Lessons from 1921: When you feed the fire, don't be surprised when it reaches you
History from 1921 shows that radical movements only see your identity, never your loyalty
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In 1921, a decorated German war veteran named Max Naumann founded an unusual group: the Association of German National Jews. Its members were Jewish, yet they despised Zionism, looked down on Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe and wrapped themselves in German nationalism. When Hitler rose, they cheered. They convinced themselves his hatred was mere noise to rally the crowds and that patriotic, assimilated Jews like them would be spared.
They were wrong. In November 1935, the Nazi regime outlawed their association. Naumann was arrested by the Gestapo and jailed. Most of his followers were later murdered in the Holocaust, alongside the very Jews they had scorned. A grim joke of the era had them marching and chanting, "Down with us!" To the Nazi men they trusted, a Jew was simply a Jew. Loyalty bought them nothing.
They were wrong. In November 1935, the Nazi regime outlawed their association. Naumann was arrested by the Gestapo and jailed. Most of his followers were later murdered in the Holocaust, alongside the very Jews they had scorned. A grim joke of the era had them marching and chanting, "Down with us!" To the Nazi men they trusted, a Jew was simply a Jew. Loyalty bought them nothing.
History rarely repeats exactly, but it does rhyme. The lesson is timeless: movements built on absolute identity do not reward those who help them from the other side of the line. They only postpone the reckoning.
Consider Bangladesh. In the summer of 2024, a student-led uprising over a job-quota system swelled into a national protest that toppled popularly elected Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India in early August. Many who marched were secular, liberal, young, and hopeful, including Hindus, the country's largest minority. They wanted a fairer republic.
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What followed was uglier than they bargained for. In the days after Hasina's exit, community groups recorded roughly 205 attacks on minorities across 52 districts. Reporting in Prothom Alo documented more than 1,000 minority-owned homes and businesses attacked in just the first two weeks. Temples were vandalised, shops burned, and families left guarding their homes at night.
Why were Hindus singled out? A Bangladeshi scholar explained that under earlier non-secular governments, especially the BNP–Jamaat-e-Islami alliance, minority attacks notably rose, a memory that still shapes fear today. When restraints on hardline groups loosened, the most vulnerable paid first.
Although Bangladesh's interim government argued much of the violence was political or criminal rather than religious, a pattern of targeting minorities was clearly visible while the state looked the other way. The famous case of lynching of Deepu Chandra Das on fake blasphemy allegations was for everybody to see. Little did those ignorant young liberal Hindus know what was coming for them. Deepu Chandra Das became a victim of their activism.
What followed was uglier than they bargained for. In the days after Hasina's exit, community groups recorded roughly 205 attacks on minorities across 52 districts. Reporting in Prothom Alo documented more than 1,000 minority-owned homes and businesses attacked in just the first two weeks. Temples were vandalised, shops burned, and families left guarding their homes at night.
Why were Hindus singled out? A Bangladeshi scholar explained that under earlier non-secular governments, especially the BNP–Jamaat-e-Islami alliance, minority attacks notably rose, a memory that still shapes fear today. When restraints on hardline groups loosened, the most vulnerable paid first.
Although Bangladesh's interim government argued much of the violence was political or criminal rather than religious, a pattern of targeting minorities was clearly visible while the state looked the other way. The famous case of lynching of Deepu Chandra Das on fake blasphemy allegations was for everybody to see. Little did those ignorant young liberal Hindus know what was coming for them. Deepu Chandra Das became a victim of their activism.
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Community bodies still counted over 2,400 incidents against minorities between August 2024 and June 2025. India's government formally voiced concern over the hostility faced by Hindus, Buddhists and Christians.
The pattern across a century is quiet but clear. Those who imagine they can partner and mollycoddle an intolerant radical force and be treated as an exception misread how such forces think. Naumann believed his medals mattered. Some hoped a shared enemy would protect them. In each case, the movement (Nizis or Islamists) eventually looked past the alliance and saw only the category (Jews and Hindus) it despised.
The wiser and logical path is not to be ignorant about ideologies that are incompatible with civilization. Whether it be Nazis of the 1930s or Islamists of today. The Sword and Guns of radicals would not see which side you are standing on, they only see whether you are one of them or not. It doesn’t matter whether today you pander to or mollycoddle such radical thoughts; once in the majority, they will come for you. Case after case from centuries says the same thing. The fire you help light does not check who lit it. One can only hope that Liberals, especially those who pander to Islamists, will learn this lesson before it's too late.