Talk:Rudolf Hess
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Correcting mistranslation of Hess’s 20 April 1940 speech
The article currently states that Rudolf Hess used an English racial slur (the n-word) in his 20 April 1940 radio address for Hitler’s birthday.
This is incorrect and comes from a propagandistic English paraphrase, not the original German.
The original German text (Bundesarchiv NS 10/220) reads:
“… die Engländer, die Neger und Inder gegen uns in den Kampf werfen möchten …”
The German word “Neger” in 1940 meant “Negro(es)”, not the English n-word.
Authoritative translation standards (e.g., Nazi Conspiracy and Aggression, Vol. VIII, USGPO 1946) translate “Neger” consistently as “Negroes.”
Sources:
- Bundesarchiv, NS 10/220 (German original speech)
- Nazi Conspiracy and Aggression, Vol. VIII, USGPO 1946 (Nuremberg translation conventions)
- Duden: “Neger” (historical term corresponding to “Negro”)
Proposed correction:
Replace the inaccurate slur with:
“… claimed the British wanted to throw Negroes and Indians into the fight against Germany (German: Neger und Inder).”
This follows WP:NPOV, WP:RS, WP:V, and WP:UNDUE. Manteo2murphy (talk) 17:34, 21 November 2025 (UTC)