The SS: The Nazis used Schutzstaffeln, or SS,
forces to maintain order and carry out Nazi
policies. Under the direction of Heinrich Himmler,
the SS came to control the secret police forces as
well as the regular police.
Terror tactics: The SS used repression and
murder to carry out Nazi policies. The brutal
tactics of the police—as well as the use of
concentration camps, execution squads, and
death camps—terrorized the people, especially
Jews, and silenced opposition.
Discussion
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What was the chief goal of the SS,
according to Himmler?
to further the "Aryan master race
Discussion
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After Hitler gained power, how did he
keep it?
through brutality and terror