Digital Atlas of Nazi Crimes – Nazi Crimes Atlas

PROJECT

NCA Project Description – Nazi Crimes Atlas [PDF]

Basis and occasion

The central aim of the “Digital Atlas of Nazi Crimes” project is the digital mapping of the scenes of Nazi crimes. To this end, various sources and directories of concentration camps, forced labor camps and prisoner of war camps are being brought together. Other crime scenes in Germany are recorded in the files of the German judiciary on Nazi crimes between 1933 and 1945. The aim of the project is to map unpunished crimes on the basis of the more than 25,000 documented cases of Nazi crimes. It is expected that 80% of the German municipalities in today’s federal territory and around 8,000 crime scenes in Germany will be mapped and made visible in a bilingual digital atlas. The presentation will be organized thematically, e.g. according to pogroms, denunciations, final stage crimes or so-called murders of the sick. The project is part of the educational agenda on Nazi injustice of the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future (EVZ).

Goals

Our aim is to remedy a deficit in the accessibility of this important historical data. We make expert knowledge accessible to the public. Through activating communication of the Nazi past and making it visible, we make it possible to gain knowledge and understanding and to learn lessons from it. The project deepens and broadens understanding of the Holocaust and other Nazi crimes. The app for smartphones makes access simple and direct. Initiatives can find specific acts and crime scenes directly at their location for research purposes. The project sees itself as a contribution to public history and citizen science.

 

Implementation

The central component of the project is a free smartphone app that provides access to the historical crime scenes. It starts with the Nazi crimes of the so-called “Reichspogrom” in 1938. Once the transfer has been completed, the atlas will include over 8,000 sites of Nazi crimes in Germany. The wealth of data shows how the justice system and German society dealt with Nazi crimes. All victim groups are included – not only the Jewish population, but also other people affected by the Nazi crimes.

We actively approach initiatives and train them to participate, deepen and expand their research. In this way, data and materials are continuously added to the app.

Effect

The “Digital Atlas of Nazi Crimes” conveys competence and trains the ability to criticize. It triggers awareness processes on site. Remembrance is understood here as paying tribute to the victims of Nazi crimes. As a medium for a variety of target groups, the app offers access to relevant information at any time and from any location and makes a lasting contribution to political education. Public relations work and the focus on young generations will further strengthen the project’s impact, contribute to a critical and in-depth examination of the past and promote civic engagement.

Classification in the culture of remembrance of the FRG

The project expands the possibilities of remembrance and promotes the discourse on perpetration, its prosecution and the general understanding of guilt and responsibility. It offers a platform for civic engagement and a continuous source of political education. By providing local information and involving all victim groups, the history becomes more tangible and shows the breadth of the population groups affected. Forgetting would be a second phase of guilt and omission towards the victims. The “Digital Atlas of Nazi Crimes” therefore not only creates a historical reference work, but also a lively, up-to-date examination of the Nazi dictatorship.

WEBSITE
www.NaziCrimesAtlas.org

DURATION
1.4.2024-31.12.2025

PARTICIPATING COUNTRIES
Germany

TOTAL COSTS
770,431 euros

PROJECT PROVIDER
dieKunstBauStelle e. V.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Wolfgang Hauck

SCIENTIFIC PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Dr. Edith Raim

CONCEPT AND IDEA
Wolfgang Hauck, Dr. Edith Raim

COOPERATION PARTNER
berlinHistory e. V.

PARTNER
European Holocaust Memorial Foundation e. V.
Anne Frank Center

PROMOTION PROGRAMME
Education Agenda 2024
Digital learning spaces cluster

FUNDING
The project is funded by the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future (EVZ) and the Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF) as part of the educational agenda on Nazi injustice.

STATUS

The project is currently being realized.