To the Editor:
Historian Ian Kershaw debunked the rumor that Hitler’s grandfather was the son of the Jewish employer of his grandmother years ago. The myth came from the memoirs of Nazi lawyer Hans Frank, written while he awaited his execution.
It is irresponsible to promote this discredited myth, which is widely used in anti-Jewish conspiracy theories. The narrative of a bloodline of evil Jews/Illuminati as the source of rebellion against God is a key component of many New World Order conspiracy theory narratives now rampant in American society.
This narrative has been marketed in millions of volumes of end-times prophecy media that warn of the coming rule of the anti-Christ and the efforts of the cabal to bring about a one-world government. The narrative makes "evil Jews" the villains of history, even in the persecution of other Jews including the Holocaust.
For example, in his 2006 book "Jerusalem Countdown," Pastor John Hagee claims that Hitler was the product of these "half-breed Jews." Hagee also states that the anti-Christ, who he claims is alive today, is "partially Jewish, as was Adolf Hitler."
Rachel Tabachnick
Pittsburgh, Pa.
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