Amazon pulls Nazi films
Amazon Australia has agreed to withdraw a range of Nazi propaganda films from sale through its online portal or for streaming on its Amazon Prime platform.
The decision follows a similar move by Amazon in the US last month after a protest by the Simon Wiesenthal Centre.
The cause was taken up here by the Anti-Defamation Commission (ADC).
Made in Nazi Germany in the 1930s and 1940s, some of the films depict Jews as caricatures designed to trigger hatred and ridicule, while others focus on purported German military victories during World War II.
Among 30 films withdrawn by Amazon Australia from DVD sales and streaming are The Jew Suss and The Eternal Jew, both made in 1940, and films by notorious Nazi propagandist filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, known as the mastermind behind the cinematic treatment of the 1936 Berlin Olympics.
Approached by The AJN, Amazon Australia declined to comment, but The AJN understands that Amazon’s Australian team has reviewed titles of concern – which were available for purchase or streaming and on DVD – and removed several titles which were found to be in violation of its policies.
Stating that films such as these “provide comfort and serve as an inspiration for white supremacists who are driven to carry out atrocities like the ones in Christchurch and Pittsburgh”, ADC chair Dvir Abramovich said, “Let there be no mistake: these evil and bloodstained productions should have never been offered for sale, and we applaud Amazon Australia for doing what is right and acting with immediate urgency to banish this filth.”
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