Revoking Hitler's German Citizenship
Wednesday March 14, 2007
Adolf Hitler was the leader of Nazi Germany, thus many assume he was always a citizen of Germany. Not so. Hitler was born in Austria and remained an Austrian citizen until he gave up that citizenship in 1925. He remained stateless, meaning without citizenship to any country, until he found a creative way to become a German citizen just a month before the 1932 presidential elections in which he was a candidate. The city that helped Hitler get German citizenship is now attempting to revoke Hitler's German citizenship.
It has been 75 years since Hitler became a German citizen. Is it too late to make this a symbolic gesture? Why didn't they revoke Hitler's citizenship earlier? Do you think it is ok to revoke someone's citizenship posthumously? (Contribute your thoughts by clicking on "comments" below.)
Comments
What difference does it make AFTER the fact? You cannot remove a stain from history just by wishing it wasn’t so!
it’s NEVER too late to rid of world of evil …
duh – that came out all wrong: to rid the world of evil, is what I meant
Does it realy Matter ?.
Are they just trying cover up a mistake? They can never really undo it.
To appreciate the significance of the act, I suspect you have to be a young German, someone born well after WWII and possibly after the fall of the Berlin Wall. These Germans have nothing to do with the horror wrought by this man and yet continue to carry a sense of guilt. Revoking Adolf Hitler’s citizenship, while symbolic, is a step towards divorcing oneself from an odious burden he/she had nothing to do with in the first place.
What difference does it make AFTER the fact?
Better work today to practise democratic values,inculculcate HUMANITY
in the next generation.
it is everyones basic human to have citizenship, only themselves may revoke and choose citizenship (on the terms that the country in concern agrees and hands out citizenship).
The idea that whatever the persons nationality is reflects on the rest of those nationals is wrong. Hitler is german, but it should not reflect on who germans are, to revoke his citizenship so you can say ‘he isnt one of us’ enforces that mentality. Just in the same way he was an atheist, doesnt mean all athiests are bad.
Just cuz someone from you country turned out bad doesnt mean you were responible nor other nationals.
Somebody can help me?
What was the requirement by Germany at that time (1932) for a foreigner to become german citizen and have full rights to become Chancellor?
Is because Hitler was born near the border or was some agrements with neighbor countries?
To know in history how he got the adopted citizenship could make more sense to know how to revoke it.