2 — Inglourious Basterds’ Incorrect Image: The Role of Marcel as a Black Man During the Holocaust

“Oui Shosanna.” With no care for whether he lives or dies, Marcel tosses his cigarette into the pile of flammable nitrate film in front of him and follows orders for the woman he loves. His role, as practically the co-owner of Le Gamaar Cinema, the theatre he helps burn to the ground, is a surprising one. As a French black man living in the time of the Holocaust, his life seems to be going pretty well.

The way Marcel is portrayed throughout the film makes it easy for one to think European black life during the 1940s is comparable to views on current black life — discrimination here and there, but overall not that bad. This perception was not the reality, and can be seen in Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf ¹, where he writes “It is a scarcely conceivable fallacy of thought to believe that a Negro…will turn into a German because he learns German and is willing to speak the German language and perhaps even give his vote to a German political party.” Although blacks were not subject to the level of extermination and persecution that Jews faced in Eastern Europe, many were isolated, sterilized, and murdered; not unusual for the black community globally over the years. During World War II, blacks both persevered, through groups like the Afrika Schau and experienced demise, like the Rhineland Bastards. Some black men, like Élie Bloncourt, bravely stood up and against German superiority.

Das Negroes

The black Holocaust story is not common knowledge today, and is rarely brought up when learning about Holocaust history. However, through the use of comedy, like Key and Peele’s “Das Negros” sketch², this part of history is sometimes brought to life. “Das Negros”, a simple five-minute clip, shows a more accurate history of European black life during the Holocaust than the entire role of Marcel in “Inglorious Basterds”.

A Nazi soldier knocks on the door of two white-faced black men, telling them he is searching for two escaped negroes, and unaware he is standing right in front of them. He tests ‘Heinrich Leroyheimer’ and ‘Baron Helmut Schnitzelnazi’ to see if they are black or not, and the outrageous ways in which he does, provide a laugh, but also give the audience a glimpse of what blacks really experienced in WWII. Many were taken from their homes and unfairly, unethically, and inaccurately tested on to prove superiority of the Aryan race.

Élie Bloncourt

Élie Bloncourt was a French politician who got his career start in the military. In 1915, during World War I, he was struck with a machine gun bullet and blinded. Found by Germans, he lived in captivity for almost a year, and once he returned to France, was confused as to what to do. He started a new life and started teaching, eventually growing in roles until he was the representative of the department Aisne in the French National Assembly³.

As the Holocaust took off, Bloncourt immediately took a strong stand against any cooperation with German soldiers and did not attend meetings that dealt with possible compromise. In the occupied zone, the area of France controlled by Nazi Germans, Bloncourt organized an underground Socialist Party and became the leader. This group led the Libération-Nord for Aisne, which was part of eight networks that made up the larger resistance movement, National Council of the Resistance, trying to take Germany out of France. He also participated in the Brutus Network, spying on and reporting the movements of the occupying German forces³. Through his various committees and actions, Élie Bloncourt made a difference for those around him in France. I would like to think that Marcel would share this passion, and that would serve as good reason for agreeing with Shosanna to burn down the theatre.

The Afrika Schau

Although Marcel is not a shining representative of the role of blacks in the 30s and 40s, there are some aspects of his role that are feasible for the time. Marcel and a number of black men and women worked in the entertainment business, but their conditions and responsibilities were very different. While Marcel was able to control his hours, live freely, and work without fear of being taken away, other blacks in the entertainment business looked at work as their last chance.

The Afrika Schau was a traveling show that started in Germany in 1936. It was meant to showcase African culture and its role in German history⁴, but was quickly taken over by Hitler’s SS and altered. The new purpose involved hiring more blacks, and putting on shows that pushed savage stereotypes like viewing Africans as strong, unruly animals with an insatiable sex drive¹, to reinforce superiority of the Aryan race. Although joining this show meant going against everything German blacks saw themselves as, they jumped at the opportunity because they knew it assured their survival for a little bit longer. The show was shut down in 1941 because it wasn’t doing enough, but enough damage had been done, as many German people of color were treated with severe hostility from the public.

The Rhineland Bastards

When Germany was split of its colonies after its loss in World War I, the area of Rhineland was occupied by the Allies. Over 200,000 French soldiers, including black soldiers, managed this region, and over time, some of these soldiers had children with the local German women.

It is estimated that about 800 mixed children were born through this, and they were given the name of Rhineland Bastards⁵ because some were born out of wedlock. In 1933, a law was passed promising future sterilization of the disabled, Gypsies, and blacks. Mixed Afro-German children were especially targeted; they could not get jobs or attend universities. In 1935, stricter laws were made, prohibiting marriage between Aryans and anyone else. All pregnant Afro-German women were forced to get an abortion. In 1937, the sterilization and testing process began. Over 400 mixed children were arrested and sterilized, and victim Hans Hauck has spoken about how there was no use of anesthetic present. After his sterilization, he received a certificate and was forced to promise he would not have any kind of sexual relationships with Germans⁵. Since Marcel isn’t German, he luckily does not show any of these traits or stories in his character. Not only does he work with someone who looks the complete opposite of him, he also loves and sleeps with her. Although the latter may not be known to the Nazi soldiers that visit the cinema, they still are not shocked or suspicious of Marcel’s employment position.