{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"181 The 1939 Nazi Rally at Madison Square Garden + This Week in US History","description":"This week at In The Past Lane, the American History podcast, we learn about the February 20, 1939 Nazi rally at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It was organized by a pro-Nazi, pro-fascist organization called the German American Bund and it drew a capacity crowd of 20,000. The event fused professions of American patriotism with vile antisemitism and pro-Nazi sentiment. But the Bund\u2019s rally did not go unchallenged. As many as 100,000 anti-Nazis filled the streets around MSG to register their outrage. The negative publicity caused the Bund to lose members. Then six months later World War II started and the Bund was on its way into the dustbin of history.   And we also take a look at some key events that occurred this week in US history, like John Glenn\u2019s history making orbit of the earth, the assassination of Malcolm X, and the publication of The Feminine Mystique. And birthdays, including February 17, 1942: Huey Newton February 21, 1936: Congressman Barbara Jordan February 22, 1732: George Washington Feature story:  On February 20, 1939 \u2013 81 years ago this week \u2013 20,000 people gathered in New York City\u2018s Madison Square Garden for what was billed as a \u201cPro American Rally.\u201c Upon entering the stadium, attendees saw a 30-foot tall banner featuring the image of George Washington. Red, white, and blue American flags were everywhere and the festivities began with a rousing rendition of the \u201cStar Spangled Banner.\u201d But this was no ordinary political gathering. Indeed, interspersed among all the symbols of American patriotism were swastikas, Nazi uniforms, and banners that read: Stop Jewish Domination of Christian Americans. It was 1939, six months before the start of World War II, and 20,000 American Nazis had come together to praise Hitler, pledge loyalty to America, and denounce Jews as a threat to white Christian America. It was one of the most flagrant and vile displays of anti-Semitism in U.S. history. The group behind the rally was the German American Bund \u2013 bund being the German word for federation. This German American organization had been founded in 1936 by a man named Fritz Kuhn. It wrapped its pro-fascist, pro-Nazi, anti-Semitism in the mantle of American patriotism. They presented themselves as defenders of America from subversive communists and Jews who were plotting to undermine American values and Christianity. The Bund held summer camps for families, published pamphlets and magazines, and held high profile public events like parades and rallies. Within a few years, the organization boasted tens of thousands of members, and countless more supporters and sympathizers. But in 1939, as American opposition to Hitler and the Nazi regime grew, Bund membership began to decline. So, in an effort to boost its fortunes, the German American Bund booked a rally in the nation\u2019s premier venue: Madison Square Garden. The Bund\u2019s founder, Fritz Kuhn, knew the event would spark outrage and protest. But he didn\u2019t care. Controversy was just what he wanted. It was free advertising and, he thought, it would surely bring more Americans to support Nazism and fascism. New York City officials were less than thrilled about the event. Nonetheless, they rebuffed calls to stop the rally. Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia reasoned that the negative publicity from the event would actually hurt the Bund\u2019s popularity. So instead of cancelling the event, the city put 1500 policeman in and around Madison Square Garden on the night of the rally. The heavy police presence proved a wise move, as tens of thousands of anti-Nazi protesters showed up, many looking for a fight. Inside Madison Square Garden, the rally went off perfectly \u2013 just as Fritz Kuhn had planned. There was music and speeches, interspersed by frenzied cheering, emphatic Nazi salutes, and shouts of Heil Hitler! The grand finale was a speech by Fritz Kuhn himself. He denounced Jews and communists as menaces to America. He likewise denounced President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, referring to him repeatedly as "Franklin Rosenfeld," and his popular New Deal programs as the "Jew Deal." Roosevelt, of course, wasn\u2019t Jewish, but fascists like Kuhn saw him as an agent of Jewish-inspired socialism. \u201cWe, with American ideals,\u201d shouted Kuehne, \u201cdemand that our government shall be returned to the American people who founded it\u201d - implying, of course, that Jews were in control of the country and that they were not then, and never could be, true Americans. He continued, \u201cIf you ask what we are actively fighting for under our charter: First, a socially just, white, Gentile-ruled United States. Second, Gentile-controlled labor unions, free from Jewish Moscow-directed domination.\u201d The crowd roared in approval and thousands of arms shot fourth in the Nazi salute. But then, something extraordinary occurred. A Jewish American man named Isador Greenbaum jumped on stage to denounce Kuhn and his hateful movement. Policemen and Bund guards pounced on Greenbaum and pummeled him with their fists before dragging him off stage. Greenbaum\u2019s newly suicidal act of protest didn\u2019t stop the rally.  