International Journal of Epidemiology 2001;30:37-42
© International Epidemiological Association 2001
Reiteration |
Commentary: The Third Reich—German physicians between resistance and participation
Postgraduate Medical School, University of Exeter, 25 Victoria Park Road, Exeter EX2 4NT, UK. E-mailE.Ernst@exeter.ac.uk
To evaluate the role of the medical profession in the Third Reich is a delicate and difficult task. Its participation in major atrocities was, to a large extent, hushed up and recent reports of medical opposition may, in many cases, be exaggerated. Much of the evidence has been destroyed or is not easily accessible. Furthermore, an objective view is potentially clouded by a number of issues related to the past or outlook of the evaluator. Finally, when looking at history with hindsight, there is the danger of arrogance in those who have not actually lived through it.
The following account therefore makes no claim to be either objective or complete. It is a personal analysis of a (non-Jewish) German physician who was born after the war and struggles to understand what happened.
Active participation
History of ‘race hygiene’
In the second half of the 19th century, ‘Social Darwinism’ had spread throughout Europe. This theory assumed that
Medicalization of racism
Involuntary sterilization
Involuntary euthanasia
The Final Solution
NS ‘research’
Resistance
The International Medical Bulletin (IMB)
Doctor John Karl Friedrich Rittmeister
Other German psychiatrists
Die Weiße Rose
Professor Sauerbruch
The Fourth Reich
Conclusions
References
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