South America and the Holocaust

Well, I bet one of the worst known things about South America is nazism and why it become a refuge for so many Nazi war criminals.

To start with, one has to realize South America has always beeing in close contract with Europe, more than with North America or the rest of the world. So the liberal ideas of Europe spread in South America with the same speed Nazi and Communist ideas did.

Latin America followed the same path of Europe in the ideological battlefield previous to WWII. The Nazi party, in particular, become very strong in many South American countries. Not only existed street violence and uniforms in the streets but also certain tragical events like a massacre in here or there once in a while.

Not only that, there were many people in South America that were on the side of Nazi Germany. One should not forget there are tens of millions of German settlers living all over South America, particularly in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay, that in its time were on the side of the Nazis because Germany was theirs motherland. Besides, many locals that were not Germans, also embraced the racist ideology of the superior "surdics". The idea of the superior mixed-people that was encouraged by Nazis. Actually, most South American Nazis are mixed people.

Now, regimes like the one of Peron, where quite sympathetic of the Nazis, and they helped Nazis to escape.

Once in the Americas, the Nazi criminals changed theirs identities and personalities. Most of them become common people that followed peaceful lives like common business people, and that never hurt anyone and that were even beloved by theirs neighbourghs.  So, when they were caught there was quite a shock between locals.

The history is more complex than that but this is to give you some idea of why this thing happens.

Pinguin