Claim CA006.1:
Adolf Hitler exploited the racist ideas of Darwinism to justify genocide.
Source:
Weston-Broome, Sharon. 2001. Louisiana House Concurrent Resolution
no. 74: CIVIL RIGHTS: Provides relative to racism and education about
racism. HLS 01-2652 ORIGINAL.
Response:
- Hitler based his ideas not on Darwinism but on a "divine right"
philosophy:
Thus, it [the folkish philosophy] by no means believes in an
equality of races, but along with their difference it recognizes
their higher or lesser value and feels itself obligated, through
this knowledge, to promote the victory of the better and stronger,
and demand the subordination of the inferior and weaker in
accordance with the eternal will that dominates this universe.
(Hitler 1943, 383)
The first edition of Mein Kampf suggests that Hitler may once have
believed in a young earth: "this planet will, as it did thousands of
years ago, move through the ether devoid of men" (p. 65; the second
edition substitutes "millions" for "thousands," and chapter 11 refers
to "hundreds of thousands of years" of life in another context.) Other
passages further support his creationist leanings:
The undermining of the existence of human culture by the
destruction of its bearer seems in the eyes of a folkish
philosophy the most execrable crime. Anyone who dares to lay
hands on the highest image of the Lord commits sacrilege against
the benevolent Creator of this miracle and contributes to the
expulsion from paradise. (Hitler 1943, 383)
and
What we must fight for is to safeguard the existence and
reproduction of our race and our people, . . . so that our people
may mature for the fulfillment of the mission allotted it by the
creator of the universe. (Hitler 1943, 214)
Quotes from Hitler invoking Christianity as a basis for his actions
could be multiplied ad nauseam. For example:
Hence today I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will
of the Almighty Creator: by defending myself against the Jew, I am
fighting for the work of the Lord (Hitler 1943, 65).
"[T]he task of preserving and advancing the highest humanity, given
to this earth by the benevolence of the Almighty, seems a truly high
mission (Hitler 1943, 398).
A campaign against the "godless movement" and an appeal for Catholic
support were launched Wednesday by Chancellor Adolf Hitler's
forces (Associated Press 1933).
Of course, this does not mean that Hitler's ideas were based on
creationism any more than they were based on evolution. Hitler's ideas
were a perversion of both religion and biology.
- The Nazi Party in general rejected Darwinism and supported
Christianity. In 1935, Die Bücherei, the official Nazi
journal for lending libraries, published a list of guidelines of
works to reject, including:
Writings of a philosophical and social nature whose content deals
with the false scientific enlightenment of primitive Darwinism and
Monism (Häckel). (Die Bücherei 1935, 279)
On the other hand, an undated "Blacklist for Public Libraries and
Commercial Lending Libraries" includes the following on a list of
literature which "absolutely must be removed":
c) All writings that ridicule, belittle or besmirch the Christian
religion and its institution, faith in God, or other things that
are holy to the healthy sentiments of the Volk. (Blacklist n.d.)
- Genocide and racism existed long before Darwin. Obviously, they did
not need any contribution from Darwinism. In many instances, such as
the Crusades and the Spanish conquest of Central America, religion was
explicitly invoked to justify them.
- Evolution does not promote social Darwinism or
racism
or eugenics.
References:
- "Blacklist for Public Libraries and Commercial Lending Libraries."
Quoted from University of Arizona Library, "Lists of Banned Books,
1932-1939", transl. Roland Richter,
http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/burnedbooks/documents.htm
- Die Bücherei 2:6 (1935). Quoted from University of
Arizona Library, "Lists of Banned Books, 1932-1939", transl.
Roland Richter,
http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/burnedbooks/documents.htm
- Hitler, A. 1943. Mein Kampf. Transl. R. Manheim. Boston:
Houghton Mifflin.
http://www.stormfront.org/books/mein_kampf/
or
http://www.crusader.net/texts/mk/
- Associated Press. 1933. Hitler aims blow at 'Godless' move,
Lansing State Journal (Michigan), Feb. 23, 1933. Reprinted at
http://www.infidels.org/library/historical/unknown/hitler.html
Further Reading:
Toland, John. 1976. Adolf Hitler. Garden City, NY: Doubleday.
http://www.antievolution.org/people/wre/evc/argresp/hitler.faq
and
http://www.antievolution.org/people/wre/evc/argresp/hitler.add
created 2001-4-29, modified 2007-3-13