Candace Owens, a prominent conservative media personality, has ignited controversy with recent remarks about World War II and the Holocaust, prompting swift backlash online.
In a YouTube episode titled, "Literally Hitler. Why Can't We Talk About Him?", Owens appeared to downplay the atrocities of Nazi Germany while criticizing the Allies' post-war actions. She questioned the taboo surrounding Hitler discussions, stating, "We have been indoctrinated and we actually know nothing about the person other than the fact that we must fear him."
Owens suggested that education about Nazi Germany is a form of indoctrination, comparing it to "Soviet tactics of introducing really heavy concepts to kids while their brains are developing because you want to traumatize them." She further claimed this was done to ensure compliance with a narrative portraying Hitler as "the greatest evil that's ever happened on earth, even though factually and statistically it is not. Why is he the most evil?"
She then made controversial assertions about Allied actions after World War II, claiming they "ethnically cleansed 12 million Germans... in the exact same [concentration] camps that we then transferred the Germans into so that we could mass kill them." She described the Holocaust as "an ethnic cleansing [that] almost took place," while asserting that the Allies "actually did [an ethnic cleansing]."
Candace Owens has completely lost her mind. Blinded by Jew hatred, she's not resorted to defending Hitler. https://t.co/bQqeGn9qM4
— Adam Milstein (@AdamMilstein) July 10, 2024
These statements drew sharp criticism from various public figures. Adam Milstein, a philanthropist, responded on X, saying, "Candace Owens has completely lost her mind. Blinded by Jew hatred, she's now resorted to defending Hitler." International human rights lawyer Arsen Ostrovsky went further, accusing Owens of having "gone full-blown Neo-Nazi."
Owens also cast doubt on the well-documented medical experiments conducted by Nazi doctor Josef Mengele, describing them as sounding like "bizarre propaganda." She said, "The idea that they just cut a human up and then sewed them back together. Why would you do that? Even if you're the most evil person in the world, that's a tremendous waste of time and supplies."
The Combat Antisemitism Movement responded to these comments on X, stating, "It is an established fact that SS officer Josef Mengele performed deadly experiments on Jewish twins during the Holocaust. Not 80 years later, Candace Owens tries to rewrite history by denying these depraved acts ever happened. Utterly repugnant." Adam Goldman, chief editor of the NYU Review, summed up the sentiment of many critics, saying it was "Hard to go much lower than this."
It is an established fact that SS officer Josef Mengele performed deadly experiments on Jewish twins during the Holocaust.
Not 80 years later, @RealCandaceO tries to rewrite history by denying these depraved acts ever happened.
Utterly repugnant. pic.twitter.com/1RdLn35wLm
— Combat Antisemitism Movement (@CombatASemitism) July 10, 2024
In her video, Owens drew comparisons between Nazi scientists and US institutions, mentioning the CIA and Planned Parenthood. She said, "We took all of those top Nazi scientists and we brought them to America. I wonder why we did that. Maybe for a little more experimentation. Have you ever heard of the CIA? If you think experimentation is unique to the Nazis, you need to wake up. You heard of Planned Parenthood? They literally tell you to abort your children if they have special needs."
