A group of historical re-enactors (I really want to put that in quotes, because I’m not personally convinced they are) have been having a yearly party at a German restaurant in Minneapolis, MN. Pictures have surfaced of them-and the restaurant-dressed up as Nazis. Swastika flags adorn the walls and people are dressed in Germany WWII-era uniforms.
First off, I am really curious who the bad guy is when playing “cowboys and Indians”. But more importantly, especially to this thread, is that this event is not “educating” anybody. I’m not sure how a group of like-minded individuals at a closed private party are going to be educating anybody by dressing up as Nazis and hanging swastikas on the walls.
Let me go back a couple steps and say that I don’t understand the historical re-enactors at all. Those who get dressed to re-enact the Civil War battles. I just don’t get the appeal and the themes that go along with it. The thing with the Civil War is that at least any person who was in that war is now dead. WW2? Not so much.
I’m not saying take away these folks’ free speech or right to associate or do whatever they are doing. I’m just saying that I’m judging them as either being really, EXTREMELY, socially inept. Or just plain Neo-Nazis. I’m really not seeing the middle ground here.
Seriously? Whether or not you “get it,” historical reenactment is a thing people do in all kinds of settings. Even remote areas in far flung regions have traditions of re-enacting historic battles. It’s just something societies do.
I don’t think turning the Nazis into Voldemort serves anyone. Preventing atrocity requires understanding atrocity, and that means acknowledging that Nazis were human beings just like us.
I think it isn’t cool if one is going to be in a public place, because there’s a decent chance you’re going to be seen by someone who might be profoundly negatively impacted, due to possible past trauma, by seeing someone in a Nazi uniform.
I would not want to risk hurting someone who has suffered such trauma, and I don’t think anyone who shares this feeling should wear a Nazi uniform in a public place, even for such reasons as historical re-enactment.
Same goes for displaying the swastika, the confederate flag, etc.
It is a hobby. People have those. Some people like military history and want to make it their hobby.
While I’m not fond of Nazi dress-up time, why do you have a problem with someone else’s pastimes? Do you have any hobbies? Ever consider how dumb they might be to someone on the outside?
There’s a difference between reenactment and what they were doing, which is appreciation.
Quite the opposite - recognition of the Nazi’s purported “humanity” is what allowed them to thrive. It delayed the pathology. We won’t make that mistake next time.
I didn’t say anything about your hobbies. I merely pointed out that when you make shortsighted statements about other people’s hobbies then turnabout can happen quite easily.
Thanks to social media and YouTube, it’s potentially career-ending stupidity,but it shouldn’t be banned. After all, idiots elsewhere in the US fly the Confederate banner freely without being ostracized.
If the group wants to dress like Nazis, let them. When they mysteriously start getting fired or losing friends and social acquaintances, remind them that perception is still critical in a modern society.
Strange you should mention that displaying the swastika is verboten -
It just so happens that my daughter’s school has one displayed prominently on the front gate and in the school logo.
Of course - it is a “clan school” run by a Buddhist Temple.
As in all things - context is everything. Is this society ONLY having Nazi parties? Or if they do focus only on Nazis - what other activities do they do? Looking at those that are attending, is there anything to indicate they are white supremacists?
One private party is far too little information to form any sort of informed judgement - and until such time as you do make an informed judgement you are more an idiot braying on the internet than anything else.
I think of civil-war re-enactments as an opportunity for guys to run around and shoot off their black powder rifles and pistols. I guess people do like dressing up in costumes and associating with others who like to do the same. Witness Renne Faires, Star Trek conventions, Comic Cons, etc. But I have trouble comparing reliving Roddenberry fantasies with dressing up to relive those good old days of the Third Reich.
It’s only slightly relevant, but I’ve seen something twice in stage productions that involved uniformed Nazis - one was a dinner theater production of “Sound of Music” (don’t hate me, I was dragged) and the other, a regional theater production whose title escapes me at the moment.
At the end, when the actors portraying the Nazis took their bows, they very pointedly ripped off their armbands and dropped them on the stage (to renewed applause), where they stayed until a stagehand quietly collected them after the stage cleared. Says what needs saying well and elegantly, I think.
