NOVEMBER 17 • 2022 | 9

trayed by the press, but rather 
Nazi party members and SS 
disguised in civilian clothing. 
Apparently, the top Nazi lead-
ership did not want to rely on 
grassroots uprisings against 
Jewish neighbors. Instead, party 
leaders previously briefed their 
Storm Troopers on how to dress 
and to what towns to travel to 
avoid recognition by neighbors. 
Members of the Gestapo, SS 
and SD were ready and willing 
to charge when the command 
came down from their leader 
Reinhard Heydrich. The horrif-
ic scenes that followed are now 
well-documented. 
One interesting point not 
generally well known is that the 
Nazi instructions stated implic-
itly that only rich Jewish males 
were to be arrested and sent to 
Dachau and other concentra-
tion camps that night. Hardly 

recognizable, most of these 
“November Jews” were released 
weeks later upon a huge ransom 
payment and a sworn statement 
that they would leave Germany. 
Apparently, the arrests were 
part of a successful fundraising 
campaign that transferred thou-
sands of Reichsmarks from the 
pockets of Jews to the Nazis. 
So, too, the fine for the prop-
erty damage on Kristallnacht 
was levied on all the Jews of 
Germany for their “crimes.
” 
One billion Reichsmarks was 
made payable to the Nazi gov-
ernment. 
One might think that the 
financial and other goals that 
the Nazi regime achieved as a 
result of the masterful strategic 
planning and execution of 
the Night of the Broken Glass 
might in some way be offset 
by public outcry, protests and 

sanctions by world leaders, 
particularly those of England 
and France. Unfortunately, 
the responses were limited to 
mostly lip service. 
Words, rather than overt 
action, to help the Jews of 
Germany were the response 
of the day. Even President 
Roosevelt withdrew the U.S. 
ambassador to Germany but 
did little else to support the 
Jews, especially when it came to 
immigration quotas. Thus, in 
late 1938, perhaps something 
might still have been done on 
the part of foreign governments: 
gates could have been opened 
to the tens of thousands of Jews 
who finally realized that they 
must flee Germany but had no 
place to go. 
The reality that no firm stand 
in opposition was taken by the 
democratic leaders of the day 

emboldened the Nazi regime 
to press on with their program 
to cleanse the world of its Jews. 
For the Nazis, Kristallnacht 
became an enabler. For us, it 
is a lasting reminder of the 
futility of words in place of 
action. It reminds us of the 
power of the government 
and press to manipulate news 
and events to facilitate an 
agenda. Commemorating 
Kristallnacht in 2022 draws 
out a harsh reality to the 
Jews of America and Israel. 
Words alone are insufficient 
to produce results. Deeds 
are the deliverable in which 
outcomes are measured. 

Dr. Karen Sutton is associate professor 

of history at the Lander College for 

Women, a division of Touro College, 

in New York City. This was originally 

published on the Times of Israel blog.

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