German-American Bund

The German-American Bund, or "German American Federation," was an American Nazi organization established in the 1930s.

Related Topics:
American - Nazi - 1930s

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Formed from the merger of two 1920s organizations, the National Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP) and the Free Society of Teutonia were small groups with only a few hundred members. NSDAP member Heinz Sponknobel eventually consolidated the two groups into the Friends of New Germany.

Related Topics:
1920s - National Socialist German Workers Party - Heinz Sponknobel

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Soon after their formation, the Friends came under attack from two fronts. The first was a Jewish boycott of German goods in the heavily German neighborhood of Yorkville on the Upper East Side of New York City. The second problem for the American Nazis came from Jewish congressman Samuel Dickstein, who headed an investigation against them.

Related Topics:
Jewish - Yorkville - Upper East Side - New York City - Samuel Dickstein

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The Friends tried to counter this boycott using propaganda and intimidation. An internal battle was fought for control of the Friends and in 1934, and Sponknobel was ousted from the leadership. At the same time, the Dickstein investigation concluded that the Friends supported a branch of Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party in America.

Related Topics:
Propaganda - Intimidation - 1934 - Adolf Hitler - Nazi Party

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After the investigation, Hitler ordered all German nationals to withdraw from the Friends. On March 19, 1936, Hitler placed US citizen Fritz Kuhn at the head of the party, hoping to gain some degree of American favor. The Friends' name was then changed to the German-American Bund.

Related Topics:
March 19 - 1936 - Fritz Kuhn

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After taking over in 1936, Kuhn started to attract attention to the Bund through propaganda film strips which outlined the Bund's views. Later that year, Kuhn with some 50 fellow Nazis boarded a boat to Germany, hoping to receive official recognition from Hitler during the Berlin Olympics. Unfortunately for Kuhn, he was probably the last person Hitler wanted to meet, because Hitler wanted his American Nazis to remain non-aggressive and work quietly. The Bund enjoyed the climax of its influence in February 1939, when its members gathered at Madison Square Garden on the premise of celebrating George Washington's birthday. 20,000 members attended. Despite the high number, estimates of its total membership never exceeded 25,000.

Related Topics:
Berlin Olympics - Madison Square Garden - George Washington

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The Bund was one of many German-American heritage groups, however, it was one of the few to express Nazi ideals. As a result, many considered the group anti-American. In 1939, a New York tax investigation determined that Kuhn had embezzled money from the Bund. The Bund operated on the theory that the leader's powers were absolute, and therefore did not push prosecution.

Related Topics:
German-American - Heritage group - Anti-American - Tax investigation - Embezzled

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However, in an attempt to cripple the Bund, the New York district attorney prosecuted Kuhn. New Bund leaders would replace Kuhn, most notably Gerhard Kunze, but these were only brief stints. Martin Dies and the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) were very active in denying any Nazi sympathetic organization the ability to operate in the U.S. during World War II.

Related Topics:
District attorney - Gerhard Kunze - Martin Dies - House Committee on Un-American Activities - World War II

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With the start of World War II most of the Bund's members were placed in internment camps, and some were deported at the end of the war. The Bund itself failed to become a major force in American politics and eventually it died out. However, its influence is still felt on a number of American neo-Nazi groups.

Related Topics:
Internment camp - American politics - Neo-Nazi

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