Anti-Jewish Propaganda
Although anti-Jewish propaganda had been all over the world for centuries, these hateful stories and messages circulated more widely than ever during the rise of the Nazi party, presenting Jews as dangerous outsiders responsible for social, economic, and political problems. By repeating familiar tropes—Jews as conspirators, manipulators of finance, or enemies of the nation—propaganda reinforced centuries-old prejudices while adapting them to modern political movements and mass media.
In Germany and across Europe during the 1920s and 1930s, anti-Jewish propaganda became a powerful tool of radicalization. Newspapers, exhibitions, films, and children’s books spread distorted imagery and false narratives that portrayed Jews as a threat to society and justified discrimination, exclusion, and eventually violence. These materials reveal how propaganda can normalize hatred, turning conspiracy theories and caricatures into widely accepted “truths.”
You'll see plenty of anti-Jewish propaganda in the Holocaust collections. These are just a small sample.
Important Moments
Highlights from the Collection
Even in Denmark, where one might suspect Jewish people would be safe, anti-Jewish sentiment led to propaganda items like these national socialist party labels.
A weekly German tabloid published by Julius Streicher, a Nazi and member of the Reichstag. The paper was a significant element of German anti-Jewish propaganda and, like tabloids today, it really had nothing to do with news.
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This French postcard, produced in 1898, features a grotesque representation of the Dreyfus Affair, with anti-Jewish French journalist Edouard Drumont roasting a nude, caricatured Alfred Dreyfus on a spit.
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This postal label, or "Cinderella," similar to the ones produced in Germany, is from Hungary. It reads, “Not a penny for these people,” referring, of course, to the Jews portrayed in caricature on its face.
Kamptegnet (“Battle Journal”) was a Danish weekly tabloid, essentially a carbon copy of Der Stürmer from design and format down to the tagline. Many editions feature the Danish version of Der Stürmer’s tagline, which translates to “The Jews are our misfortune.” The issue pictured here is tagged, “Vote anti-Jewish,” and the publication rotated through several similarly hateful slogans. Like Der Stürmer, Kamptegnet had nothing to do with actual news — its only content was hate.
This intricately designed and carved children’s toy was produced in Czechoslovakia c. the 1930s. Czechs were known for their puppetry, and this example came from the country’s premier puppet manufacturer, highlighting the commercialization of anti-Jewish ideology.
A 1915 cartoon by Robert John Wildhack, entitled “Joshua Subdues the Hittites.” Published in the humor magazine Life, this cartoon depicts the biblical story of Joshua and the Israelites conquering the Hittites in such a way as to make light of the events. This depiction reverses the roles from the biblical story, with the Hittites as a meek, undeserving victims and Joshua (representing the Jewish people) converted to the violent, villainous giants the book of Joshua depicts the Hittites to be.
This is an original photo of a banner reading “Don’t Buy from Jewish Shops” hanging in front of a building in Germany, 1935.
This photo from January 1941 shows Krakow’s streetcars segregated into sections for Jews and non-Jews. An AP clipping affixed to the back reads, "Poland Joins the Reich."