But it stands out as an incredibly courageous and selfless act in defense of America\u2019s ideals of democracy, tolerance, and inclusion. For his troubles, Greenbaum was arrested and fined $25 for disorderly conduct. Several dozen more protesters outside were also arrested for scuffling with police and Nazis. The Bund\u2019s membership declined rapidly as the American public became more and more aware of the evil actions of the Nazi regime and as a full-blown anti-Nazi movement took hold in the US. Fritz Kuhn was soon arrested for embezzlement of Bund funds and sent to prison. During World War II, he was stripped of his US citizenship, and following the war, deported to Germany. To most 21st-century Americans, this story of American Nazis is alarming and hard to believe. Photographs of Bund events are especially shocking. I\u2019ll post a link in the show notes to a photo essay that appeared in The Atlantic that shows thousands of Americans in suburban New York and New Jersey giving the Nazi salute as a German American Bond parade goes by. This story of the 1939 Madison Square Garden rally and these photos reveal a dark truth about American history: that forms of fascism, authoritarianism, white supremacy, and anti-Semitism have long attracted large followings, even if they\u2019ve remained out of sight. We all became aware of that in 2017 when thousands of neo-Nazis marched in Charlottesville, Virginia. But this story also reveals a brighter side of American history: that brave Americans - like Isador Greenbaum and the thousands of anti-Nazi protesters who showed up outside Madison Square Garden \u2013 have always stood up in the face of injustice. If you want to know more about the 1939 Nazi rally at Madison Square Garden, I highly recommend an episode by the magnificent podcast, The Memory Palace. It\u2019s titled, Episode 109: The Year Hank Greenberg Hit 58 Home Runs. I also recommend the 2017 documentary about the rally titled \u201cA Night at the Garden.\u201d I\u2019ll put links in the show notes to both these things. Links: The Memory Palace - Episode 109: The Year Hank Greenberg Hit 58 Home Runs \u201cA Night at the Garden\u201d https:\/\/anightatthegarden.com\/ \u201cAmerican Nazis in the 1930s\u2014The German American Bund,\u201d The Atlantic, June 5, 2017 For more information about the In The Past Lane podcast, head to our website, www.InThePastLane.com  Music for This Episode Jay Graham, ITPL Intro (JayGMusic.com) The Joy Drops, \u201cTrack 23,\u201d Not Drunk (Free Music Archive) Borrtex, \u201cPerception\u201d (Free Music Archive) Blue Dot Sessions, "Pat Dog" (Free Music Archive) Jon Luc Hefferman, \u201cWinter Trek\u201d (Free Music Archive) The Bell, \u201cI Am History\u201d (Free Music Archive) Production Credits Executive Producer: Lulu Spencer Graphic Designer: Maggie Cellucci Website by: ERI Design Legal services: Tippecanoe and Tyler Too Social Media management: The Pony Express Risk Assessment: Little Big Horn Associates Growth strategies: 54 40 or Fight \u00a9 In The Past Lane, 2020 Recommended History Podcasts Ben Franklin\u2019s World with Liz Covart @LizCovart The Age of Jackson Podcast @AgeofJacksonPod Backstory podcast \u2013 the history behind today\u2019s headlines @BackstoryRadio Past Present podcast with Nicole Hemmer, Neil J. Young, and Natalia Petrzela @PastPresentPod 99 Percent Invisible with Roman Mars @99piorg Slow Burn podcast about Watergate with @leoncrawl The Memory Palace \u2013 with Nate DiMeo, story teller extraordinaire @thememorypalace The Conspirators \u2013 creepy true crime stories from the American past @Conspiratorcast The History Chicks podcast @Thehistorychix My History Can Beat Up Your Politics @myhist Professor Buzzkill podcast \u2013 Prof B takes on myths about the past @buzzkillprof Footnoting History podcast @HistoryFootnote The History Author Show podcast @HistoryDean More Perfect podcast - the history of key US Supreme Court cases @Radiolab Revisionist History with Malcolm Gladwell @Gladwell Radio Diaries with Joe Richman @RadioDiaries DIG history podcast @dig_history The Story Behind \u2013 the hidden histories of everyday things @StoryBehindPod Studio 360 with Kurt Andersen \u2013 specifically its American Icons series @Studio360show Uncivil podcast \u2013 fascinating takes on the legacy of the Civil War in contemporary US @uncivilshow Stuff You Missed in History Class @MissedinHistory The Whiskey Rebellion \u2013 two historians discuss topics from today\u2019s news @WhiskeyRebelPod American History Tellers \u200f@ahtellers The Way of Improvement Leads Home with historian John Fea @JohnFea1 The Bowery Boys podcast \u2013 all things NYC history @BoweryBoys Ridiculous History @RidiculousHSW The Rogue Historian podcast with historian @MKeithHarris The Road To Now podcast @Road_To_Now Retropod with @mikerosenwald   \u00a9 In The Past Lane 2020 ","author_name":"In The Past Lane - The Podcast About History and Why It Matters","author_url":"http:\/\/www.InThePastLane.com","html":"