Fascism on the Homefront: Remembering the Nazi Youth Camps of 1930s New Jersey

Authors: Delaney Burke, Ayal Englander, Saber Hassan, Jordyn Weintraub

Field of Study: Arts and Humanities

Program Affiliation: Source Project Research Program

Faculty Mentors: Wendy Wall

Easel: 16

Timeslot: Afternoon

Abstract: When people think of Nazism in the 1930s, they typically picture Hitler’s rise to power in Germany. However, most are unaware of the Nazi ideology purveyed by the German-American Bund, a pro-fascist group in the United States. Before World War II, the German-American Bund established numerous summer camps for children across the country, hoping to indoctrinate America’s youth into their cause. Scholars have focused on the existence and ideology of the camps, but have failed to identify the impact on surrounding local communities. This podcast focuses on the three camps in New Jersey, exploring how public perceptions of the camps changed while they were in operation, and tracing how surrounding communities forgot or remembered the camps over time. Drawing on original oral histories, as well as historic newspapers, photographs, and government archives, this project explores the lingering effects of Nazism in New Jersey.