Our Nazi
University of Chicago Press (Verlag)
978-0-226-83554-9 (ISBN)
Reinhold Kulle seemed like the perfect school employee. But in 1982, as his retirement neared, his long-concealed secret came to light. The chief custodian at Oak Park and River Forest High School outside Chicago had been a Nazi, a member of the SS, and a guard at a brutal slave labor camp during World War II.
Similar revelations stunned communities across the country. Hundreds of Reinhold Kulles were gradually discovered: men who had patrolled concentration camps, selected Jews for execution, and participated in mass shootings—and who were now living ordinary suburban lives. As the Office of Special Investigations raced to uncover Hitler’s men in the United States, neighbors had to reconcile horrific accusations with the helpful, kind, and soft-spoken neighbors they thought they knew. Though Nazis loomed in the American consciousness as evil epitomized, in Oak Park—a Chicago suburb renowned for its liberalism—people rose to defend Reinhold Kulle, a war criminal.
Drawing on archival research and insider interviews, Oak Park and River Forest High School teacher Michael Soffer digs into his community’s tumultuous response to the Kulle affair. He explores the uncomfortable truths of how and why onetime Nazis found allies in American communities after their gruesome pasts were uncovered.
Michael Soffer is a history teacher at Lake Forest High School. During his tenure at Oak Park and River Forest High School, he taught Holocaust studies in a classroom that former Nazi camp guard Reinhold Kulle used to clean. His writing has appeared in publications such as the Forward, Chicago Jewish History, and the Times of Israel. This is his first book.
Preface: “A Nazi Worked Here?”
1. “Murderers among Us”
2. Reinhold
3. Up the Chimney
4. Visa #6037
5. Chicago
6. Mrs. Ryan
7. A Real Gentleman
8. Holtzman
9. Standing Guard
10. The Office of Special Investigations
11. “I Lied”
12. “But I Killed Nobody”
13. Trial Prep
14. In the Matter of Reinhold Kulle
15. Bearing Witness
16. “I Am Angry”
17. A Decision Not Yet Reached
18. Friends of Reinhold
19. The Defense
20. A No-Win Situation
21. A Terminal Leave of Absence
22. A Hollow Victory
23. “Reinhold, We’ll Never Forget You”
24. Deportation
Epilogue: Inside the Janitor’s Closet
Acknowledgments
Notes
Sources
Index
| Erscheinungsdatum | 19.09.2024 |
|---|---|
| Reihe/Serie | Chicago Visions and Revisions |
| Zusatzinfo | 15 halftones |
| Sprache | englisch |
| Maße | 152 x 229 mm |
| Gewicht | 540 g |
| Themenwelt | Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Geschichte / Politik ► Regional- / Landesgeschichte |
| Geschichte ► Allgemeine Geschichte ► Neuzeit (bis 1918) | |
| Geschichte ► Allgemeine Geschichte ► 1918 bis 1945 | |
| Geisteswissenschaften ► Geschichte ► Regional- / Ländergeschichte | |
| ISBN-10 | 0-226-83554-5 / 0226835545 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0-226-83554-9 / 9780226835549 |
| Zustand | Neuware |
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