Letter: If Britain had not taken on Hitler
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A N WILSON states: "The one fact about Hitler which nobody believed during the Second World War was that he meant what he said about the Jews" and "Only in 1945 when people watched the newsreels of Belsen did the extent of the Nazi atrocities become clear".
This is not true. Victor Gollancz wrote a pamphlet called Let My People Go, published in January 1943, which included statements such as: "The murders have taken the form of random shooting, mass shootings, mass electrocutions, mass poison-gassing, and transportation in conditions which inevitably involve death during the journey" and "All this is part, not of war, but of a quite deliberate policy, openly proclaimed, of extermination of the Jewish population of Europe".
The pamphlet was widely circulated, and over 100,000 copies were sold, so the statements it contained were not secret. Whether people believed what was published, or whether they then did the right things, are matter for debate, but there cannot be any doubt that they had been told what was happening.
VICTOR LESER
London W5
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments