[Man standing in front of the Silesian Homeland clubhouse and pub; a swastika is painted on the wall to the right, Berlin]

The Schlesische Heimatstube (Silesian Homeland clubhouse and pub), celebrated the heritage of German speakers from Silesia, a border region between Germany, Poland, and Czechoslovakia. Regional clubhouses such as this provided forums for the expression of ethnic, regional, and national identity rooted in the land. For non-Germans, including Vishniac, the ubiquitous celebrations of a German “fatherland” or “homeland” represented barriers to belonging in German society that became increasingly ominous as the Nazis rose to power.