Three Nazi Archives Urged to Go Online After NSDAP Database Success

Over a million people have already used the online databases of NSDAP members, proving the value of digital archives for remembering the Nazi era after the generation of contemporary witnesses has passed. The article proposes three archives that should be made publicly accessible online next. It references the book "Opa war kein Nazi" by Harald Welzer, Sabine Moller, and Karoline Tschuggnall, which studies how family memories of National Socialism and the Holocaust diverge from public records. While the Nazi regime is generally condemned, most families distance themselves from personal involvement. Although research into whether a grandfather was a Nazi has always been possible, archival hurdles such as applications, justifications, and on-site visits have been traumatic. The article suggests that digitizing these archives would facilitate broader access and more honest confrontation with the past.