On the night of November 9, 1938, hundreds of synagogues, Jewish homes, and thousands of Jewish owned businesses were destroyed across Germany and Austria. In addition to this attack on property, individuals were beaten and assaulted in their homes and nearly 30,000 Jewish men were arrested and sent to concentration camps. This violent pogrom became known as Kristallnacht — the Night of Broken Glass.

But how did Germany, a cultured, democratic country become a dictatorship that unleashed violence on its own citizens? This presentation examines the critical months following Hitler’s appointment as Chancellor in 1933 and the subsequent years of transformation in Germany. It details how the government sought to erode the civil rights of Jewish Germans and how this legal assault led to coordinated, nation-wide, physical attacks on the night of November 9, 1938.

This commemoration is free and open to the public. Reservations are requested by emailing rsvp@mchekc.org.