Im Zugriff von Fürsorge und Polizei

Persecution by National Socialist Welfare: Backgrounds, sources, involved institutions, as well as experiences and strategies of those affected. The focus of National Socialist welfare was on caring for the community of the people. Those in need of assistance who behaved undesirably were excluded by welfare authorities as outsiders. The attribution of an allegedly hereditary deviation and the exclusion as antisocial and work-shy were significantly influenced by gendered expectations. The marginalized individuals in need of assistance were subjected to various eugenic coercive measures. Welfare services, social institutions, youth, labor, and health offices worked closely with the police and judiciary in the disenfranchisement of those affected. Stigmatized individuals were taken into preventive custody by the police in the thousands and sent to concentration camps. This issue examines welfare and coercive education systems within the network of National Socialist persecution institutions—extending beyond the borders of the Reich. It also investigates the specific and transgenerational impacts on those affected and highlights their resistance as exemplary. Contributions by: Piotr Chruscielski, Oliver Gaida, Daniel Haberlah, Rense Havinga, Thomas Irmer, Sarah Könecke, Nikolas Lelle, Reimer Möller, Jan Neubauer, Stefan Romey, Laurens Schlicht, and Frauke Steinhäuser.