![]() An able-bodied husband would be looked down on if he couldn’t support his family. Before this, it was a custom that married Austrian women did not work outside the home. Hitler decided we should have equal rights for women. The government made sure that a lot of work was created through the Public Work Service. Three or four weeks later, everyone was employed. The new government opened up big field kitchens and everyone was fed.Īfter the election, German officials were appointed, and like a miracle, we suddenly had law and order. We were overjoyed, and for three days we danced in the streets and had candlelight parades. Ninety-eight percent of the population voted to annex Austria to Germany and have Hitler for our ruler. Hitler also said that businesses would be assisted, and farmers would get their farms back. We were promised that a vote for Hitler would mean the end of unemployment and help for the family. We wanted the same way of life in Austria. We were led to believe that everyone was happy. Nothing was ever said about persecution of any group - Jewish or otherwise. We had been told that they didn’t have employment or crime, and they had a high standard of living. We looked to our neighbor on the north, Germany, where Hitler had been in power since 1933. Blocks and blocks of cities like Vienna, Linz, and Graz were destroyed.The people became desperate and petitioned the government to let them decide what kind of government they wanted. ![]() The Communist Party and the National Socialist Party were fighting each other. Every day we cooked a big kettle of soup and baked bread to feed those poor, hungry people about 30 daily. My mother was a Christian woman and believed in helping people in need. ![]() Not that they didn’t want to work there simply weren’t any jobs. Young people were going from house to house begging for food. Farmers and business people were declaring bankruptcy daily. We had 25% inflation and 25% bank loan interest rates. Nearly one-third of our workforce was unemployed. Everyone thinks that Hitler just rolled in with his tanks and took Austria by force. I’ve never read that in any American publications. I cannot tell you that Hitler took Austria by tanks and guns it would distort history. I believe that I am an eyewitness to history. What I am about to tell you is something you’ve probably never heard or will ever read in history books. Kitty Werthmann told a powerful story about what it was like growing up under Hitler:
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