Jehovah’s Witnesses tried again and again to tell the world about the terrible things happening in Nazi Germany. In 1938 the Witnesses published the book Crusade Against Christianity, which gave names, places, and details about Nazi oppression and torture. My parents bought this book, which was published in German and French. I was 8 years old when I first saw a drawing of a concentration camp and read about the mistreatment of Witnesses in Germany. A few months later, the Nazis marched into France.
The famous author and Nobel-prize winner Thomas Mann wrote:
“I have read your book and its terrible documentation with deepest emotion. I cannot describe the mixed feeling of abhorrence and loathing which has filled my heart while perusing these records of human degradation and abominable cruelty….To keep quiet would serve only the moral indifference of the world….You have done your duty in publishing this book and bringing these facts to light.”
The Jehovah’s Witness magazine Consolation (Trost in German) carried hundreds of reports about atrocities being done against Witnesses and other victims. These magazines were distributed worldwide.
Other newspapers, such as Der Tog, reported on the persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
In 1934, Jehovah’s Witnesses from 50 countries on five continents sent thousands of telegrams to Hitler demanding that he stop the persecution.