Star of David

The Germans implemented a complex system of identifying badges for inmates in concentration camps, usually consisting of inverted triangles whose color denoted the category of the prisoner.

Jews incarcerated in camps were marked with two yellow triangles forming a Star of David. View This Term in the Glossary Made of fabric, these were sewn onto camp clothing. Other categories of prisoners were identified by the red triangle (political prisoners), green (criminals), black (asocials), brown (Sinti-Roma, originally black), pink (homosexuals), among others. These categories could be further refined by combining them. Thus, a Jew incarcerated for political reasons would have a red triangle superimposed on a yellow triangle. For non-German nationals, a letter denoting the country of origin was placed inside the badge, such as a P for Polish prisoners.

When Nazi officials implemented the Jewish badge between 1939 and 1945, they did so in an intensified, systematic manner, as a prelude to deporting Jews to ghettos and killing centers in German-occupied eastern Europe. During the Nazi era, German authorities reintroduced the Jewish badge as a key element in their plan to persecute and eventually to destroy the Jewish population of Europe. They used the badge not only to stigmatize and humiliate Jews but also to segregate them and to watch and control their movements. The badge also facilitated deportation.

Nazi propaganda minister Josef Goebbels was the first to suggest a "general distinguishing mark" for German Jews in a memorandum in May 1938. Security Police chief Reinhard Heydrich reiterated the idea at a November 12, 1938, meeting convened by Herman Göring following Kristallnacht. In both cases no immediate action was taken.